Injuries

The footballing gods are fickle. One month ago, a 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace sent Newcastle United to the lofty heights of sixth in the Premier League table, in front of both Arsenal and Liverpool. Now, after being held scoreless for 180 minutes in defeats to Burnley and Bournemouth and falling to 11th, the Toon travel to Old Trafford to play a Manchester United side welcoming back both Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba to the side.

A lot of things can go wrong in a soccer match. Aside from the pain and suffering that accompanies losing, one’s physical well-being is constantly at risk. Injury is a part of the game, but typically it’s muscle strains, ligament tears and the occasional broken bone or concussion. Mariano Bittolo suffered an injury far more painful than anything one expects to suffer on the pitch. It may have been the most painful injury of all time.

There’s still no timetable on Borussia Dortmund attacker Marco Reus’s return to action following a ruptured cruciate ligament in last season’s DFB Pokal final, but the German international has revealed the depths of his desperation following the latest injury setback in a seemingly cursed career.

Manchester City and Argentina striker Sergio Aguero was involved in a car accident on Thursday night in Amsterdam while riding in a taxi en route to the airport following a concert by Colombian singer Maluma.