Luis Edu
Physical problems have forced many talents in the sport to decide to retire early, leaving their fans feeling that they could have gone much further in their respective careers.
It has not even been necessary for these difficulties to arise at the end of their careers, they could have come at the beginning and in the middle of it, and in the same way they altered what could have been an even more mythical sports character. On this list, we review the five most affected Latin American athletes in their career due to injuries.
The Ranking: Latin Athletes Most Affected by Injuries in these Recent Years
5.- Gabriel Batistuta | Soccer
Gabriel Batistuta was one of the great scorers in world football in the 1990s and part of the 2000s, until in 2005 he had to make the tough decision to leave the sport due to a series of leg injuries.
“I asked a doctor to cut off my legs,” revealed the Argentine star during an interview with the BBC, describing the constant pain he suffered due to the number of physical limitations suffered throughout his career.
4.- Yoenis Céspedes | MLB
Yoenis Céspedes projected to end his career in the MLB as one of the best Latin historical hitters, but everything was diluted before time due to an extra-sports issue. Turns out, while recovering from other problems, he broke his ankle in an altercation with a wild boar on his ranch.
The Cuban outfielder last played in the Major Leagues in the 2020 season.
3.- Pablo Aimar | Soccer
Pablo Aimar began his career in professional football as one of the great promises of the Argentinean team, but a chronic ankle injury significantly limited him.
However, the midfielder had years of glory in European football with Valencia in LaLiga, and he can even afford to say that he is the idol of a certain… Lionel Messi .
2.- Juan Martin del Potro | Tennis
At the beginning of the 2022 professional tennis season, Juan Martín del Potro (Argentinean) put an end to his brilliant career in the ATP, due to a knee problem from which he was never able to fully recover.
“Delpo” will go down in tennis history mainly for winning the 2009 US Open, with memorable triumphs over Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
1.- Adriano | Soccer
Adriano was the star striker for a Brazilian soccer team that also featured stars like Kaká and Ronaldinho. However, the Achilles tendon injury, along with poor personal decisions, ended up causing this player to leave the fields early.
In addition to winning the Copa América with his national team, “El Emperador” shone to the fullest in Serie A in the uniform of Inter Milan.
