After Barcelona and Spain star Gavi tore his anterior cruciate ligament on Sunday night, both sets of fans have been lamenting the 19-year-old’s luck. With Gavi’s particular injury also affecting his meniscus, and potentially missing up to 10 months, there have been murmurs of concern about how it might affect his game.
No doubt it will have some impact, and following on from Ansu Fati’s consistent injury issues, since which he has so far been able to recapture his early career form, there are fears that Gavi might suffer from similar issues. But there are a number of examples of stars who have made strong comebacks after ACL injuries, with some even getting consistently better thereafter, as noted by Marca.
Xavi Hernandez
The most obvious is Gavi’s manager. Xavi should know what Gavi is going through, having had the same injury in 2005, and got back to play the 2006 World Cup. Four years later, he would be on the Ballon d’Or podium, having won it all.
Mikel Oyarzabal
Spain teammate Mikel Oyarzabal is also aware of Gavi’s particular challenge. He tore his ACL in March of 2022, and missed the World Cup in Qatar as a result. While it took him nine months after his return to begin looking like the player he was previously, Oyarzabal is now playing some of the best football of his career.
Diego Costa
Before going on loan to Rayo Vallecano, a recently arrived Diego Costa injured his ACL. Few would accuse Costa of looking physically impacted at his best, returning to Atletico to take them to the La Liga title and the Champions League final.
Sergio Canales
Another of Gavi’s Spain teammates, Canales had a torrid time with injuries at Real Madrid and Real Sociedad, before finding his best form at Real Betis. Now in Mexico, he was part of the Spain side that delivered the Nations League last summer alongside Gavi, and became a cult hero in Seville.
Inigo Ruiz de Galarreta
Two seasons ago, Ruiz de Galarreta suffered a brutal injury following a challenge while playing for Real Mallorca. Such was his form last season on his return though, the 30-year-old was snapped up by Athletic Club last summer, returning to his boyhood club.
Jose Antonio Camacho
The oldest example in here, Camacho was injured before many advances in modern medicine, and took 20 months to recover. Nevertheless, he returned for Real Madrid and Spain, enjoying great success domestically.
Radamel Falcao
While it is true that injuries have impacted heavily on the second half of his career, the Colombian striker recovered from an ACL injury to become the most lethal forward in the world. While just 20 years of age, Falcao suffered the injury while at River Plate, before going on to win honours with Porto and Atletico Madrid.
