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The Impact of Anterior Shoulder Dislocation in Elite Soccer Goalkeepers
Andrea Redler1, Alessandro Annibaldi1, Cristiano Benelli1
1II School of Medicine, Sant'Andrea Hospital, Kirk Kilgour Sports Injury Center, University of Rome "La Sapienza," Rome, Italy.
Background:
Anterior shoulder dislocation is an injury that can impair a professional goalkeeper's career. However, few studies have examined return to play (RTP) after surgery in professional goalkeepers.
Purpose:
To assess the RTP, pre- and postinjury performances, and market value of professional goalkeepers who suffered a shoulder dislocation.
Study Design:
Descriptive epidemiology study.
Methods:
Professional goalkeepers with a shoulder dislocation between 2011 and 2021 were included. Top European leagues were considered: Serie A (Italy), Premier League (England), Ligue 1 (France), LaLiga (Spain), and Bundesliga (Germany). Player age, height, position, injury history, RTP, and market value were retrieved from a publicly available website. The preinjury season (season -1), the injury season (season 0), and the 2 postinjury seasons (season +1 and season +2) were compared.
Results:
A total of 19 goalkeepers were included in the study with a mean age of 27.2 ± 5.22 years at the time of injury. All players underwent surgery. The mean RTP was 147.53 ± 64.23 days. The mean percentage minutes per season (MPS) in season -1 was 86.57% ± 13.89%, with a decrease to 37.34% ± 24.66% in the injury season and an increase to 72.72% ± 25.79% in season +1 and 62.69% ± 33.23% in season +2. Significant changes were found in MPS across the 4 analyzed seasons (P < .001). Post hoc comparisons revealed statistically significant differences between season -1 and season 0 (P < .001), season -1 and season +1 (P = .019), and season -1 and season +2 (P = .005). The difference between season +1 and season +2 was not statistically significant (P = .284). The mean market values were €7.13M ±€8.33M (season -1), €8.05M ±€8.25M (season 0), €8.71M ±€11.45M (season +1), and €11.47M ±€22.89M (season +2). Regarding market value, no significant differences were detected among the seasons (P = .285). All goalkeepers returned to play after the surgery, with 1 case (5.3%) at a lower level.
Conclusion:
All professional goalkeepers returned to play at a competitive level with a significant reduction in the percentage of available minutes played in the 2 seasons after surgery. However, this injury does not seem to influence the market value of these players.
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