An increasingly prevalent situation that occurs nowadays in football is players playing through injury. There have been comments made about taking pain-killers, injections straight into the knee, things of that nature to quell pain and allow players to play because the team cannot do without that individual. Players, not willing to either disappoint their teammates/fans or not wanting to be antagonized, agree to play.

Yaya Touré and Zlatan Ibrahimović are recent examples of players who have an injury, but are so indispensable to their respective sides that the team management is willing to gamble on the player’s health by asking them to play despite their injury. And when they – unsurprisingly – are unable to perform to best of their ability due to the injury, the fans and critics cut them no slack. The aforementioned Zlatan is a case in point. He was injured a few weeks before Champions League recommenced, was playing injured after the Liverpool game, and he is in fact still injured ... yet the management was seriously considering picking him for this weekend’s game against Lazio despite strong medical advice telling the club to rest him for a minimum of a week ...

But, if these players choose not to play due to the fact that they don’t feel 100%, then the fans and critics completely antagonize them; Ronaldinho is a case in point here. Sometimes it appears to be just an excuse, but other times the truth is too obvious to miss. I’m just naming players who I follow; I am sure there are far more examples of this from other clubs and leagues. And with players being pushed so far to their physical limits that they are collapsing and dieing on the field of play, this issue is indeed a very serious one.

Are the stakes so high that this issue has no real solution? Is the amount of money being paid to these players enough to compensate for a possible lost limb, or even a lost life?

Do the clubs and the fans have a moral obligation to heed medical advice and not play their best/irreplaceable players when they are injured? I say yes.

What are your opinions?

An increasingly prevalent situation that occurs nowadays in football is players playing through injury. There have been comments made about taking pain-killers, injections straight into the knee, things of that nature to quell pain and allow players to play because the team cannot do without that individual. Players, not willing to either disappoint their teammates/fans or not wanting to be antagonized, agree to play.

Yaya Touré and Zlatan Ibrahimović are recent examples of players who have an injury, but are so indispensable to their respective sides that the team management is willing to gamble on the player’s health by asking them to play despite their injury. And when they – unsurprisingly – are unable to perform to best of their ability due to the injury, the fans and critics cut them no slack. The aforementioned Zlatan is a case in point. He was injured a few weeks before Champions League recommenced, was playing injured after the Liverpool game, and he is in fact still injured ... yet the management was seriously considering picking him for this weekend’s game against Lazio despite strong medical advice telling the club to rest him for a minimum of a week ...

But, if these players choose not to play due to the fact that they don’t feel 100%, then the fans and critics completely antagonize them; Ronaldinho is a case in point here. Sometimes it appears to be just an excuse, but other times the truth is too obvious to miss. I’m just naming players who I follow; I am sure there are far more examples of this from other clubs and leagues. And with players being pushed so far to their physical limits that they are collapsing and dieing on the field of play, this issue is indeed a very serious one.

Are the stakes so high that this issue has no real solution? Is the amount of money being paid to these players enough to compensate for a possible lost limb, or even a lost life?

Do the clubs and the fans have a moral obligation to heed medical advice and not play their best/irreplaceable players when they are injured? I say yes.

What are your opinions?
Who are you referring to? All players that I am aware of who have died on the field had heart conditions that were undetectable. And who has lost a limb?

As for injuries, I think this is for the most part kept in check my teams' desire to keep their talent healthy for future campaigns.

note the use of the word "possible" ...

that there are things as serious as health conditions that remain "undetectable" highlights the risk of pushing the limits of performance athleticism ...

my point is not about being reactive, but being proactive -- i.e. not waiting till one of these players playing through injury to suffer a career-ending or fatal blow, but preempting it by thinking long-term about a person's health ...

This has been going on for a long time, injections to kill pain when someone really shouldn't play. At the end of the day I think the clubs do have a duty, but, if you're a player and you know your team needs you, you will often put yourself forward regardless of future damage.

It reminds me of the days when players would take cortisone injections in order to play despite being injured. I been told that you're only supposed to have 2 or 3 of these injections in your lifetime, but many old pro's had more than that given to them in their careers, and have suffered in later life.

Well some of the examples you provided are somewhat inconsistent. For once, Yaya has chosen to play regardless of the fact that he might be very needed by Barca, he was out of the lineup for weeks and then chose to come back, when he was given the option to opt for surgery and end his season. Sometimes player's own greed and desire not to de-value themselves by not playing is what plays a bigger role in their not sitting down. In other cases like in the Ronaldihno case, players use their sway with management and others to perhaps "exagerate" injuries in order to get what they want....an example as follows:

Technically speaking if you a professional football player a goalkeeper and you get the top of your pinky broken, you are in all your right to say: "I cant play anymore, I am injured" indeed it is a real injury, regardless of severity. However you will find that over 90% of professional goalkeepers dont stop playing because of a broken pinky tip, as it is an injury that cannot be worsened, sure it is painful but it is possible to keep playing normaly, in fact many players wont stop playing for even more serious injuries than those...Usually being injured in the professional sports realms, means you are completely unable to perform your duties, not that you are unable to feel or be in pain...