PHOTOS: Arsenal Midfielder’s Injury Got So Nasty That He Could Have Lost His Leg
REUTERS/Hannah McKay
Before Mesut Ozil became the only creative centre in Arsenal’s midfield, he was usually seen accompanied by Santiago Cazorla.
Unfortunately, after suffering what seemed like a minor knock during his side’s 6-0 win over Ludogorets in the Champions League, the Spaniard’s injury aggravated into something that saw him undergo three surgeries and sit out over a year worth of football.
However, despite the treatment and surgeries he received, during an interview with Marca, Cazorla revealed that there was a point when he could’ve lost his leg once and for all due to the complications that arose following the injury.
The midfield magician contracted a dangerous infection due a part of his Achilles going unhealed following a surgery, which was considered for amputation back then. Fortunately, the former Malaga man went through another surgery, in which the skin from his arm was to be grafted to his foot.
Santi had lost eight centimetres from the tendon in his right ankle, and was told by the doctors that he might be lucky to even walk with his children. See the result of the operation here (The tattoo of his daughter’s name on his arm can be seen grafted):
poRTada de Marca pic.twitter.com/79AiogAPyE
— J. I. Gallardo (@JIGallardo) November 2, 2017
“They [Arsenal] were very good to me, they renewed me before my operation, the manager talked to me and gave me peace of mind. It’s been a difficult season, since I have not played since November,” the talented midfielder told Cadena Ser back in May.
“I’ve been through surgery eight times. I had the last one yesterday, and hopefully everything will go well. Since November I have had complications. There was bacteria in the operating room and I suffered an infection in a bone. The scar did not close and I had a skin graft.”
As fans of the beautiful game, it is certainly hard to see such a talented player going through a career ending situation. Nevertheless, the football fans, and especially the Arsenal faithful, will be delighted to learn that the 32-year-old has set his sights on a return by January 2018.
Written by Ashish Sreejith 
Have had two addictions in life- playing football and watching football. Usually described as introverted but not when it comes to speaking and writing about the beautiful game of football.