The Amount Of Games Thomas Vermaelen Has Missed Through Injury Is Insane

If you think Gareth Bale has a tough time with injuries then you clearly haven’t read into the remarkable and, let’s face it, unfortunate record of Thomas Vermaelen.
The former Arsenal and Ajax centre-back, who has made 70 appearances for Belgium, has missed a huge amount of games through injury.
In total he has been absent in 104 matches for current club Barcelona since joining in 2014.
On top of that the 33-year-old missed 88 games during his five year spell at Arsenal, 31 games in a six year spell at Ajax and 17 matches at Italian side AS Roma.
He was only on a season long loan at the Italian club, for goodness sake.
If you delve deeper into his career, you’ll find that Vermaelen has suffered a total of 24 injuries in his career thus far, which is quite remarkable when you think about it.
So, who else has suffered an unfortunate amount of injuries in the past?
A study from 2016 revealed the players who have missed the most days through injury, and further research shows the most injured players since January 1st, 2012.
In the Premier League the likes of Abou Diaby, Vincent Kompany, Yohan Cabaye, Jack Wilshere and Mikel Arteta are obvious choices in the list while some unexpected names come close to snatching the title.
When it comes to most injuries suffered since Jan 2012, former Tottenham midfielder Mousa Dembele and Manchester City defender Vincent Kompany are among those who lead the list – with 30 injuries since the start of 2012.
Liverpool’s Daniel Sturridge just manages to secure a place outside the top 10 with 24 injuries.
When it comes to most days missed through injury, former Newcastle defender Ryan Taylor tops the list, missing over 900 days out injured.
This study is perhaps the most unsurprising, with the likes of Tony Hibbert, Wes Brown, Abou Diaby and Andy Carroll making up the top 5:
Sturridge, who comes 7th in the list, has missed an incredible 739 days to injury, which translates to just over two years out since 2012.
sportbible.com