Despite spending the majority of his career wearing protective headgear, it is unbelievable that Petr Cech would conceal an injury. Nevertheless, the ex-goalkeeper disclosed playing for several years with fractured shoulders.
Being a football goalkeeper is certainly one of the professions where suffering from broken shoulders would create significant difficulties.
It's common for footballers to experience knocks and minor injuries, but the majority of them would not continue playing with a fractured bone - let alone two. However, Petr Cech is an exception as he does not fit into the usual player mold.
Despite breaking his shoulder midway through his inaugural season at Stamford Bridge, the revered Chelsea icon chose to grit it out and continue playing. His decision to soldier on was somewhat sensible since Cech was performing excellently and the club were nearing their first league championship in 50 years.
As expected, the Blues finished as champions and established a fresh record of conceding only 15 goals in one season. Additionally, Cech broke the Premier League's clean sheet record by maintaining an impressive scoreless streak for his rivals on 24 occasions.
It's safe to claim that he made a worthwhile risk because it paid off. Nevertheless, in the beginning of his second season, he injured his other shoulder. Despite suffering such an incapacitating setback, was he compelled to undergo treatment? Absolutely not!
In 2020, Cech recounted on Chelsea's website how he had battled through his second season with two broken shoulders. Despite the immense pain that plagued him every day, he persevered to train properly and reduce discomfort in preparation for games.
During the second season, I considered having surgery but was hesitant to jeopardize my chance of participating in the World Cup held in Germany that summer. There wasn't a clear understanding of how much time would be required for me to recover and return to play.
Fortunately, the ex-Czech Republic player underwent surgery during the summer of 2006. After recovering his fitness levels, he was finally relieved from agony. Nevertheless, this state of good health didn't last for long.
During a game with Reading in October 2006, Stephen Hunt's knee collided with Cech's head causing severe injury. He was quickly taken to the hospital and underwent emergency surgery which saved his life. The doctors informed him that due to being one of three siblings born at once, he has an unusually thin skull making it more fragile than most people’s skulls; this fact nearly contributed towards losing his life during this incident.
By the way, it's worth mentioning that Cudicini was also hospitalized due to being knocked unconscious by Reading player Ibrahima Sonko, shortly after he replaced Cech. As a result, John Terry had to fill in as goalkeeper for the rest of the game and successfully prevented any goals from going past him while Chelsea secured a 1-0 victory.
Despite many fans believing that Cech was never the same after his injury, the 41-year-old maintains a positive outlook. He shared, "When you come back from an injury that threatens your career or life, pressure is not at the forefront of your mind. I cherished every moment."
It dawned on me abruptly that any game I played could potentially be my final one. Consequently, every time thereafter when engaging in a match, I savored the experience knowing full well there would always be another to participate in.
My happiness was immeasurable as the journey had not culminated with Reading; this positivity significantly contributed towards my convalescence- each subsequent encounter felt akin to medicinal remedies for me.
During his 11-year tenure with Chelsea, Cech participated in 494 games and earned numerous trophies. He holds the record for most clean sheets (202) among all Premier League goalkeepers and has the highest number of clean sheets in a single season as well as four career Premier League Golden Glove awards - tying him with Joe Hart.
Having won four Premier League titles, five FA Cups, three League Cups and the Champions League along with being widely recognized as one of the greatest goalkeepers ever known for his skills in football. In summary, Cech was truly exceptional... just pondering over how much more effective he could have been if his shoulders were unscathed is quite compelling!
