Ansu Fati is once again occupying the Barcelona treatment tables, a concerning trend that echoes the injury track record of Ousmane Dembele.
The 19-year-old dealt with a prolonged absence last season after a knee injury ordeal (dealing with a torn meniscus) — and the surgery required to repair it — resulted in multiple setbacks that cost him essentially all of 2020/21 — he ultimately had another surgery (a partial meniscectomy to remove the irritated piece of tissue) to rectify the situation.
However, after returning from a methodical and conservative ramp-up to the 2021/22 campaign, Fati suffered a significant hamstring injury that cost him nearly two months. And after returning on the turn of the New Year, he picked up another hamstring injury that may potentially cost him the rest of the season.
In the above video, Dr. Rajpal Brar DPT explains Fati’s latest setback and why avoiding a vicious ‘injury-reinjury’ cycle has to be the priority for him and Barcelona.
Dr. Rajpal Brar, DPT, (@3cbperformance) is a physiotherapist, movement expert, fitness trainer, sports scientist and mindfulness coach. He runs the LA and online based physiotherapy and athletic performance clinic 3CB Performance, and you can subscribe to his Youtube channel (which posts analyses of Lionel Messi and more).