A routine operation on his knee left Franck Ribery stuck in hospital for nearly two weeks as an infection threatened potential amputation at the end of his playing career
Bayern Munich legend Franck Ribery has revealed that he feared his leg might have to be amputated at the end of his career. Ribery called time on his storied career in 2022 after a brief and unremarkable stint with Italian side Salernitana.
It may have been a low-key way for the Frenchman to conclude his playing on paper, but it was anything but in reality. Ribery was plagued by a knee injury during his time with Salernitana and he ended up having surgery on the problem.
What was supposed to be a routine operation ended up turning into a nightmare for Ribery, who picked up a flesh-eating infection. “My knee hurt more and more,” he told L’Equipe. “I was no longer training between matches but rather recovering to protect myself.
“I went under the knife in Austria. The operation went well, with a plate inserted inside. But I had a bad infection almost five months later.
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“They removed the plate, but the infection had eaten away at me. It was so bad that I had holes in my leg. I had contracted Staphylococcus aureus. I was in the emergency room at the hospital in Austria for 12 days. I was really scared. They could have cut off my leg.”
Unsurprisingly, the ordeal prompted Ribery to call time on his career, which saw him play for Bayern Munich, Galatasaray, Marseille and Fiorentina, among other clubs. He also won 81 caps for France, scoring 16 goals, with his best years coming at Bayern, where he won nine Bundesliga titles.
Ribery dovetailed nicely with Arjen Robben, who played on the opposite wing for Bayern, and he netted 124 goals altogether for the Bavarian giants. The peak of their powers came in 2013 when Bayern secured a treble and Ribery felt he should have been rewarded with the top individual award.
In the end, he came third in the Ballon d’Or vote in 2013, finishing behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Controversially, the voting period was extended for two weeks due to a lack of “eligible voters.”
“I had everything except that award that year,” Ribery said. “It was the perfect year. I could not have performed any better. That Ballon d’Or will always be a lingering injustice.
“I am still searching for an explanation, although some have offered their takes. I will never understand why the vote was delayed by more than two weeks, when I was leading among journalists. If the voting had occurred as it should, I would have won.”
Ribery is now embarking upon a coaching career, having stayed on at Salernitana in 2022 to help the side. He achieved his UEFA B coaching licence in 2023 and passed the A licence last year, having studied for more than a year at Coverciano, Italy’s national team’s training ground.
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