You don't have to be an Arsenal fan to appreciate the comeback of Eduardo.
The Brazilian-born, Croatian national team star looked to be finished as a soccer player 11 months ago when a vicious tackle broke his leg in a horrific scene that made soccer fans around the world cringe and wonder if we would ever see him play again.
Eduardo vowed to return and he made his recovery from that gruesome injury complete on Monday, scoring two goals to help Arsenal post 4-0 thrashing of Cardiff in FA Cup action.
Admit it, you thought Eduardo's career was over when he was taken off on a stretcher last year. Now he looks back and ready to help Arsenal turn around an abysmal (by Arsenal standards) season.
What do you think of Eduardo's recovery? Did you think he could do it? Do you see him going on to be the player Arsenal thought he would be when he joined the Gunners?
Share your thoughts below (and if you don't remember or didn't see the tackle that broke Eduardo's leg, you can check it out after the jump).
with a team that has so many key players injured its a breath of fresh air
Very true keano, I forgot about Cisse. He almost lost his leg as well. But even his awful break wasn’t a compound fracture. It’s such a rare injury to see on the pitch.
Great story, and you’ve got to feel good about the guy regardless of what team you follow. The fact that I’m an Arsenal fan just makes it that much sweeter that he’s back, and that there is hope that he can continue to play at the highest level.
Idi Vatreni!
take a seat Mladen Petric.
Jim- If I’m not mistaken, Djibril Cisse has suffered serious fractures to each of his legs (once w/ Liverpool, then again w/ the French NT) and has returned to playing at a high level. Pretty remarkable. He’s the only one I can think of.
I’ll admit it: I was absolutely convinced we’d never see Eduardo compete at a high level again. Yes, modern medicine has made a lot of amazing advances– Tommy John surgery, microfracture, tendon grafts, etc. But lets put this in a bit of perspective: HIS FOOT ALMOST CAME OFF. Can anyone name another player who returned from an injury THIS devastating? Cause I can’t.
I thought he would be back to playing, but not at a high enough level. No more international duty, and a career at a lower division/league club after that horrible injury.
I hope he will prove me wrong as I would hate to see a career cut short from an ungly incident like that.
i cant watch that injury again… glad he is back and playing.
It’s great to see Eduardo back on the pitch and playing football again. And this is coming from a Spurs fan… Here’s hoping he stays healthy and that Arse-nal loses the remainder of their games and fails to make Champions League!
Certainly not an Arsenal Fan here, but you cant help feel good for this guy. Had he been fit, Adebayor wouldve been sold in the last summer window
Ives, why did you have to post the video again? It feels like a Faces of Death video.
“this is equal to or better than Josh Hamilton’s recovery from drugs.”…….
A battle with drugs is his own fault. This kid had nothing to do with the guy breaking his leg into two pieces.
I’m glad to see he is not only back, but “back baby”.
In other news. Jimmy Bullard needs knee surgery AGAIN. And what a coincidence that it resulted from a tackle with the same guy who broke his knee a couple years ago.
Glad to see him back, I’d rather much have a 25% Eduardo than a 100% Mexican Carlos Vela in my team…
Admit it, you thought Eduardo’s career was over when he was taken off on a stretcher last year.
^^^^^^
I will *admit* to nearly tossing my lunch after witnessing that horror tackle.
Did anyone notice who assisted Eduardo on his first goal? Carlos Vela, who had an awesome game. Mexico really missed his class the other day. The guy is 19 and gets starts here and there for Arsenal.
Bravo Dudu!
arkjayback,
Danny Karbassiyoon.
I can see Eduardo being one of the new Adidas spokesmen. Impossible is nothing.
Dear god, everytime I see that video of his foul, I get goosebumps. Its the one of the most horrific looking fouls. To come back from that shows that you have some crazy will to be better.
Absolutely amazing. Even though it was Cardiff, the fact that Eduardo can even walk onto the field is amazing. I hope he can keep it up for the rest of the season because the Prem is different from some championship team. Stay healthy Ed…..
yes…his bone did break through the skin (it was a compound fracture) and his ankle was dislocated and facing the wrong way..glad hes back though hes a real “fox in the box” in the words of wenger
with him, walcott, and cesc back…and if arshavin proves his worth…arsenal will be a force to reckon with
quakes fan, i pointed that out just this weekend in a different post!
admit it, you saw me write it. haha.
Thats still one of the nastiest things ive ever seen.
Good for Eduardo.
Eduardo, RVP, Adebayor. Now Arsenal have a proper striker rotation.
Admit it Ives, you like to say “admit it” alot.
Good for Eduardo. Strong comeback!
LJ – No, Eddie Johnson’s career really is over.
arkjayback – John O’Brien.
But seriously, go Eduardo! I don’t care for your team, but welcome back.
Its good to see him back, but no one is going to turn around that sinking ship…
Did many really think his career was over when he was initially injured? Like arkjay said, medicine has eliminated a lot of acute career ending injuries. If he’s able to come back to the same level though will be the real question. Reminds me of when Stoichkov broke that college guy’s leg a few years back. He apparently never made it back to his original level. In any case, great to see him back and scoring a couple goals to boot.
this is equal to or better than Josh Hamilton’s recovery from drugs. Hamilton was the Home run king at the home run derby. Eduardo scoring 2 goals in the FA cup is amazing.
I don’t need to see that injury again…and yes, I thought he was done. I also thought that with the form he was in at the time, he was the ingredient Arsenal needed to take the league last year. He may not be enough to do it this year, but the odds of taking a champions league spot just got a lot better today.
i’m a sometimes, secret Arsenal fan… but even if i wasn’t it’s really good to see Eduardo back in action, and not just playing but playing well! i think that’s a big distinction. hopefully it continues!
Arsenal vs Cardiff (eduardo’s goals)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaQ3rcip0Xs&eurl=
Eduardo is BACK! and he’ll be back better than ever. The guy is motivated, and when one is motivated they can accomplish great feats and great comebacks. Dudu is dedicated to proving he can still play, but more so proving he is that “natural instinctive forward that the premiership hasnt seen in years” accoding to British tabloids. Not to mention, his dedication to his country and national team since he wasn’t able to lead them in Euro 2008 but is going to make sure he does in World Cup 2010.
I never think anyone’s career is over because of an injury nowadays. With the advancements in medicine, it seems nothing is impossible.
With Eduardo’s injury, I watched the video a lot. I couldn’t tell if the bone went through the skin or not because its covered up by the sock.
Ouch
Eduardo’s return is a real “feel good” story. The guy who broke his leg should have been suspended until Eduardo’s return to first team football (in other words, now). Whether he will be the same player as before remains to be seen. Best of luck to him.
that certainly was a thrashing they put on the bluebirds today…and an impressive comeback for eduardo. but they’re still not golden in the Prem this season.
And what the hell – didn’t the Cardiff City manager know that all he had to do was put in Eddie Johnson!?!? would have guaranteed the upset victory.
Good news, now England will lose to Croatia in WC qualifier
Eduardo Johnson? did they give him a new name? oh…