Alessandro Nesta done for the season. Is his career in doubt too?

By: Francesco | February 13th, 2009

Up until about 2 years ago, if you had asked anyone who the best Italian defender was or even who the top defender in the world was, many people would tell you it was Alessandro Nesta. Everyone appreciated Nesta. He has always been a serious professional who had chosen always to step away from the limelight and preferred to be a silent leader. His ability to always position himself correctly and anticipate the play and make clean tackles has always been second to none. Unfortunately the one problem for Alessandro Nesta has always been injuries. Nesta has been injury prone his whole career. It was a miracle to see Nesta play a full season injury free. In every World Cup he has participated in with Italy (1998, 2002, 2006), he was injured during the tournament and had to sit out. Most recently, his injury problem has been his back.

In 2006 he had already injured his shoulder and went to rehab in Miami as he didn’t want to undergo surgery and risk his career. He came back later in the season to win the Champions League with Milan and conquer 4th place in Serie A.

This past summer, he injured his back, and even though it seemed at first he would only be out for a month or two, he wasn’t even placed on Milan’s UEFA Cup roster in early September, which wasn’t a good sign. In November, still on the sidelines without having made a single appearance, he decided to return to Miami to do some rehab again, as he didn’t want to undergo surgery. He was in Miami until mid-January, when he returned to Italy and started light training. He had been training almost a month and reports said he would be ready to sit on the bench in the derby this weekend, but today more news came out.

Today it was reported that Nesta did not even show up to training. Why? Because his back hurt so bad from the month of training he couldn’t even get out of bed. So it looks like Nesta won’t be playing a part this season for Milan, and now he has to make an important decision for his career. He can undergo surgery, which would mean another long lay-off, and with Nesta turning 33 in March, is it really worth it? The other option is to take it on a day-by-day basis and see if it can cure naturally. At this point it may even be worth considering retirement. He’s had a good career, he’s won almost every trophy there is to win (Scudetto, Coppa Italia, World Club Cup, Champions League, World Cup, UEFA SuperCup, Italian SuperCup, U-21 Championship, 4 Best Italian defender awards), and he may decide that the pain just isn’t worth it anymore. Nesta will have to make a decision soon, and it will be very interesting to see what it is.

Here are some Nesta videos to admire:

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Category: AC Milan, Players, Rumors & News, Serie A, video of the week

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Mike

He's definitely one of my favorite players of all time and it's been really tough without him this season. It's hard to think of him leaving for good, but if he has to he has to and we all know it's for his health, so no one can fault him.
Nolan

Easily the best Italian defender (if not defender period) since Maldini's peak, a shame he's been plagued by so many injuries.
MAD

I am angry?

Huh, thanks for letting me know.

I thought I was in a good mood.

Shows what I know.
brentmcd

Any ideas which specific back surgery he is getting? Some operations (e.g., laminectomy) are much easier to recover from than others (e.g., fusion). As a fellow back pain sufferer also contemplating surgery, I wish Nesta the best for a full, pain-free recovery!
alessio

MAD is just angry at the world, ignore him. If you want to read a site completely void of bias, go read Goal.com.

Re: Nesta, do you think if he has surgery this will still be a recurring issue? The back, not injuries. If so, he could play for a good season or two, if he is still up to it. But if it´s just gonna flare up in 6 months or so, then yeah, I think we are looking at a great players retirement.
Nina

I'm holding out hope for a miraculous recovery, Nesta should not go down like this!
MAD

I am dying to see how the Milaista here reports the derby.

Last year it would have been a foregone conclusion that Toothless Chris would only report what it was in Roma's interest and his own personal feelings.

I have an inkling, using the last derby as a guide, that this guy is gonna go "Milan fan".
rosay

adrianos goal against milan was the biggest hand of god everrr
KJ

great player but too soft...always questioned his toughness
Jessica

I hope things work out for Nesta. Francesco said it best with Nesta always staying out of the limelight and I think is subtly powerful and will always be one of my all time favourites. He was one of the first players I clearly remembering watching for the Azzurri, and Lazio at the time. Forza Nesta!
John

While I believe Fabio Cannavaro is a far better defender, it is always sad to see great players retire early. Even as a Juve fan, i hope Nesta pulls through
kat

Jezuz this lad is injured 365 days a year.
guly

IMO he's better than Fabio Cannavaro. Was very upset when it was Milan who snatched him, not Juve. Grateful though to once had the Parma triangle (Buffon-Canna-Thuram).
Kelly

really sad for him...
Vincent

Nesta was awesome. Back injuries are serious stuff. Ask Larry Bird, Don Mattingly, and Mario Lemeiux who all had to retire early due to back problems
gianfranco

really at a loss for words here...