Training methods ‘not a factor’ in injury woe
WITH Middlesbrough’s Championship fate now confirmed, the review of the season has begun.
Without doubt, such a big factor behind Boro’s inability to make the top-six this season has a lot to do with their terrible injury record.
Michael Carrick has been without a full-strength squad for the whole season really, with injury worries starting in pre-season when losing key men like Tommy Smith and Jonny Howson.
But from around October onwards, Boro were regularly without ten-plus players per game as injuries really took hold.
With aspirations to improve the squad in the summer and then battle for promotion next season, identifying the problems of this season is naturally key to that.
Injuries have been so impactful that they warranted a review in their own right.
The review of the issue is not something that’s just started, with Boro working throughout the season to try and get to the bottom of why they were suffering so many.
In analysing the injuries they have suffered, the variety of them, and the amount of impact injuries, Carrick is left confident that his training methods are not a factor.
The club are planning on upgrading facilities at their training ground at Rockliffe Park and hiring new medical staff to supplement those they already have, in an attempt to improve their record next season.
Asked if there was anything he’d learned from the review and if he might have to do anything differently in the future, Carrick explained: “Not really. I think there’s been such a wide range of injuries that we’ve suffered this season.
“We haven’t changed training one bit from what we had last season, in terms of style, strategy or the things we do and when we do them.
“We didn’t have hardly any injuries last season doing it that way.
“I think injuries in general in the game have gone up anyway, and we’ve had such a wide variety of injuries. Whether it’s been impact injuries, twists, muscle injuries – some of which have actually been on contact after a push or whatever, so not necessarily just a fatigue element. There are so many different ways in which we’ve had them.
“It’s certainly something that we have looked at over the course of the season, and it’s ongoing.
“We always look at how we can get better and how we can be more efficient in all aspects – prehab, rehab or whatever it might be.
“So I’m not brushing it under the carpet by any means, but there is only so much you can do.
“We are confident moving forward we’ll have the right ingredients to keep more on the pitch. But sometimes the game moves and has certain trends in general and it’s not always easy or ideal. We’ve just got to try and be realistic.”