We love wacky football news. So here’s some very wacky football
news: There are currently 92 South Korean soccer players being
indicted for dislocating
their own shoulders, including 15 professionals from the
K-League. That wacky enough for you? The big question is: Why? What
drives a footballer - especially a professional footballer who
theoretically benefits from staying injury free - to forcibly
remove their arm from their shoulder socket. Surely that would
hurt?
Indeed it does, but apparently it doesn’t hurt as much as doing
up to 24 months national service in the South Korean military.
That’s a long time to be in the army when you’d rather be playing
football, especially if you’ve made it as far as the K-League.
Spending two years out of action is long enough for your teammates,
manager and fans to forget about you altogether and move on. Just
ask Harry Kewell. So dislocated shoulder and medical military
exemption it is then. But this raises another question: How?
How do you deliberately dislocate your shoulder? OK kids, before
reading this next bit you have to put hand on heart and promise not
to try this at home. Promise?
According to
Reuters:
The players, including 15 professional K-League players,
dislocated their shoulders by methods such as swinging their arms
while holding heavy weights or having fellow players jump on their
shoulders.
Ouch! These guys either really want to stay out of the military
or they really really love their football. It’s all backfired
though, and if any of the 92 players are found guilty they face
jail, community service or possibly the dreaded military service.
But all this has probably provided Alex Ferguson with a few fresh
ideas. If Fergie pulls any Man Utd players out of Fabio Capello’s
first England squad with a mysteriously acquired dislocated
shoulder instead of the usual “hamstring strain,” then we’ll all
know where he got it from.