The "midlife fears" of professional footballers: those forced to swallow drugs, and those in Serie A who died early

The profession of a footballer is enviable, and in addition to victory, fame and money, there is another hidden reason: it prolongs youth.

At the age of 38, many ordinary people have entered middle age, with a bulging lower abdomen, heavy eye bags, and one or two or several more circles of fat on the chin. But if a player is still galloping on the professional stage at the age of 38, he is more likely to be skinny, bright-eyed, without fat or fat, just like the 18-year-old wants to have the most. The best example is, of course, Cristiano Ronaldo, whose level of competition may no longer be able to stand in the top five leagues, but his body is still exceptionally well maintained.

Whether a player retires at the age of 30 or 40, it is common to assume that they are middle-aged from the moment they hang up their boots. If a player chooses to work as a football coach, the outside world will also be cautious about giving the title of "old coach". Mourinho is 60 years old, which is considered an old age for ordinary people, but in European football, it seems that coaches over 65 can safely use the word "old".

Most Chinese fans have been in the habit of watching Europa League since the 90s. Many of the most high-profile stars of that era are now "middle-aged," between 45 and 60 years old. As the first generation of football stars who watched football, some were football idols of their teenage years, and it is often particularly sad to learn that their health has suddenly deteriorated and passed away, like Mikhailovic and Viali, who died in less than a month from late 2022 to early 2023.

Both were personalities and likeable players who played important roles in football after retirement. Their deaths sparked immense grief and a discussion: Did professional players abuse drugs and leave a curse for their health?

The latest discussion was Shantal Borgonovo, widow of star Stefano Borgonovo, who played for AC Milan and Fiorentina. Borgonovo, who died in 2013 from ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), was not a superstar as a player, but his generous and kind personality was loved by his teammates. When his condition made news, Borgonovo was nearing the end of his life, but he did something remarkable: draw public attention to "frostbite" and the profession of players.

After the death of Stefano Borgonovo, Chantal did not forget her husband's last wishes. She continues to organize fundraising for scientific research, continues to speak out, and hopes that the health of players will be paid more attention.

I recently noticed an interview with her in the local newspaper in Florence, and Chantal said: "I believe that if Stefano was not a player, he would not have had the disease, or even if he did, it would have occurred at an older age. Instead, he died young because he played football. The deaths of Viali and Mikhajlovic evoke painful memories. Of course I am on the side of the widows, even though I do not know them. Our experiences are similar, husbands are in the same profession. This led me to some reflection. 'Frostbite' in particular has affected too many football players in recent years, whether they develop it at a young age or as an adult, as recent statistics and research prove. ”

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A few years ago, I wrote in a column for Football Weekly about a surprise when I first started working as a foreign correspondent in Italy: after the game, many players' eyes were red as if they had just dripped blood.

In the years that followed, this phenomenon became less and less, and another phenomenon that caught my attention appeared: many players had tight muscles on their arms and calves, and they were frighteningly lean.

Without a doubt, I immediately thought of drugs. Football is a relatively closed field, the drug test in professional football has always been relatively independent, the implementation of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) rules and regulations is more of a verbal promise, the strength of drug testing is definitely not as strong as an Olympic sport like swimming, and the probability of detecting a player's drug positive in the World Cup is many times lower than that of the Olympic Games.

Shantal spoke about the suspicions of drug use by that generation of players, "I've been waiting for answers for years. During his days playing at Stefano, everything health management was entrusted to the club doctor, who Stefano trusted him. I know that my husband has never voluntarily taken any strange medications, and if he is taking prescription drugs, it must be under the control of medical staff. After the deaths of Mikhailovic and Viali, several footballers expressed their fears when talking about their careers. One thing is for sure, they belong to the same generation or neighboring generation as Stefano. They all know what kind of work they do. Unfortunately, they opened the issue, but soon closed it again. I can see that talking about this is annoying, and I don't know if it depends more on financial interests or something else. ”

Borgonovo died of frostbite, Mikhailovich had leukemia, and Viali had pancreatic cancer, and the three diseases were not particularly related to each other. But one thing is similar: these middle-aged footballers often have a sudden onset without warning. Despite his optimistic and strong personality, his survival rate is extremely low.

If you expand the search and focus on stars who died around the age of 60 and 70, the number of players is even greater, like the older generation of Fachetti, Cruyf, Rossi, and the common denominator is also the rapid deterioration from the discovery of the disease to the spread of the disease. Earlier, there was a case in Italy in the 70s in which Fiorentina players collectively sued the club's former team doctor, who died prematurely due to different causes, and the widows and surviving players suspected that the team doctor was responsible for drug abuse.

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The discussion after the deaths of Mikhailovic and Viali opened at least one important opening, and that was the willingness of numerous former Serie A players to come forward and admit the fact that they were "under the guidance" of doctors.

The first to open the discussion was former Italian international Dino Baggio, who played for Inter Milan, Juventus, Lazio and other giants, and he called on the medical community to investigate whether some of the substances given to players by doctors at the time may have caused physical harm to players. Dino Baggi acknowledges that this fear of health debt is widespread among retired players.

Since then, players like Belgomi have expressed similar views. In those days, the team doctor would give the players drugs, sometimes supplements, and the head coach often played the role of overseer, and whoever refused to take the drug was not given a chance to play.

The players are certainly not completely unaware. For example, they mention the most of the drug called Mikolen, scientific name is "procamide", a respiratory stimulant, used in medicine to treat some types of lung diseases, respiratory failure. According to these former stars, it was common for them to take Mikorun back then.

Mikorun was later on WADA's doping list. With the expansion of the WADA banned drug list, the way of medication in professional sports has become more diverse and refined. A video circulated on the Internet of Cannavaro dripping before the 1999 UEFA Cup final, and the player himself explained that it was a nutrient solution, but the infusion for non-therapeutic purposes was later added to the banned list.

Sabatini, a former Serie A player who has served as sporting director at clubs such as Roma and Inter Milan, said: "There has been a long list of player deaths and the suspicions are consistent and even somewhat justified. Even though these may not be stimulants but rather nutritional supplements, excessive use could lead to some significant problems in the future. I used to get injections before the game but never questioned it, and I trusted the doctors at the time. So far, I've been lucky enough not to suffer excessively bad returns. ”

In fact, Sabatini had already had a terminal illness a few years ago, and his "not excessively bad" was a bit ironic, referring to the fact that he did not die.

For me, the red eyes I saw after the game when I first came to Italy 20 years ago have always been shadowy. Unfortunately, the scale of attention generated by these self-statements, questions and appeals today is still extremely small, and without sufficient scientific investigation and research to support it, more of the former stars we love will live in "midlife fear".