Soccer is a contact sport, and sometimes the results of a tackle can leave fans with a jaw-drop reaction. The same was the case in 1981 when Ewald Lienen played against Werder Bremen. The match is remembered as the ‘worst football injury of all time’.
Ewald Lienen was part of the Arminia Bielefeld squad when the German team took on Werder Bremen. The midfielder made an offensive charge toward Bremen’s goal. He ran from the left wing and before reaching the final third, he was stopped by rushing Norbert Siegmann, Werder Bremen’s defender.
On first look, the tackle looked like any other crunching hard tackle, which was a sign of the times. However, when Lienen rolled over in agony to reveal his leg, the impact of the tackle was on his left leg. It was revealed that there was a 12-inch open gash on his left thigh.
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The gnarly injury was made worse due to the fact that muscle, tissue, and bone were visible after the tackle. The shocking part came later when the referee looked at the offense and only produced a yellow card for the offense.
The incident has been part of the soccer culture for decades now. The video of the incident is always shared in different cycles on social media. Recently, the video went viral again on social media to draw shocking reactions from new fans.
Comments like “Bro thought he could walk it off,” “you can see the bone,” “blud tried to walk it out,” “How can he stand up,”? and “I thought he was joking till I saw him covering it,” echoed the sentiments of the fans who were shocked by the gnarly injury.
Ewald Lienen took Otto Rehhagel to court for the tackle
Ewald Lienen’s recovery from the injury was remarkable. It took 23 stitches to cover the open wound. Remarkably, Lienen walked off the pitch after getting the adrenalin shot. He recovered from the injury in 17 days and was back in practice. He was back in action for Arminia Bielefeld after four weeks.
German midfielder Ewald Lienen still managed to abuse the away fans after suffering one of the worst gashes ever. pic.twitter.com/68PAxzVr4G
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) March 31, 2015
The real battle started after the recovery when Ewald Lienen took Otto Rehhagel, coach of Werder Bremen, to court for the tackle. As per Lienen and his camp, the tackle was part of a bigger planned attack by Rehhagel. He argued that Rehhagel instructed Siegmann to go over-the-top aggressive for tackles. Lienen lost the battle due to a weak argument, and Rehhagel walked free.
In the return fixture, tensions were high as Lienen was back on the pitch. After the case and allegations, Otto Rehhagel wore a bulletproof vest for his safety from the Arminia Bielefeld fans. The injury and the aftermath are part of a famous story in the soccer culture that has been reshared among fans for several decades. The match is always remembered for the worst football injury of all time.