In its latest Premier League Injury Index representing the 2017-18 season through the end of the January transfer window (up to 5 February), JLT calculates that the average cost related to injuries at Premier League clubs is £6.7m thus far this season. Overall, West Ham United suffered the most injuries with 41, while Manchester United have incurred the highest costs, paying just over £15.8 million thus far. Brighton suffered the least number of injuries (14) and had the lowest total injury cost at £1.77m.
Teams also appear to have paid quite a price for heavy scheduling in December, when there was a pile-up of fixtures for the holiday period and the average number of new injuries peaked at more than 19 per week. Both Manchester United and Manchester City complained about the intensity of the scheduling, with Pep Guardiola claiming it was a “disaster.”
With Manchester City currently leading at the top of the table, the findings intimate that one factor for their elevated points total could be the relative availability of their players. With only 16 injuries and 442 total days out (the second lowest in the league behind Southampton), as well as the third lowest average of unavailable players per match day at 2.62, Manchester City can count themselves amongst the healthiest teams in the league.
In terms of average cost per injury, Manchester United has the highest in the league, with an average of £869,881, while Bournemouth had the lowest with £144,531. Among the likely reasons for this are the disparity in average salaries between clubs, as well as severity of injuries incurred. Hamstring injuries proved to be both the most common, with 91 occurrences, while knee injuries were the costliest, at £36.7m overall.
Defenders were the most likely to get injured, with 164 injuries so far, while midfielders suffered the most expensive average cost with £325,011 per injury. Watford, Everton and West Ham have the highest average number of players injured per game, perhaps a contributing factor to their relatively low positions in the league and the sacking of the managers at all three clubs in the first half of the season.
Duncan Fraser, Head of Sport at JLT Specialty, said: “With the average cost of injuries rising for another year, and the number of injuries also rising at this point last season, the overall total lost by clubs looks set to eclipse the 2016/17 season total. With many of the soft tissue injuries being down to fatigue, these figures will raise questions about fixture pile ups, especially with the rising costs involved. Many will welcome the fact that the Premier League is considering the implementation of a winter break, which may mitigate injuries and associated costs that result from a strenuous winter schedule.
“As salaries grow ever more lucrative, clubs are also looking to insure their players against injury with a Wageroll Protection policy. It is more important than ever before that clubs ensure they don’t have expensive talent going to waste on the treatment table, as with extended injuries clubs can now claim a certain percentage of a player’s salary back.”
• Average team cost for injuries was £6.7m
• Manchester United pays highest total injury cost at £15.8m, but West Ham suffers the most injuries
• Heavy scheduling of games in December saw injuries peak at more than 19 per week
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