Laura Wienroither becomes fourth Arsenal player to suffer ACL injury this season
Laura Wienroither has become the latest Arsenal Women's star to suffer an anterior cruciate ligament injury.
The Austrian defender was carted off during the Gunners' eventual heartbreaking defeat to Wolfsburg in the Women's Champions League semi-finals on Monday, losing 6-5 on aggregate thanks to a 119th minute winner from Pauline Bremer in extra-time.
Arsenal have revealed the extent of Wienroither's injury in a club statement: "We can confirm that Laura Wienroither suffered a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in our match against Wolfsburg at Emirates Stadium on Monday evening.
"Laura was substituted in the 82nd minute of our UEFA Women’s Champions League semi-final and has subsequently undergone testing to determine the extent of the injury.
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"Laura will undergo surgery in due course and will be sidelined for an extended period.
"Everyone at the club will now be supporting Laura and working hard to support her recovery and return to action."
Wienroither is the fourth Arsenal Women's star to suffer ligament damage during the 2022/23 campaign alone, with Leah Willamson, Beth Mead and Vivianne Miedema all suffering similar season-ending injuries.
ACL injuries have become far too common in the women's game in recent seasons, and speaking on 90min Talks, Dr Emma Rose discussed the factors which could be causing these serious injuries. One of the many factors discussed was football boots and how they're not appropriately made for women's feet.
"It amazes me that there's no women's boots. Brands will advertise their boots as women's boots but only because they go down to a size three and men's boots don't," Rose said.
"Women's and men's feet are different, and women's and men's bodies are different. Men have more muscle mass and different distribution of muscle mass so the load going through that foot-to-ground interface is greater.
"All the science of the boots are completely useless when it comes to females. It is bonkers that we don't have big brands making a selection of women's boots.
"It's not just down to the boot [ACL injuries] but if we look at the long list of reasons and start to take bits out then the list is slightly shorter. People are always going to get injured in sport, but less people will get injured if we can start to shorten that list."
WATCH NOW
Shebahn Aherne is joined by Rachel & Sophie from Girls on the Ball, Dr Emma Ross and Charlton midfielder Lois Roche on this episode of 90min Talks to discuss why female footballers are six times more likely to suffer ACL injuries. If you can't see this embed, click here to watch!