A ball to the head suddenly ended his career and the consequences affect his daily life: “I forget simple words, it scares me”

As footballers grow older, they reach an age where they begin to fear that the end of their professional career is just around the corner. The fear of hanging up the boots and starting life outside the sport represent one of the great problems that affect the mental health of the players. But one step further down are those who they were forced to leave the activity they love because of a medical recommendation, as was the case with Matt Bloomfield.

A strange concussion put an end to the trajectory of the historic midfielder of the Wycombe Wanderers, England’s promotion club. The 37-year-old estimates that he has suffered about five concussions in the last four years and regrets that the last one, the one that made him stop playing football, was not caused by a crash, but by a teammate who executed a quick free kick in the middle of the field, and the ball hit him in the back of the head.

In August, Matt staggered off the Exeter pitch, unaware that it would be his last game as a professional footballer. The 191 supporters who accompanied the Wycombe that foggy night they also failed to realize that the unexpected blow resulted in a concussion and would bring an abrupt end to a proud playing careerwith 558 official matches on the back with the same shirt.

“I was trying to go towards the tunnel and I was drifting to the right, towards the away crowd, when I was trying to go straight”Bloomfield recalled in a chat with the English media Guardian. And he added about that fateful moment: “It was a fairly narrow corridor in Exeter and I was bouncing off the walls to get to the dressing room. When I arrived, I sat down and the doctor told me that I was too agitated. I couldn’t focus on anything. Everything fell apart that night.”

She arrived home in Felixstowe, a seaside town east of London, just as her daughters Rosie, four, and Mollie, six, were getting up. By then, Matt had already been warned by club doctor Bob Sangar that he was never going to step foot on the pitch again. “It greatly affected my mood, influenced my energy levels and made it difficult for me to see the light in daily activities that I normally loved to do with my daughters, ”he revealed about the direct impact that the news had on his mental health.

From one day to the next, the little moments that should have made him happy were just the opposite: “The things I normally did with them seemed like an effort. They read me their stories at night and I couldn’t concentrate on what they told me. Sitting down with my daughters and being hugged is usually a special moment and I didn’t feel that way. I knew it wasn’t right. I thought it would go away in a day or two, but a week later I still felt the same way. That’s when I realized it was more serious than the other concussions.”

After several visits to doctors and specialists, Bloomfield withdrew on medical advice and the written confirmation came a couple of weeks ago. “I reread it several times and then it dawned on me. I told everyone that it was okay and if that was it then it was okay but to really deal with it in my head knowing that I wasn’t going to wear the Wycombe Wanderers shirt again, I wasn’t going to wear the number 10 again and I wasn’t going to play football again… it was a pretty big deal to deal with.”described in the first person on the verge of tears.

The extent of his latest concussion became apparent a month later, on a field trip to Peppa Pig World amusement park. “I got on the teacups with my daughter and got dizzy. I thought: ‘This is not right; I’ve been up to teacups with them a million times.’” The incident also affected his vestibular system and makes him very nervous when the balls fly in training: “I get very insecure. I got out of school in July 2000 and for 21 1/2 years I’ve been in training camp five days a week and never really thought about it, whereas now, whenever there are balls around, I am on my guard, which is an ongoing problem that I hope will subside.”.

His memory has also been affected. “I forget simple words. There are things that happened to me in the last two months and I don’t remember them. The long-term implications scare me, of course. My brain health is fine as far as the MRI, but other things can develop over time. It scares me, it scares me 100%.” In addition, Matt revealed that he has already had difficult conversations, including explaining to his daughters why “Dad doesn’t play in the field anymore and just stands to the side yelling,” but says he doesn’t take it as a story. sad.

However, Matt found a new way of experiencing football without being a player: he took on the duties of the coaching staff. Every morning he is seen in the corridors of the humble English club carrying two bags of balls on his shoulder and with a smile on his face. Emotions are running high and Bloomfield has no doubt that there are two moments in his career that will remain forever in his memory beyond the blows: captaining Wycombe to promotion to the Championship at Wembley and Jose Mourinho shake hands with him as he walked off the pitch in a match against Chelsea in 2014.

Such is Bloomfield’s mindset that he still trains at 7.30 in the morning for a gym session and usually goes for a run afterward. “I see this as a new beginning,” she said. And he concluded with a hopeful message: “I have to try to use it as something positive. I can’t sit and say: ‘This is what ended my career, the ball on the back of the neck, poor me.’ I want to help others.”

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