August 16th, 2006

Tellingly, they are not alone. Throw in the likes of Michael Ballack, Andriy Shevchenko, Shay Given and Gilberto Silva, and you already have an absentee list that would have any manager in the country salivating.

The start of a new season is supposed to have supporters flicking through their newspapers to see how many of their new signings are set to play on the opening day. Last weekend, most were desperately scouring the sports pages in the hope of discovering that their club boasted 11 players who were fit.

Never has so much been demanded of so few, with the number of footballers filling Premier League treatment rooms coming close to trumping the number of players able to pull on their boots on a Saturday afternoon.

But why, in an age of nutritionists, dieticians and scientifically-qualified personal trainers, are so many of Britain's leading footballers unable to stay fit?

Various theories have been aired, some of which have proved more persuasive than others.

Too much football cry some, pointing to lucrative close-season tours that saw the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United travel halfway around the world in a chase for replica shirt sales. The schedule for Britain's biggest clubs is unquestionably busier than ever, but squads are also much larger and the average Premier League footballer does not play many more games today than he would have done 15 or 20 years ago.

What about an alteration in boot design, ask others. In years gone by, players benefited from the protection of tough, leather footwear. Today, they play in something akin to a lightweight slipper - great for amplifying the 'feel' of the ball, not so great for lessening the impact of a 16-stone centre-half.

But while a modification in boot design might help to explain an increase in foot injuries, it cannot account for the multiple hamstring, groin and knee problems that are also plaguing the Premier League.

To explain those, it might be necessary to ignore the one thing that appears to be incontrovertible. What if there are not any more injuries now than there ever were? What if, instead, we are simply being told that more and more players are injured?

Football clubs have introduced a raft of off-field improvements in recent years, but nowhere has the change been more marked than in the field of medical diagnosis and monitoring.

Most Premier League training grounds now boast state-of-the-art scanners that would shame the majority of NHS hospitals, and clubs regularly call on leading private surgeons who are world authorities in their field.

As a result, they know more about their players' state of health than ever before. Twenty years ago, Rooney's broken toe might have kept him sidelined for a game or two at worst. He would have been given an ice bag, a bandage and an instruction from his manager to get on with it.

Today, though, after an immediate scan and X-ray, he is diagnosed with a hairline fracture of his fourth metatarsal that will keep him out of action for a minimum of six to eight weeks.

Similarly, Owen's thigh strain, a problem that he might have been expected to run off a decade or so ago, was enough to sideline him for the opening weekend of the season once Newcastle's medical staff read their ultra-sound print-out and deemed his participation at Bolton far too risky.

With modern-day players tied to multi-million pound insurance deals, managers are often unable to over-rule their medical experts.

The ignorance of the past might not have been bliss, but it at least ensured that most of England's players were able to play in a majority of their club's matches. Nowadays, even the suggestion of a scratch is deemed a cause of considerable concern.

None of which will help Steve McClaren, of course, as he attempts to hatch a plan for next month's crucial European Championships qualifiers with Israel and Russia.

While Rooney has hardly been a regular goalscorer for the national side in recent years, his lay-off has nevertheless robbed McClaren of one of his few genuine match-winners.

While Owen should have played in two or three matches by the time England entertain Israel on September 8, his stuttering performances at the end of last season suggest he is unlikely to be at full tilt in just three months time.

Unfortunately, however, he will have to be. With Peter Crouch suspended for the Israel game, Jermain Defoe and Darren Bent warming the bench for Tottenham, Andy Johnson flattering to deceive at Everton and David Nugent unproven at Premier League level, Owen would appear to be the only proven international goalscorer available to McClaren. That should be remembered when supporters start to bemoan England's failure to impress. Take two or three world-class players away and England's squad can best be described as average.