Fans have become wearily used to losing football managers blaming the incompetence of the referee, or the thickness of a goalpost. Now it seems they may have a new excuse: the left back needed a filling.
Professional footballers have terrible teeth and it seems to be affecting their performance, a study of leading British clubs has found. Too many sugary energy drinks and snacks have been blamed for the finding that almost four out of ten players have cavities and almost eight in ten have gum disease.
While many supporters might assume that Luis Suárez’s teeth are the only set to have caused major problems on the pitch, the research found that 7 per cent of players felt that tooth problems were affecting their performance.