By CHRIS MAUME
Leeds United had reason to rue the absence of Rio Ferdinand from their defence when they were beaten 1-3 at home by Newcastle.
And they will probably have to do without the world's most expensive defender again for tomorrow's FA Cup match against Liverpool.
And all because he spent too long relaxing.
Putting your feet up and watching the telly seems a harmless enough leisure activity, but Ferdinand, bought for £18 million ($60.35 million) from West Ham, did it for too long, with unfortunate consequences.
"He was watching television and had his foot up on the coffee table," his manager David O'Leary said on the club's website. "He had it there in a certain position for a number of hours, and when he got up, he had strained a tendon behind his knee."
The defender is continuing a rich tradition of footballers sustaining ridiculous injuries. Another TV-related incident - with more serious consequences - came a couple of years ago when Ferdinand's team-mate Robbie Keane, then of Wolves, was kneeling down to pick up the remote control in his hotel room while on international duty.
He felt a twinge in his knee, and although he scored the next day for the Republic of Ireland against Malta, the pain got worse and he had to leave the field - and ended up having a cartilage operation.
David Seaman also suffered remote misfortune. Arsenal's England goalkeeper was at the team hotel during the reign of Terry Venables and pulled a muscle in his back while reaching for the remote in order to tape Coronation Street.
Perhaps the most damaging injury was that incurred by Michael Stensgaard, Liverpool's Danish goalkeeper who injured his shoulder doing the ironing. He was forced to retire, although he did return after a year, joining FC Copenhagen, where he still plies his trade.
The Sunderland striker Kevin Phillips nearly missed the start of this season when he was injured while asleep. The England international woke up in pain having twisted his knee.
Imre Varadi may have been a championship winner with Leeds, but his finest hour came when he put his back out shovelling snow in a neighbour's drive.
Allan Nielsen loved his new-born daughter until she poked the Danish international in the eye, shortly after his move to Spurs, forcing him to miss a few games.
Aston Villa's Alan Wright exchanged his Ferrari for a Rover after the position of the accelerator caused a knee problem.
And the former Wimbledon goalkeeper Dave Beasant missed a few games for Chelsea after dropping a jar of salad cream on his foot.
Not that the tendency is confined to footballers. On the eve of England's test against Pakistan at Headingley in 1982, the Independent's cricket correspondent, the bowler Derek Pringle, was leaning back in his chair as he was addressing an envelope with complimentary tickets for friends. He fell backwards and pulled a muscle, putting him out of the match.
Tony Greig also once missed a test when he cricked his neck shaving.
And Nick Wilton, aged 21, the Sussex wicketkeeper, had to drop out of a second XI fixture last summer when he received a similar strain tying his shoelaces.
Perhaps the clumsiest sportsman on record, though, is the golfer Sam Torrance, who has missed events through gashing his head while taking luggage out of his car boot, injuring himself pulling an airport trolley and damaging his sternum after sleepwalking into a huge plant pot.
Ferdinand has some way to go before he can match the Ryder Cup captain.
- HERALD CORRESPONDENT
Soccer: The believe it or not injuries
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