It has been revealed that French winger Franck Ribery could have taken part in the World Cup 2014 had he accepted to taking a few injections. Ribery recently returned from the World Cup 2014 after injuring himself in the warmup friendly matches. This is seen as the last opportunity for the Frenchman to impress at the World Cup. At 31 years of age, he is unlikely to take part in the Russian World Cup in 2018. Several reports in Germany have claimed that Ribery could have been fit for the World Cup had he taken a few injections.

Ribery has responded to those claims by saying that he was not happy with the idea of injecting cortisone in order to improve his fitness. He is aware that cortisone is harmful to the body. Ribery recently came third in the latest FIFA Ballon d’Or awards. However, many feel that he should have won the title ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi after having contributed to three major titles in the 2013 for Bayern Munich. He must have been hoping to impress the world with his skills at the World Cup 2014. The 31-year-old, though, was reportedly afraid of injections according to the doctors of the French national team.

France will be taking part in the World Cup quarter-finals against Nigeria. “I’m not afraid of injections. But I didn’t want to have a cortisone injection from the French doctor. I know it’s not good,” said Ribery after reports stated that he was afraid of injections. “Franck belongs to a club whose method of treatment for all ailments, whatever they might be, is based on injections,” said the French national team doctor, Kevin Le Gall. Ribery has scored just 16 goals in more than 80 matches for the national team since making his debut in 2006.