Tottenham lost 363 league appearances to injury last season — the Premier League's worst record

Tottenham Hotspur carried the Premier League's heaviest injury burden in 2025/26, missing 363 league appearances through injury by the start of May. Aston Villa and Manchester United now lead the early 2026/27 lists, with nine and seven unavailable players respectively as of 21 October.

  • Worst record 2025/26: Tottenham — 363 league appearances lost to injury
  • Second worst: Newcastle United — 278 appearances lost
  • Biggest current list: Aston Villa — nine players unavailable or managing fitness problems as of 21 October
  • Core availability: Only 63.5 per cent of Tottenham's core group was available across 2025/26
  • Most separate injuries 2025/26: Chelsea recorded more time-loss injuries than any other club

Injury and availability

The source compares the opening months of 2026/27 with the completed 2025/26 season, and separates the number of separate injuries from days and matches lost — plus whether absences hit fringe players or the manager's preferred XI.

Aston Villa

Nine players were listed as unavailable or managing fitness problems as of 21 October. Amadou Onana's ACL injury is expected to keep him out for an extended period. Ian Maatsen, Matteo Ruggeri, Johan Manzambi and Aaron Wan-Bissaka have also been affected, stretching Villa across midfield and defence.

Manchester United

Marcus Rashford, Lisandro Martínez, Kobbie Mainoo, Luke Shaw, Benjamin Šeško, Patrick Dorgu and Manuel Ugarte all appeared on the club's injury list during October. The concerns span defence, midfield and attack. United's record was less severe in 2025/26, with 132 league appearances missed by the beginning of May.

Hull City

Seven players were on the Premier League's injury list in October, including Eliot Matazo, Jack Butland, Oscar Zambrano, Charlie Hughes and Darko Gyabi. Matazo's ACL injury is the most significant long-term concern, with problems also affecting goalkeeper, defence and midfield.

Brighton

Kaoru Mitoma, Mats Wieffer, Yankuba Minteh, Evan Ferguson, Stefanos Tzimas and Pascal Struijk have been among those carrying injuries or fitness concerns. Brighton missed 197 league appearances in 2025/26.

Liverpool

Dominik Szoboszlai, Jeremie Frimpong, Conor Bradley, Hugo Ekitike and Giovanni Leoni have all been listed as unavailable. Leoni's ACL injury is a particularly severe long-term absence, while simultaneous problems for Bradley and Frimpong reduce options on the right side of defence.

Tottenham Hotspur

James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski missed the entire 2025/26 league campaign, while Cristian Romero, Radu Drăgușin, Yves Bissouma, Mohammed Kudus and Dominic Solanke were also affected. In 2026/27, Lucas Bergvall, Savinho and Pedro Porro have featured on the injury list.

Newcastle United

Fabian Schär, Tino Livramento, Emil Krafth and Anthony Gordon were among the players affected in 2025/26. The current list is shorter than Villa, United and Hull's, although concerns involving Livramento, Anthony Elanga and Jacob Ramsey mean availability remains something to monitor.

The numbers

  • 363 — league appearances Tottenham lost to injury by the start of May 2025/26, the most in the division
  • 278 — Newcastle United's appearances lost, the second-highest
  • 63.5% — Tottenham's core group availability across 2025/26
  • 239 — Liverpool appearances missed in 2025/26, the fifth-highest at the beginning of May
  • 197 — Brighton appearances missed in 2025/26
  • 132 — Manchester United appearances missed by the beginning of May 2025/26
  • 9 — Aston Villa players unavailable or managing fitness problems as of 21 October
  • 7 — Hull City players on the Premier League's injury list in October

Why Villa's volume problem is really a severity problem

Aston Villa have the longest current list, but the headline number understates the issue. A short absence for a squad player is manageable; losing Amadou Onana to an ACL injury for an extended period forces recruitment, rotation and tactical planning to shift at once. With Ian Maatsen, Matteo Ruggeri, Johan Manzambi and Aaron Wan-Bissaka also affected, Villa are stretched across midfield and defence simultaneously.

Manchester United's problem is distribution. Marcus Rashford, Lisandro Martínez, Kobbie Mainoo, Luke Shaw, Benjamin Šeško, Patrick Dorgu and Manuel Ugarte cover every outfield department, so partnerships change and returning players pick up more minutes than planned. That is harder to absorb than a cluster of injuries in one area with an obvious replacement.

Liverpool illustrate the importance-versus-volume distinction. Their list is numerically shorter than Villa's or United's, but Giovanni Leoni's ACL injury and the overlap between Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong on the right remove options in positions that matter. For promoted Hull City, the same volume carries more weight because there is no expensive reserve to call on.

Talking points

  • Is Tottenham's 363-appearance figure proof of a medical department failure, or simply the cost of a squad built around injury-prone starters?
  • Newcastle blame European and cup workload, but workload alone cannot explain recurrence and timing — should the club look at its own processes?
  • Chelsea recorded the most separate injuries last season but the problem is frequency rather than severity; which version actually damages a season more?
  • Hull's seven absences look mild on paper, but for a newly promoted side with no depth, is their crisis worse than United's?

What happens next

Availability will be reassessed through the October and November international windows. Villa must plan without Onana for the long term and United need their defence, midfield and attack back in sync. Tottenham's early lists are far shorter than last season's, and how they manage Bergvall, Savinho and Porro will show whether their record is genuinely changing.

Frequently asked questions

Which Premier League team had the worst injury record in 2025/26?

Tottenham Hotspur, whose players missed 363 league appearances through injury by the start of May — comfortably more than any other club.

How many players are on Aston Villa's injury list in October 2026?

Nine players were listed as unavailable or managing fitness problems as of 21 October, including Amadou Onana, who has an ACL injury.

Which club recorded the most separate injuries in 2025/26?

Chelsea recorded more time-loss injuries than any other Premier League club, according to the source.

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