Ex-Heerenveen defender opens up on painkiller struggles before retiring aged 30

Updated: 12 Jul, 2025 • 0 • min read

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Ex-Heerenveen defender opens up on painkiller struggles before retiring aged 30

Ex-Heerenveen and Sheffield Wednesday defender Joost van Aken has delivered a stark and emotional account of his struggles with injury and painkiller use.

The former Ajax Amsterdam youngster was forced to retire aged just 30 after learning part of his ankle bone was missing.

Speaking to ESPN Nederland, van Aken described the moment of realisation during surgery in 2016 when a surgeon revealed the extent of his foot damage.

He started by recollecting what the surgeon told him at the time.

You've had an injection here. There's a hole in the inside of your foot, it's hollowed out. There's a piece of bone missing here.

When I saw that, I thought, "I'm never going to do that again!" I had taken a cortisone injection so I could play.

Now I think, "What do you mean? What the f*ck?" It wasn't the Champions League final, but an away match against ADO Den Haag.

"I Ate Painkillers Like M&Ms"

In a brutally honest admission, van Aken said he frequently took painkillers just to be match-fit, often forcing himself to vomit because of the nausea they caused.

I ate [painkillers] like M&Ms. That can never be good, but I have built up a reasonable system in my body that means I no longer suffer from a pill here or there.

Van Aken's story adds to growing concern about the use of painkillers in professional football, particularly among players under pressure to perform through pain.

Whilst medications such as ibuprofen and diclofenac are legal and commonly used, long-term overuse can cause serious damage to the stomach, kidneys, and liver.

Not an Isolated Case

Van Aken joins a growing list of footballers who have publicly admitted the toll that painkillers took on their physical and mental health:

Jan Vertonghen, the former Belgium and Tottenham Hotspur defender, retired out of fear he'd need painkillers daily to continue.

Ex-Liverpool goalkeeper Chris Kirkland revealed a decade-long addiction to tramadol, describing it as "six shots of heroin a day."

Tramadol, whilst once common in football, was banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in 2024 to protect players from addiction and misuse.

Looking Ahead: A Wake-Up Call for Football?

Van Aken's candid interview comes at a time when player welfare is increasingly under the spotlight.

With growing calls for better regulation and medical oversight, the game may finally be reckoning with how it treats pain, and the people behind the players.

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