Arsène Wenger raged, Patrick Vieira mourned his potential, and football lost a generational star before he truly began
It was May 2006, Arsenal were cruising 3-0 against Sunderland in a meaningless fixture. But in the dying seconds, a reckless challenge by teenager Dan Smith changed everything. Abou Diaby, the heir to Patrick Vieira, suffered a broken ankle and ruptured ligaments — he never recovered.
Wenger was livid, accusing Smith of intentional harm: “It was a career-threatening tackle… If you do that on the street, you go to jail.” Diaby missed the Champions League final and his World Cup dream, and over the next decade, endured 42 injuries, each one pulling him further from greatness.
Patrick Vieira would later say: “He could’ve been better than me. More technical. More complete. Injuries killed his rise.” Diaby played just 180 games for Arsenal in nine years.
Smith defended himself, calling it an unfortunate late challenge. But the football world still sees Diaby as one of the biggest “what ifs” in Premier League history.
