Assessment
Your physiotherapist discusses your symptoms, goals, medical history and lifestyle, then completes a thorough assessment. Initial appointments are typically 45 to 60 minutes, so there is time to do it properly.
What We Treat
Football Injury Treatment in London
Football injuries are predictable enough that you can plan for them. Hamstrings, groins, ankles and knees account for most of what walks through the door, and the biggest single risk factor for any of them is the last one you had.
Overview
Football injuries
Sanchez Davis, our Clinical Lead, spent his career in football academy physiotherapy at QPR and Crystal Palace. Academy football is where you learn which injuries recur, which ones people come back from too early, and what the testing has to show before anyone is cleared.
What we treat most in footballers:
- Hamstring strains: the most common football injury, and the most commonly re-injured.
- Groin and adductor pain: the injury that quietly takes a whole season.
- ACL and knee injuries: the twisting, planted-foot mechanism.
- Ankle sprains: and the instability left behind when they are not rehabilitated.
- Calf strains: particularly in older players and on hard pitches.
- Groin-related and pubic pain: from repeated kicking load.
The through-line is re-injury. A hamstring that has been strained once is far more likely to go again, and usually because the player returned when the pain stopped rather than when the strength came back. We test before clearing, which is the whole point.
Physiotherapy leads the plan, and soft tissue therapy supports recovery through a season. See also hip and groin pain, knee pain and muscular injuries.
Excellent
From 4 five-star Google reviews
Source: Google
I first started using Tom last year to help relieve back pain, he has been extremely helpful and now he's supporting me with sprint and fitness training, whilst helping with any minor injuries. Can't recommend him and his team more highly.
I went to Tom with a shoulder injury that had not improved for several months. Tom is very knowledgeable and quickly identified the issue and put me on a course of exercises that, in conjunction with a couple more sessions, steadily resolved the problem. I would highly recommend him.
Parinita was brilliant! Identified my knee problem immediately, used a range of equipment and exercises not only to strengthen my knee, but to maintain it and improve my running long-term.
Excellent service! Sanchez is a true professional who helped me heal a previous injury. Highly recommend!
Football physiotherapy can help to:
Draw on academy experience
Sanchez Davis spent his career in football academy physiotherapy at QPR and Crystal Palace. That is where you learn which injuries recur, who comes back too early, and what the testing has to show before anyone gets cleared.
Stop re-injuring the same hamstring
A previously strained hamstring is the strongest predictor of the next one, and most re-injuries happen because the player returned when the pain stopped. We rehabilitate to strength measures and test before clearing you.
Sort out a season-long groin
Groin pain has several overlapping sources and a partial diagnosis gets partial results. We work through them systematically, then load the adductors properly, which has the best evidence of anything for this problem.
Come back from an ACL properly
9 to 12 months to pivoting sport, with testing throughout rather than a date in the diary. Our clinics sit inside gym facilities, so the strength work the middle stage needs is in the same building as the assessment.
Fix an ankle that keeps going
Repeated ankle sprains are a control problem, not a damage problem. Balance and proprioceptive work restores what the ligament used to provide. It is one of the quicker wins in football rehabilitation.
Stay available through a season
Availability matters more than any single recovery. Between-match soft tissue work, sensible load management and catching niggles before they become injuries is what keeps players on the pitch across a fixture list.
Why it happens
What causes football injuries?
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Sprinting and rapid acceleration, the mechanism behind most hamstring strains
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Kicking and change of direction, which loads the adductors and groin
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Twisting on a planted foot, the classic ACL mechanism
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Contact and tackles, producing ankle, knee and shoulder injuries
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Returning to play before strength has been restored, the biggest re-injury driver
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A congested fixture list or a jump in training load after pre-season
What happens at your first physio appointment?
Initial appointments are typically 45 to 60 minutes. You leave with a clear explanation of your condition, treatment recommendations, a report explaining it in simple language, and a personalised rehabilitation plan.
Follow-ups run 30 to 45 minutes, and we reassess at every visit rather than selling you a block of sessions up front.
A thorough, honest, and understandable explanation. Then the best treatment to get you back to a level of activity beyond your pre-injury status. If we can't get you better, we will recommend the world's leading healthcare professionals in London that can.
- Founded in 2015 by Tom Astley: 7 clinicians working across 3 clinics in Crouch End, Marylebone and Henley-on-Thames.
- Our team has successfully worked with local, national and international athletes at 6 major multi-sport events, from London 2012 to Gold Coast 2018, and we bring that expertise to everyone who enters our service.
- Rated 4.9 from 88 Google reviews; recognised by 5 major UK insurers, and self-funded patients book online with no GP referral.
Fees and insurance
Book directly online through Splose. Self-funded patients need no GP referral; if you are claiming through insurance, obtain prior authorisation before booking.
- Physiotherapy with Tom Astley: £85 initial consultation, £77 follow-up
- Sports and dance therapy with Laura Fornoni: £75 initial consultation, £70 follow-up
- Shockwave therapy: £230 for the initial consultation plus 3 sessions, then £80 per further treatment
- Running gait and performance reviews: £80 Base, £135 Intermediate, £185 Expert
- Recognised by Bupa, Cigna, Vitality, WPA and Simply Health
How physiotherapy works
from assessment to return to sport
Book today to get an assessment, advice, a report and a rehabilitation plan. We combine hands-on treatment with gym-based rehab to get you well, today, and we reassess at every visit.
Advice and report
A clear explanation of your condition and a report explaining it in simple language, alongside hands-on treatment: manual therapy, soft tissue techniques and joint mobilisation where they help.
Rehabilitation plan
Exercise rehabilitation tailored to your goals and condition, delivered through Track Rehab. Our clinics sit inside gym facilities, so the plan has the equipment and technology it actually needs.
Return
Structured programmes and return-to-sport testing before you go back, so you return safely and confidently. The goal is a level of activity beyond your pre-injury status, not just less pain.
What our physiotherapists treat
- Manual therapy and joint mobilisation
- Exercise rehabilitation through Track Rehab
- Dry needling for stubborn trigger points
- Shockwave therapy for chronic tendinopathy
- Sensor-based running gait analysis
- Sports massage, scar work and soft tissue therapy
- Women's health, Mummy MOT and postnatal rehabilitation
- Post-operative and ACL rehabilitation
- Return-to-sport testing
Treatment approach
How do we treat footballers?
Physiotherapy & Sports Therapy
From £75Diagnosis of the specific tissue, then a staged rehabilitation programme with return-to-play testing, so you are cleared on measures rather than on how the leg feels.
See treatment detail →Soft Tissue Therapy
Price on enquiryBetween-match recovery work through the hamstrings, calves and adductors, which helps players stay available across a season rather than dropping out of it.
See treatment detail →Running Gait & Performance Reviews
From £80Where a recurring hamstring or calf problem is linked to running mechanics, gait analysis shows what is happening at speed and changes what we load.
See treatment detail →FAQ
Frequently asked
questions
How long until I can play again after a hamstring strain?
It depends on the grade, and typically runs from a couple of weeks to a couple of months. The date matters far less than the testing. Returning when the pain stops rather than when the strength returns is exactly why hamstring injuries are the most re-injured in football.
Why does my groin keep flaring up every season?
Groin pain has several overlapping sources, so a partial diagnosis leads to partial treatment and predictable recurrence. Progressive adductor strengthening has the best evidence, and the loads involved are higher than most players expect. Sanchez sees this constantly in academy football.
When can I play after an ACL reconstruction?
Plan on 9 to 12 months before returning to pivoting sport, with structured testing throughout. You progress on measures rather than dates, including at least 90 per cent strength symmetry between legs. Going back early risks the same knee or the other one.
My ankle keeps rolling. Is that just how it is now?
No, and it is very treatable. Ligaments heal, but the balance and control that protect the ankle do not return on their own. That is why a sprained ankle keeps going. Restoring the control is straightforward rehabilitation and worth doing properly.
Related What We Treat
Get Started
Book a physiotherapy appointment
in Crouch End, Marylebone or Henley.
Tom Astley Physiotherapy • Park Road Pools & Fitness, Crouch End, London N8 8JN
BookAppointments typically available within 1–2 weeks