A former Premier League footballer has won a significant High Court battle against a leading surgeon, with a judge ruling that an unnecessary surgical procedure effectively ended his professional career.
Judge Condemns Surgeon's Decision
Mrs Justice Christina Lambert presided over the case at the High Court in London, delivering her verdict on Thursday, 18 December 2025. She found that surgeon Professor James Calder's decision to perform an arthroscopy on Sylvan Ebanks-Blake's ankle was "neither reasonable nor logical".
The judge stated she was satisfied that, without the additional procedure, the 39-year-old former Wolverhampton Wanderers striker would have returned to a pain-free state following his original injury.
The Injury and Disputed Surgery
The case centred on an incident in April 2013, when Ebanks-Blake, then playing for Wolves, suffered a fracture to his left leg in a match against Birmingham City. During an operation to fix this fracture, Professor Calder also removed ankle scar tissue and loose cartilage.
Ebanks-Blake's legal team, led by barrister Simeon Maskrey KC, argued this secondary procedure caused significant inflammation and accelerated the development of osteoarthritis. They contended it brought the player's career to a "premature end". The court heard that Ebanks-Blake was not properly informed of the risks associated with the arthroscopy.
Conflicting Arguments and Lasting Impact
Professor Calder defended his actions, denying negligence and arguing the treatment had actually prolonged the footballer's career. He noted Ebanks-Blake played professionally for another six years before retiring in 2019.
However, Mrs Justice Lambert rejected this, finding the surgery directly contributed to the joint's decline. "The removal of the scar tissue destabilised the joint by removing the cushioning and by altering the biomechanics of the joint," she said, leading to increased instability and accelerated degenerative change.
The judge characterised the original 2013 injury as a "modest acute ankle fracture only", contradicting the surgeon's claim that the injuries were so significant it would have been negligent not to operate.
Ebanks-Blake's career began in Manchester United's youth academy in 2002. He made his first-team debut in 2004 before moving to Wolves in 2008, where he became the club's top scorer. The 2013 injury occurred when an opponent's full body weight landed on his lower left leg. Damages will be determined at a future hearing.
