Sports Doctors Network: Exclusive interview with AS Monaco and Real Madrid doctors
The two doctors shared what their jobs involve, the challenges they face and their passion for what they do © SDN / AS Monaco
On the Sport Doctors Network’s recent visit to Monaco, we spoke to Dr Alexandre Creuzé, AS Monaco’s doctor, the network’s co-founder and the event’s organiser, and Dr Niko Mihić, Real Madrid’s senior medical advisor and SDN’s chairperson and director.
In a world where what separates winners and losers is sometimes measured in milliseconds, athlete health has become a major strategic challenge. This is what prompted the creation of the Sports Doctors Network, a revolutionary initiative that is redefining the standards of sports medicine on a global scale.
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Boasting the elite of international sports medicine, the SDN has succeeded in bringing together doctors from some of the biggest European football clubs such as Real Madrid, Arsenal, AS Monaco, PSG and Manchester United, as well as prestigious American NBA, NFL, MLB and NHL franchises.
A constellation of experts with a clear and ambitious objective: to provide sportspeople, whatever their discipline, with special access to the best medical care on the planet.
Dr Alexandre Creuzé – AS Monaco: Prevention is better than cure
Dr Alexandre Creuzé has been the doctor for AS Monaco’s first team since 2018. The highly-experienced specialist previously spent eight years at the Girondins de Bordeaux academy, also as team doctor. His approach involves paying particular attention to monitoring players’ internal and external workload, a key factor in preventing injury and optimising performance.
Why did you launch the Sports Doctors Network?
In the beginning, we were just a group of friends. We would talk to each other informally, in discussion groups. And then one day we reckoned we should share all of that, open it up to the public, because those informal conversations could be structured and be of interest to a lot of people. So we started holding meetings in different major cities and now it’s growing all the time. The aim is to share our methods, to improve the health and monitoring for elite athletes.
What informal subjects do you talk about?
It might be a complicated medical case that we haven’t got a solution for. Some cases are rare. It’s always good to get advice on how to work, on organisation, and what you need in terms of equipment. We’ve carried out quite a few appraisals on certain devices, and when there are several people involved in an appraisal, the machine gets tested by more cases, so we have more perspective and more information to decide whether it’s useful or not, for example.
When does the doctor get involved in the players’ day-to-day lives?
We have different types of involvement. There’s the pure on-the-ground medicine part, where we look after the players at every match. We intervene where necessary, always with a physiotherapist, in an emergency. It’s the same concept with training. There is always a doctor on site in case of a medical and/or trauma emergency. Afterwards, of course, we’re at their side during recovery, before and after matches, as well as when they’re competing, to support them as best we can.
Does a club like AS Monaco have the latest medical technology?
We’re very lucky because we have a President and a management team who are very attentive to this kind of thing and who want us to move forward. That’s why we have a performance centre, the name itself is full of meaning. We’re asked to be at the cutting edge of elite sport, and this kind of event also allows us, as participants, to be at that level. So yes, that is clearly the Monaco mindset.
Have football injuries changed over the course of your career?
Yes, there are a few new injuries. For example we noticed that we were starting to have more and more shoulder injuries. Event though football is played with the legs. But the fact that the game is getting more and more intense, that there’s more and more contact, means that the upper body can also be impacted. So it’s something that we now have to take into account in terms of prevention, and that wasn’t previously the case. We had to take a step back and try to improve our screening techniques at the start of the season to try to prevent as many problems as possible, because the basic aim is to avoid injury and help players perform, rather than treat them.
Dr Niko Mihić – Real Madrid: A taste for adrenaline
Dr Niko Mihic is currently Real Madrid’s chief medical advisor, having headed up the club’s medical department from 2017 to 2023. His expertise extends far beyond football, as evidenced by the range of his different roles. In addition to his responsibilities with the Madrid powerhouse, he is also Director of the Executive Health Programme for Madrid Hospital.
His international CV also includes working as a doctor for the British Royal Air Force and the American section of NATO, as well as Medical Advisor for Air France and KLM. His exceptional career also includes a period as medical advisor to the European Space Agency.
You are an expert in medical team management. What do you consider the most important aspect of the role?
The most important thing is the people we work with, much more than any machines. Machines can be replaced, people cannot. You really have to have a good team, I think that’s the main thing, that’s the best care you can provide for your players. “Players first” is our motto. We see a lot of players playing beyond their ‘best-by date’. Luka Modrić is still playing at almost 40, same goes for Lebron James and Novak Djokovic at 37. This is definitely down to their self-discipline, but it’s also because they have good doctors around them, and that prolongs their careers.
What challenges do you face, working with a team like Real Madrid?
Our big challenge today is the workload. There are too many competitions, too many matches, too often. That’s not being governed properly by the organising committee. I don’t think they should let the players play two games in the space of 72 hours, because that’s a recipe for disaster. Even if they are top-level athletes, they are still human beings, not machines. They need enough rest and sleep, that’s the most important thing. That’s my main battle.
What do you enjoy most about your profession?
The adrenalin. I originally trained as an ER doctor in Canada, at McGill. And when I decided to move to Europe, the only thing that matched the adrenaline of working in the emergency room was working at Real Madrid.
What do you think makes an excellent sports doctor?
Above all, I think they’re someone who loves their profession. Who is dedicated to our profession. To be a good doctor, you have to be a rebel. Why? Because our profession is doomed to fail at some point, because everyone can die. So if you’re not enough of a rebel to put up a fight every day, you can’t be a good doctor.
