Rob Green enjoyed a pretty successful 20-year career as a goalkeeper.The 42-year-old made his senior bow way back in 1999 with Norwich City, before going on to represent the likes of West Ham United, Queens Park Rangers and Leeds United.Green called time on his playing days in the summer of 2019 following a surprise season at Chelsea, where he failed to play a single competitive game under Maurizio Sarri's rule.But despite never turning out for the Blues, Green was at least able to have an impact on one of the club's Premier League legends a few years after his retirement.While on punditry duty with Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, who scored 87 goals in 177 games for Chelsea in the 2000s, the former goalkeeper decided to reveal his disfigured little finger live on television.The pinky on Green's right hand is, shall we say, a bit worse for wear thanks to years of having footballs peppered in his direction from people with ridiculously hard shots - Hasselbaink included.
Cristiano Ronaldo to Chelsea? (Football Terrace)
Like those watching at the time, the Dutchman was a tad shocked when he saw the finger and when Green held it up to the camera, his former West Ham teammate Bobby Zamora couldn't resist chiming in.
He jokingly said: “Are you pointing at me? Stop pointing at me!"
Check out the clip from September of last year here...
Video: Green's disfigured finger shocked Hasselbaink live on air
If ever you needed proof that being a professional goalkeeper is anything but a stroll in the park, there it is.
How did Green pick up the finger injury?
So, how did Green's little finger end up pointing away from his hand?
Green said on the matter: “Over a number of years it’s decided to gradually die and that’s where it’s ended up.â€
He then added: “That’s from one of Jimmy’s free-kicks about 15 years ago!â€
Hasselbaink cheekily replied: “That is dedication!â€
Green's misshapen finger became public knowledge as far back as 2015, when he was a guest on BBC's Football Focus.
"That's what twenty years of goalkeeping does," the man himself said.
It was also revealed on the programme that Green had to have special matchday gloves created during the final years of his career to accommodate the dodgy digit.
Well, you certainly cannot say that Green wasn't committed to his work...