Vertonghen briefly returned to pitch after clash of heads
Wednesday 1 May 2019 20:54, UK
Mauricio Pochettino said Tottenham's medical team followed concussion protocols after Jan Vertonghen was allowed to return to the field after a head injury in Tuesday's Champions League defeat to Ajax.
Vertonghen was left bloodied after a collision with team-mate Toby Alderweireld while attempting to beat Ajax goalkeeper Andre Onana to the ball during the opening half of the semi-final first leg that Tottenham lost 1-0.
Referee Antonio Mateu Lahoz spoke to Spurs' medical staff before allowing the defender to return to the field, only for the 32-year-old to quickly go off again.
Pochettino had to put his arm around him to help keep the groggy defender up, before he was carried away after appearing to retch by the touchline.
Vertonghen later walked unaided out of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
"I was not involved, it was the doctor's decision," Pochettino told his post-match press conference. "It is so important; the rules and the protocol are there, and our medical staff followed the protocol.
"The decision was the doctors. The referee asked for their consultancy and in the next action we had to take Jan out because he didn't feel well.
"We must protect the players' integrity. Our medical staff followed the protocol and decided to restart the game and play again, but Jan, in that moment, started to feel unwell and we needed to change him.
"At that moment I was focused on the game. You can think to much in those moments, you have to leave the medical staff to do their job. Of course, I was worried, it's normal.
"For me the most important thing is the health of the player before the game. The health of the player is paramount.
"From the first moment they told me to change I didn't doubt it, in that situation the doctors are the boss. I only had to listen, I would never question the medical staff."
Brain injury charity Headway called for football's authorities to urgently review concussion protocols within the sport in order to assist medical staff in the assessment of players following head injuries.
Luke Griggs, spokesperson for Headway - the brain injury association, said: "It is hugely disappointing that we are once again talking about concussion rather than the game itself.
"Concussion is notoriously difficult to diagnose. The symptoms may be hidden and require the individual to be honest about how they're feeling, while they can also be delayed in their presentation.
"Assessing a player for three minutes - or even five, as was the case with Jan Vertonghen - does not allow for medical staff to make a reliable diagnosis, particularly when this is conducted on the pitch under the gaze of tens of thousands of fans eager for the game to resume.
"The pressure on club medical staff is enormous and unfair, particularly in such high-stakes games such as a Champions League semi-final.
"We believe the time has come for football to introduce temporary concussion substitutions that would allow for longer off-pitch assessments to be conducted.
"In addition, independent doctors with expertise in concussion and head injuries should make the ultimate decision as to whether or not a player is fit to continue.
"Not every head injury will result in a concussion. But allowing players to continue while showing clear signs of discomfort following a head injury is contrary to the 'if in doubt, sit it out' principle at the heart of all effective concussion protocols."
