Football accused of 'blatant disregard for player welfare' over head injuries

Football has been accused of a “blatant disregard for player welfare” and told that its trial for permanent concussion substitutes is failing after Leeds United defender Robin Koch became the latest player to stay on the pitch following a serious head collision.

The football authorities have ignored calls from a coalition of neurological experts to introduce the sort of temporary concussion substitutes that are used in rugby in preference for a system that forces club medics to make an immediate on-field assessment that is permanent if the player comes off.

Koch collided with Scott McTominay in the 13th minute of Leeds’ 4-2 defeat against Manchester United but, following treatment to deal with the blood that was streaming from his head, was allowed to continue. He was then substituted after 31 minutes, with commentator Gery Neville reporting that he was “making blinking signs with his hands, which begs the question why he was allowed to play on in the first place”.

Premier League protocols allow players to continue if there are “no immediate symptoms of concussion” and Leeds manager Marcelo Bielsa said that Koch had come off due to the blood injury rather than symptoms of a brain injury. “Robin got a cut on his head and that is why he came off, it wasn't to do with the knock,” said Bielsa. “The cut was the problem and we could not stem the flow of blood from the cut. I acted in accordance with that information. The cut was far more significant than the blow and that is why we behaved as we did.”

Dawn Astle, who is project lead for neurodegenerative diseases at the PFA, said that current protocols were “nowhere near good enough” and that concussion management had not improved since the football authorities opted for