Footballers' union call for temporary concussion substitutes

Temporary concussion substitutes are needed to safeguard players because of the pressure on medical teams to make quick assessments, the English Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) said Monday. On Sunday, Leeds United's Robin Koch was substituted 19 minutes after suffering a head injury that needed to be bandaged in a 4-2 loss to Manchester United. Permanent concussion substitutes have been used in the Premier League for the past year, allowing each side up to an extra two changes.

If players are replaced they cannot return to the field. In rugby, in contrast, a substitute comes on while an off-field head injury assessment is carried out. "The injury to Leeds United's Robin Koch demonstrates again that the current concussion protocols within football are failing to prioritise player safety," the PFA tweeted on Monday.

"We see frequent incidents of players returning to play with a potential brain injury, only to be removed shortly afterwards once symptoms visibly worsen." The PFA said it had made its point to football's international rule-making body IFAB. "As the representative voice of players in England, we have been clear to @TheIFAB that we want to see the introduction of temporary concussion substitutes. "Temporary concussion substitutes will allow medical teams additional time and an appropriate environment to make an initial assessment.