PFA bosses have accused football’s authorities of “failing to prioritise player safety” after Leeds defender Robin Koch was “put at risk.”
The Professional Footballers’ Association have called for temporary concussion substitutes to be introduced as a matter of urgency following Koch’s head injury in Leeds’ defeat to Manchester United on Sunday.
Koch was bandaged up and allowed to play on after a clash of heads with United’s Scott McTominay in the 13th minute believing it was a gash. But Koch was eventually taken off in the 31st minute and Leeds have now confirmed they are treating it as a concussion injury.
Leeds have also said they support temporary concussion substitutes with the idea being it gives medics more time to evaluate head injuries while allowing the game to continue rather than being rushed into on-field decisions.
The PFA statement said: “The injury to Leeds United’s Robin Koch demonstrates again that the current concussion protocols within football are failing to prioritise player safety.
"The ‘if in doubt, sit them out’ protocol is not being applied consistently within the pressurised environment of elite competitive football.
"We see frequent incidents of players returning to play with a potential brain injury, only to be removed shortly afterwards once symptoms visibly worsen.
"As the representative voice of players in England, we have been clear to IFAB that we want to see the introduction of temporary concussion substitutes.
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"Temporary concussion substitutes will allow medical teams additional time and an appropriate environment to make an initial assessment.
"Introducing temporary substitutes would allow a match to restart with neither side numerically disadvantaged, reducing pressure on players and medical teams to make quick decisions on whether an injured player continues.
"Put simply, the current rules set by IFAB are not working, and players are being put at risk.”
Lawmakers IFAB gave the Premier League the green light to trial concussion substitutes - the current experiment is due to run until the end of this season - by using an extra permanent sub rather than a temporary replacement.
Luke Griggs, Deputy Chief Executive of brain injury charity Headway, added: “Robin Koch had to be helped from the pitch, looking dazed and making blinking signs with his hand, with no signs of blood flowing from a head wound.
“The days of Terry Butcher soldiering on with a bloody bandage are gone. We cannot continue with a ‘patch them up, get them back out there’ approach to head injuries. Players must be protected.
“Medics have a tough time when trying to make on-pitch concussion assessments. The game simply has to help them by implementing temporary concussion substitutes. Enough is enough.”
There have also been calls for the use of independent doctors to remove any pressure from club medics but Premier League medics insist that questions their integrity and they would never allow their professionalism to be compromised while they know their own players better.
There is also a tunnel and crowd doctor in attendance for every game. Mirror Sport contacted IFAB for comment while the Premier League is also assessing and reviewing what happened during the game.
Leeds’ medics are well respected within the game, they insisted all concussion protocols were followed, Koch passed the necessary tests and was told to sit down if he felt any symptoms which is what happened.
The club statement said: “The medical staff at Leeds United have always been in favour of temporary substitutions for head injuries, as it would allow the staff more time to assess an injury and allow a period for symptoms to potentially develop.”
Koch also issued a statement on Twitter backing the club’s medics and their care. He said: “I wanted to support the team for longer yesterday, but unfortunately I couldn't do it. Thanks to our medical staff for the good care. I feel much better today and will be back soon.”
