Football
ESPN staff 9y

Chelsea defended by FIFA medical officer over Thibaut Courtois injury

Chelsea's handling of the head injury suffered by goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in Sunday's 2-0 victory over Arsenal has been backed by FIFA's chief medical officer.

Courtois, 22, suffered a blow to the head in a collision with Alex Sanchez early in the game but after being attended to by the Blues' medical staff was allowed to continue.

But the Belgian international signalled for further treatment 14 minutes later and was then replaced by Petr Cech before being taken to hospital for precautionary checks.

The Premier League introduced tougher new rules to cover head injuries in August following a number of controversies surrounding players staying on the pitch.

And Chelsea have come in for criticism from some quarters for allowing Courtois to continue in the first instance, but Dr Michel D'Hooghe, the head of FIFA's medical commission, believes the club acted correctly.

"I know the doctors at Chelsea and at Belgium," Dr Michel D'Hooghe told The Times. "They are serious people. I think the lady doctor at Chelsea [Eva Carneiro] did a correct examination.

"She came to the conclusion that he could go on, but she kept an eye on him and from the moment he didn't feel well -- which can happen in concussions -- they took the right decision to take him off."

UEFA introduced new guidelines on head injuries last month, at the behest of D'Hooghe, that enforce a three-minute stoppage if a player has suffered suspected concussion during Champions League and Europa League fixtures. He wants the rule to be adopted worldwide across domestic football.

"We [FIFA] have no authority in competitions on a national level," D'Hooghe told the BBC. "The same for UEFA. They can judge for the Champions League and Europa League and for the Euro 2016 and 2020 finals and qualification.

"I would be very grateful if this would go down to all the 209 national associations of FIFA."

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