The issue of concussions and sports has been in the news with the recent $750 million settlement the NFL agreed to with 4,500 former players. A new study by the Institute of Medicine focusing onsports-related concussions in youth puts boys and girls playing soccer, ice hockey and lacrosse at the highest risk along with football. Among the recommendations: change the rules and styles of playto make it easier for young athletes not to suffer concussions, like Canada has done with banning bodychecking by peewee players.
Long discussion, only take away of any substance was that concussions must always be considered serious, gutting it out is no longer an optio for coaches or players. No specific take always for soccer, but personally would love to see a FIFA study of retired soccer professionals that highlighted the incidence of brain damage possibly related to soccer injuries and heading specifically. Thought I had heard of a study conducted in Norway/Sweden some time ago. Would love FIFA to get out ahead of this — speaking of head injuries, maybe they should start the testing with the FIFA executives !!!
So what do we see today, in one of the biggest leagues in the world? The old-fashioned nonsense of gutting it out after a hard head hit. Tottenham just showed us how it should NOT be done in how they handled Hugo Lloris after he suffered a hard blow to the head. The player wanted to stay in. The final authority needs to be the medical staff, who in this case caved in to the player’s desire (AVB needed to step in here too).