Aston Villa were incredibly poor during their 4-0 loss to Newcastle United in the Premier League this afternoon, and while it was a bad afternoon for them in terms of their quality of play, that was not the aspect of the game that reflected most poorly on the club.
With the game still tied at 0-0 in the first half, Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez suffered what looked to be clear a head injury. He collided heavily with teammate Tyrone Mings when going for a ball in the box, with the defender's knee clattering off the Argentine's head.
It looked very unlikely that he would be able to continue, but the medical staff made the decision to allow him to stay on the pitch. However, they would be forced to come on a few minutes later after it became clear that the 30-year old was in no fit state to remain on the pitch.
🚨FUERTE GOLPE Y CAMBIO PARA EL DIBU 🚨
Emiliano Martínez recibió un rodillazo en la cabeza en el partido del Aston Villa ante Newcastle y se fue reemplazado a los 34' del primer tiempo 🧤🤕
¡Que no sea nada! 🙏 pic.twitter.com/Mq0wJm5Buk— TNT Sports Argentina (@TNTSportsAR) October 29, 2022
It looked like a clear lapse in judgement from the medical staff, who should have had the player immediately substituted regardless of any protestations.
Cunningham & Boyd have differing views on Emiliano Martinez injury
Such incidents are a clear indication of how football has to go before it is seen to be taking head injuries seriously.
However, not all are convinced that Aston Villa mishandled this situation.
Speaking on Premier Sports, Kenny Cunningham said that he placed no blame on the medical staff for leaving Emiliano Martniez on the pitch, despite them having clearly made a mistake in doing so. He also said that they should be trusted to listen to a player's view in this sort of situation.
Concussion protocols are the source of discussion at half time after Emiliano Martinez picked up a knock to the head before needing to be substituted minutes later
"Should we be going further and have temporary substitutions?" 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/DjLSLsHYaj— Premier Sports (@PremierSportsTV) October 29, 2022
You have to trust the professionals, there is a qualified physio and qualified doctor there. I'm not blaming them at all...
You have to trust the judgements of the professionals in that situation. I'm not going to dictate to a qualified doctor in that situation, that because there's a knock to the head he has to come off.
He needs to assess that situation. He's talking to him on the pitch, he knows the extent of what's happened, he had a knee to the temple and he knows that when he got on the pitch. He had a conversation with the goalkeeper.
He must have been satisfied that he could continue for a certain amount of period of time and we will assess him as we go along...
They're in the best position to make that call. At this moment, they were faced with a call and we just have to trust their judgement. It's as simple as that.
Listening to the player is the last thing that should be done after incidents such as this one. Not only will they tell you that they want to stay on in the vast majority of cases, but their judgement cannot be trusted after suffering a serious knock to the head.
More affirmative action should be taken by medical professionals in this situation.
The rules allow for an extra substitution to be made in the event of a concussion or other head injury, although as is suggested in the clip above, a temporary rugby-style 'HIA' should also be considered.
Appearing on Sky Sports, Kris Boyd had a very different reaction to Cunningham's. He labelled the Aston Villa's handling of the situation as a 'disgrace' and said it reflected very poorly on the club and its staff.
🗣️ “An absolute disgrace.”
Kris Boyd is fuming that the medical staff didn’t take Emiliano Martínez off against Newcastle United sooner. 😡 pic.twitter.com/qOpDi4D0X8— Football Daily (@footballdaily) October 29, 2022
I'm no medical expert, but I could see from here that it was serious. It was a knee in the head, full-force from Tyrone Mings. You could tell that Martinez was struggling.
Why the medical staff didn't put their foot down and take him off the pitch was an absolute disgrace...
It shouldn't be the case that you're there until you fall down again or something happens. The medical staff should put their foot down and take him off the field.
They're going to have to have a hard look at themselves there, the Aston Villa medical staff.
He's not wrong.
Football certainly has a long way to go.
SEE ALSO: The Jersey Hunter - One Man's 10-Year Search For Every International Kit
