Brendan Rodgers hails ‘step forward’ as Premier League welcomes concussion subs

Concussion substitutes can be used for the first time on Saturday as the Premier League enters a new era of combating head injuries.

Two permanent substitutions can now be made in the event of head injuries until the end of the season, even if all replacements have already been used.

Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers called the development “a good step forward” and suggested it should soon become a permanent arrangement.

Rodgers said: “It makes sense, I don’t see the negative in it.

“If there is an issue and a problem with a player and it doesn’t pressurise medics who are trying to treat someone, because you can make that extra substitute, it can only be a benefit.

“Ultimately the players’ health is really important, we have seen and heard some of the clashes which have gone on, it’s been horrible. If this helps the game we will always support that.”

Wolves striker Raul Jimenez was the most recent casualty of a serious head injury in the top-flight when he suffered a fractured skull in a clash of heads with David Luiz at Arsenal in November.

And former Tottenham defender Jan Vertonghen said he felt the effects of a concussion he sustained playing for Spurs in the 2019 Champions League semi-final for the following nine months.

The protocols were approved at the annual business meeting of the International Football Association Board, the game’s lawmaking body, in December.

The one being used in the English competitions also allows for the opposition to make the equivalent number of changes, so that if one concussion substitute is used, they can make one change.