Jose Mourinho Provides Update On Thibaut Courtois' Head Injury

Chelsea’s manager Jose Mourinho has sought to play down on the head injury suffered by first choice goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois in Sunday’s Premier League match. The decision by Chelsea to continue with the Belgian on the field of play after his collision with Alexis Sanchez attracted criticism from different quarters particularly a medical charity, this was after television pictures showed that the Belgian international was bleeding from his ear when he was finally substituted.

However, Chelsea’s manager felt it was the right thing to do at the time following the decision taken by the medical staff to leave him on.

“He is in hospital for tests, but Doctor Biosca (Chelsea’s medical director Paco Biosca) says there’s nothing to be too much worried about,”

“On the bench I don’t communicate with the doctors. I just get decisions. ‘Can he stay (on)?’ ‘Yes’; ‘He has to leave’. ‘Okay’.

“I have no time and no medical qualities to discuss that.

“I was just worried for the kid (Courtois), not worried about the game and the performance.

“We have two of the best three goalkeepers in the world, so when one of them is injured and comes out and the other one comes in, no problem, no change in my heart beat.

“(I was) so confident that Petr could do once more a fantastic job for us.”

The manager still insisted that it was the decision of the medical team to keep the goalkeeper on

“I always tell them (Chelsea’s medical team) when I’m on the bench I don’t want to communicate with them,”

“I just want them to give me a decision and they gave me a decision. For me that’s correct.

“The club doctor, or the club medical department to take control and the responsibility.”

Thibaut Courtois later confirmed through his official tweeter account that the head injury was nothing serious, and the Belgian national team also confirmed that they expect him to join up for international duty for the Euro 2016 qualifiers.

The Premier League introduced a new set of rules in the summer in respect of head injuries which required amongst other things that a club must have a doctor in the tunnel, and that a doctor’s decision regarding a player’s concussed state is final, and that a manager cannot continue to play a player after the doctors says otherwise.

The rules drawn out in respect of management of head injuries in the Premier League is expected to be fully enforced with time.