Tottenham star Rodrigo Bentancur has given an update from his hospital bed after being rushed to hospital. The Spurs ace collapsed on the pitch during his team’s Carabao Cup semi-final fixture with Liverpool.
As he fell to the floor his teammate Pedro Porro was first to his side, placing him in the recovery position and appearing to move his tongue so he could breathe, with players from both teams urgently calling for medical help. He was then treated for almost 10 minutes as the crowd and players anxiously waited.
The 27-year-old had appeared to land on his head as he tried to clear the ball away from a corner just six minutes into the game. Following treatment he was placed in a neck brace, stretchered off the pitch and taken to hospital.
An update was issued at half time to say he was conscious. Posting on Spurs’ X account the club said: “We can confirm Rodrigo is conscious, talking and will go to hospital for further checks.”
Then, following the game, Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou said the midfielder was conscious when he left the field. He told reporters: “It was some sort of head injury, but he was conscious when he was coming off the field. He’s been taken to the hospital for observation. Hopefully he’ll be OK.”
Just after midnight Bentancur took to his own social media, posting a picture from his hospital bed with partner Melany La Blanca on his Instagram story. Smiling and giving the thumbs up he said: “All good guys! Thank you for the messages!!! Congratulations for the victory boys!!!”
This is the second time the player has been left unconscious this season. He was knocked out in the first game of the campaign after clashing heads with Leicester’s Abdul Fatawu.
He had just returned on Boxing Day after a seven-match suspension. He had been found guilty of using a racial slur about team-mate Heung-Min Son and East and Southeast Asians on a Uruguayan TV show. He was also fined £100,000 by the Football Association as part of the punishment.