Chris Sutton insults Michael Owen live on-air over Leeds United incident within last week
Chris Sutton has accused Michael Owen of thinking like a caveman after concerns were raised about Leeds United defender Robin Koch’s head injury on Sunday.
While on pundit duty for BT Sport on Wednesday night, Sutton was asked for his thoughts on Ajax defender Lisandro Martinez continuing on with a head injury against Benfica and the ex-Blackburn striker didn’t hold back in slamming the situation.
As he discussed what happened to Martinez, Sutton also brought up what happened to Koch on Sunday when he played on with a head injury before eventually being substituted off.
As quoted by the Daily Mail, Sutton said: “Player welfare isn’t put right within the game. You saw the horrible incident at the weekend when Robin Koch carried on after a serious head injury. Football doesn’t care. It needs to start caring.
‘He needs to come off the pitch to the sanctuary of the dressing room and get checked by an independent doctor. In the mean time, he is replaced by a temporary substitute so you are not numerically disadvantaged. It is common sense.”
Sutton then asked: “Why are IFAB not stepping up?”. Owen, clearly unaware of how well Sutton knows about this subject, then replied: “Because bumps and bangs on the head…”
Sutton interjected straight away and said: “Hang on a minute, concussion is a bump and a bang? How do you know that is not a concussion?”
Ex-Liverpool striker Owen replied: “If you take what you say to an extreme, every time they roll around holding their leg, they have broken their leg.”
Sutton was clearly baffled by Owen’s ignorance and said: “Michael, that is the view of a caveman. Football needs to catch up.”
Take it seriously
Is Owen for real? Is he really comparing a non-visible head injury to someone’s bone sticking out of their leg?
He’s an idiot and while we might not always agree with Sutton’s takes, the ex-Celtic striker is absolutely spot on here.
Football needs to do more with head injuries and temporary concussion substitutes is a great idea.
However, neutral doctors at stadiums represent a problem because when you think about it, how many matches are played across the UK every week? And how many doctors does the UK have?
You have to think about it and come to the conclusion that it’s not feasible unless the Premier League gets some sort of priority but then that’s football saying that head injuries to top-flight players are more important.
There does need to be some neutral take on head injuries because managers, coaches, physios and players do what they can to ensure substitutions aren’t used up due to injuries.
Koch should’ve gone off for a better check-up on Sunday, as should have Martinez.
And as for Owen, can people please stop sticking him in front of a TV camera?
In other Leeds United news, Bielsa has shared his thoughts on Harrison after a journalist noticed his injury concern.