Family thanks well-wishers as Mason undergoes surgery
by club captain Michael Dawson, club doctor Mark Waller, head of medical Rob Price and club secretary Matt Wild,” the club said.
“Ryan has been speaking of the incident yesterday and will continue to be monitored at the hospital over the coming days where the club will remain in close contact with Ryan, his family and the staff at St Mary’s.’’
Mason received treatment for around nine minutes on the field and has been the subject of messages of support from many of his fellow professionals, his former club, Spurs, and the Football Association.
Cahill, Chelsea club captain John Terry and assistant boss Steve Holland went to St Mary’s Hospital on Sunday evening to check on Mason’s well-being.
It is understood the trio spent time with members of Mason’s family, who had attended the game, which was marred by the incident in the 14th minute.
Brain injury charity Headway praised the treatment of Mason.
Headway chief executive Peter Mccabe said: “I was actually at the match and, while it was upsetting to witness the incident, it was encouraging to see the exemplary reaction of the medical teams. Headway has been critical of the way in which head injuries have been treated in many high-profile football incidents in recent years, but it is positive to see that lessons appear to have been learned.’’
Professional Footballers’ Association deputy chief executive John Bramhall said: “There’s been a lot of work done over the past few years to raise awareness of head injuries, concussions and the importance to treat them with the utmost urgency. ’’
England defender Cahill had been assessed for some time during the break in play as Mason was attended to.
Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte, pictured, revealed Cahill’s half-time condition “wasn’t really good,’’ but he was deemed fit to continue after being reassessed by club medics. Cahill completed the match, scoring Chelsea’s second goal ten minutes from time.
Headway questioned last September whether concussion protocols were being observed in football, calling for an independent review after an incident involving Manchester United’s Anthony Martial. Headway favours an approach where, if there is any doubt over a player’s fitness to continue, they are withdrawn from the action. Kilmarnock are close to landing a major windfall after frontman Souleymane Coulibaly was allowed to jet out to Egypt to seal a potential £1 million switch.
The country’s two biggest sides Al Ahly and Zamalek are both fighting for the Ivorian’s signature.
Itisunderstoodthatadeal worth an initial £750,000 has been agreed with representatives of both clubs – with the fee set to rise to nearly seven figures if add-on clauses are triggered.
Coulibaly will now have the final say on which club he joins.
The Rugby Park club rejected Zamalek’s £500,000 bid earlier this month but the sale would represent a remarkable piece of business for a player released by Peterborough just last summer.
He has 11 goals to his name this season, with an audacious 40-yard strike at Celtic Park and a stunning over-head kick against Dundee already tipped as goal of the season contenders.
But his loss would be a major blow for Lee Clark and his team’s survival bid.
Tenth-placed Killie have scored just 16 Ladbrokes Premiership goals this term – with eight of them coming from Coulibaly. The draw for the 2018 World Cup will take place in the Kremlin, Fifa has confirmed.
A UNESCO World Heritage site, the Kremlin is a fortified complex in the heart of Moscow which contains several cathedrals and palaces, one of which is the official residence of President Vladimir Putin.
The draw itself will be staged in the State Kremlin Palace, a building intended to house meetings of the Soviet Union’s Communist Party but now used as a concert hall.
The ceremony will take place on Friday 1 December.