West Ham star Lukasz Fabianski carried off on a stretcher after seven-minute delay following head injury in Hammers’ clash at Southampton
- Lukasz Fabianski collided with Southampton’s Nathan Wood in the first half
- The Polish veteran was replaced by West Ham colleague Alphonse Areola
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West Ham goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski was forced off the pitch on a stretcher after suffering a painful-looking head injury.
The Hammers traveled to Southampton on Boxing Day looking for a morale-boosting win to ease some of the pressure on Julen Lopetegui against 20th in the table.
However, with the score at 0-0 it appeared the Polish veteran collided with the elbow of Saints defender Nathan Wood as both went for a high ball.
Fabianski was then left lying on the ground in obvious discomfort, after which the match was quickly stopped.
After a lengthy delay of around seven minutes, the goalkeeper was finally taken off on a stretcher, with medics quickly arriving to attend to the Hammers star.
Equally quick to respond was his counterpart, Aaron Ramsdale, who arrived on the scene to check on Fabianski with a classy gesture from the Saints stopper.
Lukasz Fabianski was forced off the field on a stretcher after suffering a head injury on Boxing Day
The Polish veteran collided in the air with Southampton’s Nathan Wood during Thursday’s match
The incident had a long delay before Fabianski was replaced by teammate Alphonse Areola
Fabianski was covered with a blanket and his head was placed in a protective brace to minimize the damage caused by the collision.
Both visiting and home fans applauded as the player was transported from the playing field to the tunnel.
After the nasty collision, Amazon Prime’s cameras turned off and refused to show replays of the incident, and Alphonse Areola was brought in as a replacement for his colleague.
With half-time at St Mary’s postponed due to the extended break, some good news arrived during the break.
According to reports from Prime Video, the goalkeeper did not go to the hospital, but was monitored on the ground.
The 39-year-old former Arsenal stopper has made 11 Premier League appearances this season, conceding 16 of them, during a difficult first half of the season for West Ham.
It happened during a match in which Fabianski again belied his age, having made a stunning stop on Saints star Paul Onuachu moments earlier.
With Lopetegui under pressure during the Hammers’ poor start to the season, the visitors had already suffered a setback earlier in the game.
Aaron Ramsdale (left) rushed to the scene to check in on his other number during the delay
Fabianski had a great game and made a crucial stop to deny Paul Onuachu
Fabianski has made 11 appearances for Julen Lopetegui’s side in the league this season
Summer signing Max Kilman was forced off earlier in the half after picking up a fitness problem himself and was replaced by Jean-Clair Todibo.
After holding Fulham to a 0-0 draw in west London, Thursday’s match was the first between the Saints and Ivan Juric in the dugout.
The Croatian boss was brought in last Friday to replace the departed Russell Martin, and his intense, defensively sound attitude showed early signs of penetrating Southampton’s game.
After keeping the Hammers out for an hour, Jarrod Bowen finally broke through and poked home at the back post following a strike from Niclas Fullkrug.