Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall blames Sydney’s Allianz Stadium for Keira Walsh’s injury blow
England midfielder Keira Walsh was taken off the pitch on a stretcher in the 38th minute of the Women’s World Cup match against Denmark (Picture: BBC). Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall has blamed the state of Sydney’s Allianz Stadium for the devastating injury blow.
Shortly after Lauren James opened the scoring with a spectacular goal, the Lionesses were dealt a harsh blow on the pitch. Walsh fell to the ground and clutched her knee, an image that women’s football fans have become unfortunately accustomed to in recent months.
The Barcelona star was stretchered off the pitch in the 38th minute as manager Sarina Wiegman watched on anxiously. At half-time, Eidevall didn’t hold back in criticising the conditions of the pitch.
The Arsenal boss said: ‘I think it looks very dry. You can see on the movement when she [Keira] tried to slide with her right foot, then it stops and she then twists her knee. I think an example of that was when you saw the celebrations on the first goal that Lauren James did. She tried to knee-slide but as you can see, when she does that, she just stops and falls over. It looks funny but that’s actually a danger to the player welfare to have such a dry pitch. It should allow you to slide through.’
He added: ‘That’s not good enough. I’m a big advocate of watering the pitches, it helps the passes go faster but it also prevents situations like this.’
In the BBC studio alongside Jonas, Ellen White said she was ‘devastated’ for her former international teammate. Responding, Fara Williams added: ‘You saw her reaction and the reaction of her teammates around her. None of us in this room are medics, but you don’t need to be a medic to know this is something serious.’
The Lionesses entered the World Cup severely impacted by injuries, with Leah Williamson, Frank Kirby and Beth Mead all ruled out. After Walsh went down in the first half, former England goalkeeper Rachel Brown-Finnis said: ‘Keira Walsh looks like she has said “I’ve done my kne”’ – an ongoing, ever-present unfortunate discussion that we are having in women’s football.
Those down moments that make you sick to the pit of your stomach are hard to ignore, but England need to keep their minds on the task in hand. Former England defender Gilly Flaherty had added on commentary duties for the BBC: ‘I am looking now at the pictures of Keira Walsh. She looks upset. It’s not good to see and it’s just fingers crossed that it isn’t what we think it is [an ACL injury]. You feel sick at the thought it could potentially be another ACL.’
Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall has blamed Sydney’s Allianz Stadium for Keira Walsh’s injury blow, claiming that the dry pitch was a danger to player welfare. He is an advocate for watering pitches to help with faster passes and prevent situations like this from happening.
The Lionesses have been severely impacted by injuries leading up to the World Cup, with Leah Williamson, Frank Kirby and Beth Mead all ruled out. After Walsh went down in the first half, former England goalkeeper Rachel Brown-Finnis said: ‘Keira Walsh looks like she has said “I’ve done my kne”’ – an ongoing, ever-present unfortunate discussion that we are having in women’s football.
Former England defender Gilly Flaherty had added on commentary duties for the BBC: ‘I am looking now at the pictures of Keira Walsh. She looks upset. It’s not good to see and it’s just fingers crossed that it isn’t what we think it is [an ACL injury]. You feel sick at the thought it could potentially be another ACL.’
The BBC studio alongside Jonas was filled with emotion as Ellen White said she was ‘devastated’ for her former international teammate and Fara Williams added: ‘You saw her reaction and the reaction of her teammates around her. None of us in this room are medics, but you don’t need to be a medic to know this is something serious.’
The Women’s World Cup has been marred by injuries in recent months, with Walsh’s injury