By Katie Catherall
Dominik Szoboszlai revealed his fury after UEFA's medical team 'walked' onto the pitch to handle Barnabas Varga's dangerous injury during Hungary's 1-0 win over Scotland on Sunday night.
The Liverpool star captained the side that knocked Steve Clarke's Scotland out of Euro 2024 and gave themselves a chance at securing a spot in the last 16. However, post-match celebrations centred around the status of Varga, who was stretchered off with a serious injury earlier in the game.
Varga lost consciousness on the pitch and it was later confirmed to have sustained fractures to his face, with manager Marco Rossi revealing that he would undergo surgery. But there was a lack of swift action in getting medical staff and a stretcher onto the pitch.
Szoboszlai made his feelings clear on the treatment of his forward, demanding that 'protocol' must change in order to protect players.
"He needs some surgery on his face and his nose," Szoboszlai said after the game. "I think he's going to have the surgery tomorrow [Monday]. It looked bad, it was bad, he felt bad.
"I don't really know the [medical] protocol or how it works but if our doctors say we need someone immediately to help, then I don't think they should walk. It's not my decision, but I think we need to change something. Even if somebody is on the ground, and you see that it was a big [collision], then just go on [the pitch].
"Even if the referee is saying don't go on. Just go on. And if you see it's nothing serious, then you can just go down and it's finished. Seconds can help a lot."
Hungary players crowded the injured striker as he laid out cold on the pitch, while medics lifted sheets to hide Varga from view. Varga's teammates dedicated their last minute win to him, with Szoboszlai donning his shirt while parading the pitch.
Rossi's side will now await to see whether they will progress in the tournament and qualify as one of the four best third-place teams.
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This article was originally published on 90min.com as Dominik Szoboszlai hits out at medical treatment of Barnabas Varga after horror injury.
