Just when you thought things couldn’t get worse for Tottenham, it somehow did in Spain as they fell to a calamitous 5-2 defeat to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 clash.
Antonin Kinsky made the headlines for all the wrong reasons, with his two early errors setting the tone for the rest of the game.
The game was effectively over as a contest within the first 25 minutes as Tottenham crumbled at the Wanda Metropolitano to suffer another damaging defeat.
And now, to make matters worse, they could be without two key players for their upcoming Premier League clash against Liverpool on Sunday.
Concussion protocols could haunt Tottenham
The game against Atletico Madrid marked Cristian Romero’s return for Tottenham as he made his first appearance in over a month after serving a four-match domestic suspension.
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Joao Palhinha, meanwhile, was on the bench and came on in the second half with Spurs trailing the game.
And with just a few moments to go, the pair were involved in a nasty clash of heads, with Palhinha coming out the worse of the two.
A few moments later, he went off the pitch and Tottenham went down to ten men as they had used all five substitutions. Right after he went off the pitch, Romero was spotted crouched on the centre circle as he too appeared to feel the effects of the clash.
The Argentine defender also went off the pitch as Tottenham finished the game with nine men to cap off one of the worst nights of a truly horrific season.
What does the Premier League concussion protocol say?
If a player is suspected to have a concussion, he is required to be removed immediately, regardless of whether the team has any remaining substitutions, which was the case with Tottenham today.
Additionally, players cannot return to play for at least 7 days if a concussion is confirmed, which could prove to be a massive blow to Tottenham’s Premier League survival hopes as both Romero and Palhinha would miss the game against Liverpool.
Read More: David de Gea sends powerful message to Antonin Kinsky after Tottenham nightmare
Radu Dragusin could replace the Tottenham captain at the back, while Conor Gallagher could play in midfield after being named as a substitute against his former team, Atletico Madrid.
All in all, whatever can go wrong is going wrong for Tottenham as the prospect of relegation continues to loom large at N17. It goes without saying that this is the worst period in their recent history and they need a genuine miracle to feel good again.
