Thibaut Courtois Injury: Updates on Chelsea Star's Status and Return

Updates from Thursday, Oct. 9

Jamie Anderson of The Express reports that Courtois has joined with his Belgian teammates, although he's still unlikely to play:

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Belgium coach Marc Wilmotts has been without his first-choice keeper for training this week as Courtois needed extended recovery time after the incident - instead undergoing light training at Chelsea's Cobham training ground.

The Belgian has now met up with the national team, but Wilmotts is likely to opt for Liverpool's Simon Mignolet as a replacement.

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Kristof Terreur of HLN adds Belgian manager Marc Wilmots' thoughts on his goaltender:

Michel D'Hooghe, FIFA's chief medical officer, talked about Chelsea's handling of Thibault Courtois' injury, according to Sky Sports:

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 Chelsea observed the correct procedures when they allowed goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to continue playing after he sustained a head injury against Arsenal, according to FIFA's chief medical officer Michel D'Hooghe.

[...]

New Premier League rules introduced this season mean players suspected of having lost consciousness have to be substituted, but D'Hooghe said Chelsea's first-team doctor Eva Carneiro had handled the situation correctly.

"I think sincerely that, first of all, the team doctor, the lady of Chelsea, did a correct examination," he said.

"She came to the conclusion that he could go on, but she kept an eye on him and from the moment he didn't feel well - which can happen in concussions - they took the right decision to take him off."

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Updates from Tuesday, Oct. 7

Thibaut Courtois will be treated cautiously by medical staff during the international break, following the head collision he suffered against Arsenal.

The Times' Matt Hughes reports that the Chelsea 'keeper is unlikely to represent Belgium over the coming days:

Updates from Monday, Oct. 6

Chelsea's medical staff have given Thibaut Courtois the all-clear to represent Belgium following the sickening blow to the head that ended his afternoon early against Arsenal.

An official statement from Chelsea read:

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Chelsea Football Club can confirm Thibaut Courtois went to hospital during our Premier League game against Arsenal yesterday [Sunday] for precautionary tests on a head injury. Those tests came back all clear.

Thibaut was treated for a minor cut to his ear and was released from hospital last night. He is expected to report for international duty later this week.

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Courtois also tweeted a message to Chelsea fans:

Original Text

After a nasty blow to the head in the early stages of Chelsea's match against Arsenal, Thibaut Courtois attempted to stay in the contest. Not long after, however, with a bloody ear and what appeared to be the possibility of a concussion, the Chelsea man was removed from the contest. 

ESPN FC has more:

Matt Hughes of The Times and Neil Ashton of the Daily Mail added:

Courtois and Alexis Sanchez collided as the two were racing toward the ball near the edge of the box. Courtois had gotten their first, but Sanchez was too close to avoid contact, attempting to leap out of the way of the 'keeper but instead striking his head with his leg.

FourFourTweet posted a picture of the collision:

Following the game, Jose Mourinho confirmed that Courtois suffered a concussion, via Oliver Kay of The Times:

Courtois appeared somewhat groggy but was allowed to remain in the contest, which, given the diagnosis, will be seen as an indictment of the EPL's Concussion Protocol.

Meanwhile, while the Blues are lucky enough to have a deputy as world-class as Petr Cech, the loss of Courtois—one of the world's best at his position—will be felt. Still, few clubs in the world have a 'keeper as good as either Courtois or Cech, let alone two of them, so the Blues will be in good hands if Courtois is forced to miss time.