Birmingham City have confirmed that goalkeeper Neil Etheridge has escaped with "considerable swelling" to his face following a collision with Djed Spence in Nottingham Forest's 2-0 win on Saturday afternoon.
The two collided on the hour mark after they chased a loose ball that was sent down the right flank by the hosts. The shot-stopper required medical attention in a pause of nearly 10 minutes, and he was later carried off the pitch on a stretcher and taken straight to Queen's Medical Centre hospital in Nottingham.
A statement from Blues on Sunday afternoon said: "Following a collision with Nottingham Forest defender Djed Spence in the 60th minute of Saturday’s fixture, Blues ‘keeper Neil Etheridge was knocked unconscious and required immediate medical attention on the field of play.
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"After a swift response from the medical personnel at the City Ground, Etheridge was stabilised before being transferred to the Queen’s Medical Centre to undergo further assessment. Thankfully, CT scans revealed no injury to the bones in the head but considerable swelling to the right side of the face which took the full force of the impact.
"Following close consultation with the Club’s medical staff, he was cleared to return home late on Saturday evening. The Club will follow the FA’s concussion protocol over the coming days whilst continually monitoring Etheridge’s condition to ensure his safe return to action.
"We would like to place on record our thanks to the staff at the City Ground and the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham for their quick and effective response to what was an extremely concerning situation."
