Adelaide coach Carl Veart has lamented the lack of on-site ambulances at A-Leagues matches in Victoria after midfielder Juande suffered a horror lower-leg injury in the Reds' 3-3 draw at Melbourne City.
Juande was injured when he and City's Florin Berenguer challenged for the ball in the 66th minute at AAMI Park.
There was a loud crack upon impact and the Spanish midfielder's lower right leg was left at an unnatural angle as both sets of players called for the medical staff, with some in tears.
It took 13 minutes for an ambulance to arrive at AAMI Park, with Juande's leg screened from cameras and the crowd as he underwent treatment on the pitch.
Ambulance Victoria have not stationed ambulances at A-Leagues matches since November 2018, with emergency physicians on site instead.
After being treated on the pitch, Juande was taken to hospital. He will have surgery on Sunday night.
"It's something that you don't want to ever witness on a football field," Veart said.
"It was hard to see and hard to have to wait that long for him to get removed off the pitch.
"I'm just devastated for him.
"As far as I'm understanding, it's a Victorian government thing, that doesn't have the ambulance at sporting events. I think it's the only state in Australia.
"It's disappointing at a professional sport that you don't have emergency care straight away because he was in a lot of pain, and to wait that long - it wasn't a nice thing to be witnessing that."
The A-Leagues confirmed the ambulance policy to AAP.
"In November 2018, static ambulance services were withdrawn by Ambulance Victoria and instead emergency physicians were installed at the stadium," A-Leagues commissioner Greg O'Rourke said in a statement.
"Emergency physicians are doctors who have specialised in emergency medicine. As specialist medical practitioners they are able to provide a higher level of care than a paramedic.
"That change was approved by PFA (Professional Footballers Australia) in 2018 and has been policy in Victoria ever since. In every other state, it remains policy to have static ambulances."
After Juande was taken to hospital, play was restarted from the time of the incident, with City scoring a 90th-minute equaliser from the penalty spot.
Adelaide took the lead via George Blackwood in the opening minute but City equalised with a Thomas Lam header in the 12th minute,
United regained the lead five minutes later when Javi Lopez headed Craig Goodwin's corner on at the near post for Ryan Kitto to convert.
Blackwood came off in the 29th minute after hyperextending his left knee but Adelaide were confident he had avoided an ACL tear.
Goodwin capitalised on an overshot backpass from City's Jordan Bos to add the Reds' third in the 42nd minute.
City pulled one back in the 52nd when Mathew Leckie drove down the left, cut onto his right foot and skidded a shot into the far bottom corner.
They fluffed multiple late chances before a last-minute penalty - awarded when Bos was clipped by Alexandar Popovic - allowed Jamie Maclaren to equalise from the spot.
"We were expecting that they were going to be affected more with the injury than us," City coach Rado Vidosic said.
"I'm not sure if that happened but we created a few chances in that last 20-25 minutes."
