West Ham’s Lukasz Fabianski stretchered off after nasty collision as Ramsdale shows class | Football | Sport

Lukasz Fabianski was stretchered off after seven minutes of medical treatment during the first half of West Ham‘s game against Southampton.

Fabianski was left in a bad way after colliding with the elbow of Saints defender Nathan Wood, who was shown a yellow card for his involvement.

Medics quickly rushed onto the pitch as Fabianski lay prone on the grass. He was treated for around seven minutes, with Ramsdale running over to check on his fellow goalkeeper in a classy touch.

It quickly became apparent that Fabianski could not continue and he was stretchered off, with Alphonse Areola coming on to replace him. All four corners of St Mary’s Stadium stood up to applaud the Hammers goalkeeper as he left the pitch.

Amazon Prime did not show any replays of the collision and kept their cameras away from Fabianski while he was receiving treatment. He was covered with a blanket, fitted with a neck brace and received oxygen prior to coming off.

Some positive news filtered through during the half-time break, with Amazon Prime reporting that Fabianski did not go to hospital but was instead monitored at the ground. He later returned to sit in the West Ham dugout for the closing stages of the match.

The former Arsenal goalkeeper was having a brilliant game at the time of his injury, making three important saves including a sensational stop to deny Paul Onuachu from close range.

He has emerged as West Ham’s first-choice goalkeeper in recent months, having displaced Areola as the favoured option between the sticks. It remains to be seen if he will be sidelined for any length of time following his injury against Southampton.

Fabianski’s early withdrawal came just minutes after the Hammers lost Max Kilman to an apparent shoulder injury. The defender was in visible discomfort before he was taken off and replaced by Jean-Clair Todibo.

There were no goals in the first half, with Onuachu missing three good chances to give Southampton an early lead. West Ham went into the match on a three-game unbeaten run but only managed one attempt on target before the break.

They broke the deadlock after the interval, with Jarrod Bowen finding the back of the net from close range after Southampton failed to clear their lines.