According to the Hungarian Football Association, striker Barnabas Varga is in a stable condition and is in a hospital in Stuttgart. Due to a fracture under his eye, the European Championship is over for the 29-year-old attacker, even if his team makes it to the round of 16 or beyond. Coach Marco Rossi said this after the 1-0 win in the last European Championship group match against Scotland. Varga suffered a concussion and several fractures to his face and will most likely need surgery, according to another post by the association on the X platform on Monday night.
Varga fell in the fray in Stuttgart on Sunday after a free kick was taken and lay motionless on the pitch. His worried teammates immediately called for help and carefully moved him to the side. He was eventually carried off the pitch on a stretcher with cloths to shield him from view. Hungary can still hope to advance to the knockout rounds as one of the four best third-placed teams in the group.
“It’s better if I don’t talk about it. I was one of the first to get there. And I was shocked myself. I tried to lay him on his side, which is actually the best thing to do in a situation like that. He couldn’t really breathe,” said Liverpool professional Dominik Szoboszlai in an interview with MagentaTV. The former RB Leipzig Bundesliga player wore his teammate’s number 19 jersey.
Collision with Scotland’s goalkeeper
Szoboszlai criticized the procedures immediately after the scene. In his opinion, it took too long for the paramedics to arrive on the square and help Varga. “I have no idea what the protocol is, whether people are not allowed to run onto the square if we need help. (…) We have to change something about that. We have to do it much faster,” he said.
European Football Championship
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In the replays on the TV channels that broadcast the game, the scene initially seemed like a harmless and at best light contact, but photos showed the force of the impact of Vargas’ head on the upper arm of Scottish goalkeeper Angus Gunn. The attacker from Ferencvaros Budapest convulsed while still in the air and was apparently unable to move himself as he lay on his back.
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He was substituted in the 74th minute after several minutes of treatment behind a screen on the pitch. Varga had scored Hungary’s only goal at this European Championship in the 1:3 defeat against Switzerland. His number 19 shirt was the centre of attention during the celebrations after the final whistle.
According to the Hungarian Football Association, striker Barnabas Varga is in a stable condition and is in a hospital in Stuttgart. Due to a fracture under his eye, the European Championship is over for the 29-year-old attacker, even if his team makes it to the round of 16 or beyond. Coach Marco Rossi said this after the 1-0 win in the last European Championship group match against Scotland. Varga suffered a concussion and several fractures to his face and will most likely need surgery, according to another post by the association on the X platform on Monday night.
