England got off to a great start to the World Cup with their 6-2 win over Iran. On only the second day of the controversial Qatar tournament, controversy continues on the pitch after years of controversy off it. FIFA said its time to stop talking about Women’s rights, Human rights etc… And it was now time to focus on football.

We are at day 2 and yet again there is controversy on the pitch. Yesterday there was a bizarre offside ruling. Today in the England vs Iran game, the Iranian goalkeeper, Alireza Beiranvand collided with his team-mate Majid Hosseini, resulting in a heavy clash of heads. The game was stopped for over 10 minutes and the goalkeeper insisted he was okay to stay on.

Anyone watching the game could clearly see the Iranian goalkeeper was concussed. I’m no medical expert but it was as clear as day the keeper wasn’t right. You can’t blame the player for wanting to stay on. For one, he wasn’t in a state of mind to consciously make a decision and two, what player wants to come off? It’s for all the world like a boxer before his corner throws in the towel or the referee calls it time.

What is going to take for FIFA to do something about head injuries in football?! Will it take a player to die on the pitch? FIFA is football’s authority and they need to act on this as soon as possible before a player does die.

It could be a simple fix. Rugby has an independent doctor making that decision so why can’t football be the same?