Football
New Brighton Signing Matt O’Riley Limps Off After Suffering Ankle Injury Just Nine Minutes Into His Debut
Brighton summer signing Matt O’Riley has gotten off to the worst possible start at the Amex after he was forced off with an ankle injury just nine minutes into his debut against Crawley in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday.
Having joined Brighton from Celtic for a fee just shy of £25 million on Monday, Matt O’Riley was thrown into the line-up straight away to make his debut for the club in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday evening.
Unfortunately for the Denmark international, his first appearance was cut short as he was forced to limp off with an ankle injury after being on the receiving end of Crawley Town captain Jay Williams’ nasty challenge.
Matt O'Riley has limped off injured just NINE minutes into his Brighton debut 🤕 pic.twitter.com/hIS4W6BtFu
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) August 27, 2024
Brighton Boss Huerzeler Provides O’Riley Injury Update
The Seagulls went on to win the match by a comfortable 4-0 scoreline, with Simon Adingra, Jeremy Sarmiento, Adam Webster, and Mark O’Mahony all getting on the scoresheet, however Brighton boss Fabian Huerzeler was less than impressed with the foul that led to O’Riley’s injury in his post-match press conference.
Huerzeler told the media: “I think after this foul it was like the players could tackle like they wanted because he didn’t get a yellow card.
“For me, it is a clear red card. You can’t tackle like this, but you can play hard and you can be ruthless.
“I talked to [O’Riley] when he went off the pitch, he couldn’t get any weight on his ankle, so let’s see, we have to scan it.
“I think players know their bodies best, so his reaction was not good.”
Crawley boss Scott Lindsey responded, apologising for his side’s aggressiveness: “Maybe we were a bit aggressive, maybe the referee missed it (the challenge), and I would like to apologise.
“I wouldn’t want anyone to be hurt. We are both passionate about the game, and we wish Brighton all the best in the next round.”
A Premier League debut could’ve potentially been on the cards for O’Riley on Saturday afternoon, with Brighton facing Arsenal at the Emirates, however it now looks as though the 23-year-old will face a spell on the sidelines before making his top-flight bow.
Full Brighton Injury List
- Solly March – Knee Injury (Ruled Out)
- Matt O’Riley -Ankle Injury (Doubtful)
- Mats Wieffer – Knock (Doubtful)
- Brajan Gruda – Unknown (Doubtful)