The chief executive of the Professional Footballers' Association, Gordon Taylor has urged FIFA and boot manufacturers to introduce new safety regulations on 'hybrid' boots after Wayne Rooney was forced to miss England's World Cup qualifiers due to a 'horrific' head injury.
According to the Independent, Rooney has been wearing a protective headband having needed 10 stitches in his forehead after being caught by Phil Jones during a Manchester United training session, the second time in just over a year that he has suffered a similar injury.
The England striker missed more than a month of last season after he sustained a six-inch gash in his leg during a match against Fulham last August after a clash with Hugo Rodallega, with United's doctors admitting that the injury could have been fatal had the cut been just one millimetre deeper and punctured his femoral artery, the report said.
Boots, known as 'hybrids', use a combination of traditional metal studs and new-style blades that are made of plastic and can become sharp when exposed to concrete surfaces, the report added.
Taylor first raised his concerns after Rooney's injury last year and has since held discussions with major boot manufacturers over the possibility of introducing a safety Kitemark to their products, with no regulations in place under FIFA current rules, the report further said.
He said that manufacturers had been forewarned with the potential dangers and they would try to do everything to protect players against this problem.
Taylor added that it was an issue the body was looking at for 11 years but the problem still very much existed.