England reserve Jordan Henderson was stretchered off the pitch late Sunday after he hurt himself in a freak postgame accident following England’s dramatic victory over host Mexico.
England players in Estadio Azteca in Mexico City were soaking in wild cheers from England supporters, enraptured by their team’s 3-2, round-of-16 triumph.
The team had gathered to sing their unofficial anthem of this tournament, the Oasis classic “Wonderwall.” England captain Harry Kane went over a temporary wall, which appeared roughly 4 feet high, set up for advertising.
A second later, Henderson put both hands on the barrier to hoist himself up and over. But he appeared to lose his grip, causing him to fall awkwardly.
The strange accident took some joy out of England’s dressing room.
“Mixed feelings also because I’m exhausted, of course, and emotional, but also sad because Jordan got injured,” England coach Thomas Tuchel told reporters.
“He injured his wrist. He’s at the moment in the hospital, so it’s a quite serious injury. And it just doesn’t fit to the evening that Jordan is now not with us. I don’t know the procedure, what’s going on. I just did the press, and the doctor told me that he’s in hospital.”
Kane immediately saw that his teammate was in pain and motioned for first responders to rush onto the pitch.
“Hendo just fell over there, and I think he’s OK, something to do with his arm,” Kane told the BBC moments after the freak crash.
Henderson, a midfielder for Brentford in the English Premier League, was taken off the pitch on a stretcher, apparently ending a World Cup run in which he played sparingly but still managed to put himself at center stage.
Despite not playing in the Mexico match, he was shown a yellow card in the 98th minute. Henderson, wearing his warmup vest, appeared to insert himself into a touchline clash between teammate Jude Bellingham and Mexico’s Johan Vásquez.
Henderson subbed into a group-stage match against Panama, making him England’s first player to have appeared in four World Cup tournaments.
