Wayne Rooney was forced to leave the field with blood pouring from his face after suffering a nasty eye injury during Everton’s 2-1 win over Bournemouth.

Rooney was elbowed in the face by Bournemouth defender Simon Francis following a challenge in the air and he suffered a cut around his eye. Rooney needed lengthy treatment from the club’s medical staff before he was allowed to return to the field.

Rooney protested heavily to referee Martin Atkinson over the challenge but the referee refused to hand out any punishment to Francis. Then two minutes before half-time, Rooney’s wound re-opened following a challenge with Adam Smith. Blood streamed down the former England skipper’s face and he needed more treatment from the Everton medics.

The experienced forward eventually left the field on 55 minutes. His manager Ronald Koeman is hopeful that he will be fit for their next game against Apollon Limassol in the Europa League on Thursday.

Koeman said: “We knew it would be difficult for the second half. It cost time in the first half but I had to change him. Hopefully he will be OK for the next game.”

Former Premier League referee Graham Poll believes Atkinson made the right decision to keep Francis on the field following the nasty looking challenge. He said Francis did not deliberately inflict injury on Rooney.

Poll, speaking on BT Sport, said: “It’s not deliberate. If a player wants to do someone with an arm, they tend to clench their fist to give it power.”