Newcastle-Tottenham Match Paused After Players Alert Referee to Medical Emergency in Crowd

Play was stopped for 23 minutes during Newcastle's home match against Tottenham after Spurs players alerted the referee to a fan who needed medical attention.

In the 40th minute at St. James' Park, Spurs defender Sergio Reguilón ran over to referee Andre Marriner to direct the official's attention to a medical emergency in the East Stand. Meanwhile, Tottenham starters Eric Dier and Oliver Skipp rushed to the bench and appeared to signal for a stretcher and defibrillator.

Marriner called a halt to the game as Newcastle team doctor Paul Catterson ran across the field with a defibrillator in hand and tended to the fan. As paramedics treated the fan, Marriner opted to suspend the match and called players to their dressing rooms.

Reguilón said the fans were the ones who initially grabbed his attention before he asked the referee to stop the match. 

"I saw one man lying down, and one man doing [chest compressions]," Reguilón told Sky Sports after the match. "I went to the referee and said, "Look [at] this. Stop the match'

"... Everything is okay now, that's more important."

The players remained in their dressing rooms for about 15 minutes as the fan was transported out of the stadium. After a brief warm-up period, the game resumed with seven minutes of stoppage time, which included a goal from Son Heung-min to give Spurs a 3-1 halftime lead.

Newcastle's Twitter account later posted that the fan had been stabilized and was being taken to the hospital. Reguilón and Dier were praised by pundits for their quick thinking in getting a defibrillator into the stands and each team was given a loud ovation for their role in stopping the match.

Prior to the incident, the evening at St. James' Park had been a celebratory occasion. Newcastle fans were reveling with the news that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF), chaired by Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, had controversially completed a £305 million ($419.2 million) takeover of the club from Newcastle's beleaguered owner of 14 years, Mike Ashley. 

Sunday's match ended 3-2 in favor of Spurs, keeping winless Newcastle in 19th place on just three points.