LONDON – Cesc Fabregas made an emphatic point to Chelsea manager Antonio Conte as his double sealed a 4-2 win at Leicester, while Everton and Bournemouth suffered shock third-round exits from the English Football League Cup on Tuesday (Sept 20).

Fabregas has been limited to three substitute appearances in the Premier League since Conte took charge over the summer, but the Spain midfielder proved he can still be a game-changer with an influential display capped by the decisive two goals in extra-time.

Elsewhere, second-tier Norwich spoiled Everton’s impressive start to the season and inflicted Ronald Koeman’s first defeat as Toffees boss with a 2-0 win at Goodison Park.

Bournemouth were the other top-flight casualties as second-tier Preston won 3-2 thanks to a hat-trick from Denmark striker Simon Makienok.

At the King Power Stadium, Shinji Okazaki put Premier League champions Leicester ahead in the 17th minute when the Japan striker punished terrible Chelsea defending to head home from close range.

Okazaki followed his first goal since March with a second in the 34th minute as the 30-year-old’s strike into the turf bounced over Chelsea goalkeeper Asmir Begovic.

Gary Cahill reduced the deficit on the stroke of half-time, the defender heading home after being left unmarked at the far post from a Fabregas corner.

The Blues equalised four minutes after the interval through Cesar Azpilicueta’s blistering long-range effort.

Leicester had to play extra-time with 10 men after Marcin Wasilewski’s 89th minute dismissal for elbowing Diego Costa and Fabregas made them pay, finishing a flowing move in the 92nd minute and drilling home again two minutes later.

Everton are second in the Premier League but Koeman made six changes and his stand-ins were brushed aside by promotion-chasing Norwich.

The Canaries went ahead when former Everton striker Steven Naismith slipped as he went to shoot and inadvertently lobbed the ball into the net.

Josh Murphy’s superb strike from the edge of the area in the 74th minute completed the upset.

“I can’t criticise the players. We played well but weren’t clinical enough. The difference was Norwich were clinical with their two chances,” Koeman said.

At Dean Court, Makienok, who hadn’t scored in his previous 19 appearances, gave Preston the lead in the 10th minute before Bournemouth equalised through Lewis Grabban’s 53rd minute penalty.

Dan Gosling put the hosts ahead from close range in the 76th minute, only for Makienok to force extra-time in the 85th minute and then win it for Simon Grayson’s men in the 111th minute.

Lucas Perez’s first goals for Arsenal inspired a 4-0 rout of second-tier Nottingham Forest at the city Ground.

Gunners boss Arsene Wenger, who has never won the League Cup, made 11 changes from the team that thrashed Hull on Saturday and the understudies went ahead in the 23rd minute through a long-range effort from Switzerland midfielder Granit Xhaka.

Spanish striker Perez, who arrived from Deportivo La Coruna on transfer-deadline day, opened his Arsenal account in his third appearance with a 60th-minute penalty after a foul on Chuba Akpom.

Perez got his second in the 71st minute and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain got Arsenal’s fourth in stoppage time.

Liverpool, last year’s beaten finalists, remain on course for a return to Wembley after a 3-0 win against Championship side Derby at the iPro Stadium.

Reds boss Jurgen Klopp made seven changes, including a debut for goalkeeper Loris Karius, but his team were still unstoppable as they took their goal tally to 19 in seven matches this season.

Estonia centre-back Ragnar Klavan took advantage of poor Derby defending to fire home in the 24th minute.

Philippe Coutinho doubled Liverpool’s lead in the 50th minute and Divock Origi put the result beyond doubt four minutes later.

Newcastle defeated Championship rivals Wolves 2-0, Leeds beat fellow second-tier side Blackburn 1-0, while Reading won 2-1 in another all-Championship clash at Brighton.

Staph is a word that gets tossed around martial arts gyms all over the world a lot, but not everyone knows exactly what it is, how one prevents it, and how it is treated. 

We got Doctor Warren Wang, longtime BJJ practitioner, gym owner, and ONE Vice President of Medical Services, to shed some light on this dangerous bacteria. This article is part of a series of regular columns by the veteran fight doctor.

Staphylococcus aureus, commonly known as Staph, is a bacteria that is frequently found in the nose, respiratory tract, and on the skin. Although S. aureus is not always pathogenic, it is a common cause of skin infections such as abscesses, respiratory infections such as sinusitis, and food poisoning.

In the context of a gym, we are most worried about skin infections and diseases. S. aureus can cause a range of skin disorders such as pimples, impetigo, boils, cellulitis, folliculitis, carbuncles, scalded skin syndrome, and abscesses. Search for more information on these disorders on the internet and you’ll find out how serious they can be, but be warned that it can be pretty graphic. 

Even more worrying is the emergence of antibiotic-resistant strains of S. aureus such as methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA). This is a worldwide problem in clinical medicine, and thus possess a potential problem in the gym. After all, nobody would want to train or continue training in a facility that could lead to such serious skin infections. 

Prevention

The spread of S. aureus (including MRSA) is generally caused via human-to-human contact. Emphasis on basic hand washing and proper academy cleaning are the most effective ways in preventing its transmission. 

Alcohol and bleach are the most economic cleaning agents to use in the academy. At my academy, the mats are mopped down with a diluted bleached mixture (1:100) before and after each class, as a higher concentration of bleach may be uncomfortable for the students during class. We also encourage our students to wash their hands and feet with soap before each session. 

In addition, athletes can choose to wear a long-sleeved rashguard and spats during training to prevent skin-to-skin contact, and a thorough shower with soap is highly recommended right after training. Athletes who suspect they have contracted a skin condition should discontinue training until they have been treated and cleared by a dermatologist or family medicine doctor.

Treatment

Antibiotics are the gold standard in the treatment of Staphylococcus aureus. Local infections such as furuncle and carbuncles can be treated by local incision and drainage under aseptic conditions and topical antibiotics. More diffused infections such as impetigo, folliculitis, and cellulitis need to be treated with proper skin care and oral antibiotics. 

More seriously, anyone with uncontrolled progressive infections including systemic symptoms of fever and chills needs to be admitted for intravenous antibiotic treatment.

It is imperative that we keep our skin clean and healthy. Athletes often forget to take care of their skin, brushing off little scrapes and cuts on the skin, as well as chapped heels and elbows, as minor inconveniences. 

However, hours and hours on the mat can lead to significant wear and tear on the skin. Proper cleaning, protection, and maintenance practices are critical to protect the body from the environment. 

Next month, we will discuss another common skin disease found in the gym, Ringworm. Until then, train hard, and train smart.

Doctor Warren Wang is ONE Championship’s Vice President of Medical Services. He is a member of the American Ringside Physicians, Taiwan Society of Emergency Medicine, and Taiwan Medical Association.

Doctor Wang has been an active part of MMA in Asia for several years, both as a resident medical consultant and referee for several organisations. He also owns and teaches at the Taiwan Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy, and is the Chairman of the Chinese Taipei Jiu-Jitsu Association.