Leipzig defender Mukiele knocked out and SWALLOWS tongue vs Tottenham

Worrying scenes unfolded during RB Leipzig's victorious encounter with Jose Mourinho's Tottenham, after defender Nordi Mukiele was left unconscious and swallowed his tongue after being hit by the ball.

The 22-year-old was left in a heap on the floor early in the second half, after being hit in the jaw by an attempted cross.

Worried team-mates quickly gathered around the defender, who lay momentarily motionless having swallowed his tongue.

Medical staff were rapidly on the scene to treat the Leipzig star, while the game was halted and a stretcher was brought from the sidelines.

Mukiele was then substituted with Tyler Adams coming on in his place. Still looking incredibly dazed and struggling, the Frenchman was the whisked straight to hospital.

Following the match, which Leipzig dominated and took an emphatic 3-0 win, the youngster posted a picture of himself on social media to reassure fans that all was well.

Prior to the incident Mukiele had been excelling in the match, successfully making all four of his tackles and won five of his six aerial duels, without committing a foul.

Leipzig now head into the next round, while Spurs head back to the drawing board and now hope to qualify for Europe's premier competition next season.

In his post-match press conference Mourinho admitted his injury-stricken side now face an upwards battle to pull it off.

'With the squad we have at the moment it is going to be very, very difficult,' said Mourinho. 'Our problems are not going to disappear tomorrow.

'Every team in the world would struggle with five or six of their most important players missing. It's as simple as that.

'So that's a big problem. I know our team will automatically improve next season with these players back but we know we have to improve in other areas.'