When a player is injured due to an object thrown from the bench area, how should the game be restarted?

When a player is injured as a result of an object thrown from the bench area, the appropriate way to restart the game is with an indirect free kick at the location of the ball at the time of the stoppage. This ensures that the game resumes fairly, taking into account that the injury was caused by an external factor outside of the game's normal play.

The rationale behind this decision is based on the principle of maintaining the flow of the game while addressing the incident of the thrown object. The indirect free kick serves as a way to penalize the team from which the object originated, reflecting that their actions had a detrimental effect on the game. By placing the ball at the position of play when the stoppage occurred, it helps to preserve the integrity of the match and allows the game to continue in a manner consistent with the rules.

Using a drop ball in the spot where the object hit the player would not appropriately address the cause of the stoppage and might not result in a fair advantage for either team. Continuing play without stoppage would ignore the injury and the safety of the player, which is crucial. A direct free kick for the opposing team would not be suitable as the action was not a direct foul committed on the field relating to play but rather