Drogba hits out after footballer dies mid-match
After a player died after a match in the top division, Didier Drogba, a Chelsea great, asked for more medical examinations to safeguard athletes in his native Ivory Coast.
Moustapha Sylla, a 21-year-old defender for Racing Club d’Abidjan (RCA), passed away on the route to the hospital on Sunday after collapsing during the game against SOL FC.
Footage of the incident shows Sylla slipping before losing his balance and collapsing to the ground unmoving near the centre-circle, leading opposition players to call for medical assistance.
Sylla was referred to as a “rising star that went too soon” by RCA president Logossina Cisse, and the Ivorian Football Federation (FIF) led tributes on social media.
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The Ivorian football family, the managers and players of RCA, as well as the relatives of the dead, are all recipients of FIF’s sincere condolences, the organization posted on Facebook.
President of the Patrice Motsepe voiced his grief at “the awful demise of such a young kid who showed potential on the football field” as well.
At Djoliba AC, Sylla won the Malian championship in 2022 before joining RCA in September.
‘When will sports medicine arrive?’
Responding to the death, former Ivory Coast captain Drogba requested that players be afforded better medical protection by footballing authorities.
Drogba, an international teammate, wrote, “Condolences to Ivorian football,” back in 2017.
In fewer than four years, three Ivorian professional league players have died.
Where are the required medical checkups for every professional athlete?
What time will sports medicine be here?
a South African death
South African football supporters are also mourning the loss of a star player at the moment.
Richards Bay midfielder Siphamandla Mtolo collapsed during training on Tuesday.
The Premier Division side, who currently sit sixth in the table, have said they will release a further statement in due course.
Official Statement regarding the passing of our player, 𝗦𝗶𝗽𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗮 “𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗽𝗲” 𝗠𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗼.
