Published18. August 2024, 14:15
Football in France: Lille player violently hit in the head ends up in hospital
The Ligue 1 matchday 1 match between Reims and Lille was interrupted for a long time on Saturday following the injury of Angel Gomes. The midfielder gave his news.
Angel Gomes had to be taken out on a stretcher.
AFP
Lille midfielder Angel Gomes suffered a terrible head injury after contact with a Reims player and was taken to hospital, a serious incident that overshadowed Losc’s 2-0 victory on Saturday during the first day of Ligue 1.
The 23-year-old Englishman collapsed on the pitch in the 11th minute after violently headbutting Reims midfielder Amadou Koné, who was sent off shortly afterwards by the referee for this excessive commitment. Very quickly surrounded by players from both teams, Gomes was treated on the pitch for more than 25 minutes before being evacuated by the firefighters to the cheers of the Auguste-Delaune stadium.
Initially frozen, the spectators at the Champagne stadium never stopped chanting Gomes’ name during the long intervention by the rescuers.
«Angel Gomes a repris conscience»
The Lille club quickly communicated on the state of health of the player who was trained at Manchester United before arriving in 2021 in the North after having been first loaned to Boavista. “We can confirm that Angel Gomes has regained consciousness and has been transferred to hospital,” said Losc on its X account.
The match then resumed after a 34-minute interruption. Despite this accident and the palpable concern on the faces of the players and staff, Lille did not fall apart and managed to open the scoring, with a numerical advantage, thanks to a shot from Bafodé Diakité (45th + 30), who immediately dedicated his goal to Angel Gomes by brandishing the jersey of the No. 8 of Lille in front of the cameras. Canadian striker Jonathan David put the nail in the coffin in stoppage time (45th + 3).
“My condition is improving”
This victory confirms Lille’s good form at the start of the season, with a three-man defence that works and Rémy Cabella as the hub of the attacking sector. The troops of new coach Bruno Genesio have thus shown solidity before meeting Slavia Prague on Tuesday in the first leg of the Champions League play-offs (return match on 28 August) after eliminating José Mourinho’s Fenerbahçe.
On Sunday, Angel Gomes gave an update on his condition on social media. “The impact was violent, but my condition is improving. Thanks to the staff, the hospital staff, the fans and the players of both teams for their support.”
Angry Coach
Regarding the gesture by Reims’ Amadou Koné, Lille coach Bruno Genesio spoke of “aggression” after the match won 2-0 by Losc. “These are things that we should not see on the pitch. There are fouls that can be excused. This one for me is not (excusable)”, he said.
(afp)
