Player once on Benfica’s radar suffers stroke, but news is positive | OneFootball

Samuel Bastien is back in competition after suffering a stroke. The Congolese footballer — who was on Benfica’s radar in 2016 — returned to the pitch for Fortuna Sittard, after the fateful incident that occurred last April.

Bastien’s return to competition ended up defying the prognosis given by doctors at the end of April, when the Sittard player, following the stroke, fell into a coma and faced strong odds of never waking up again.

The midfielder — a position Benfica is looking to reinforce in January — thus returned to the field months later, when he had the chance to play the final minutes of the match against PEC Zwolle, which ended in a 1-0 defeat for his team.

“The doctors told me, four months ago, that I would never play football again. I had a headache and, suddenly, I had a stroke and fell into a coma,” said Samuel Bastien at the end of the Eredivisie match, in statements to ESPN.

“It was a crazy period. I’m still not at 100%, but everything is fine. I tried to stay strong for this moment. It’s good to be back,” he added. “It’s a great incentive after such a long rehabilitation,” acknowledged the 29-year-old Congolese footballer, after returning from a coma caused by a stroke.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.