FLORENCE, Italy (AP) — Fiorentina midfielder Edoardo Bove collapsed on the field during his team’s Serie A match at home to Inter Milan on Sunday, with the game abandoned shortly afterward.
Bove's teammates immediately called for medical help and both sets of players surrounded the 22-year-old while he was being treated before he was swiftly stretchered off to an ambulance near the pitch and taken to hospital.
Fiorentina players were distraught on the field and were comforted by staff members as well as Inter players. Several were openly sobbing before the teams filed off the field.
Play was down the other end when Bove dropped to the ground in the 16th minute and the Italian league match was immediately halted, before being abandoned. The score at the time of Bove's collapse was 0-0.
There has been no update so far from Fiorentina on Bove's condition but unconfirmed Italian media reports state he has regained consciousness and is managing to breathe on his own.
Bove’s father and girlfriend have arrived at the hospital, along with Fiorentina coach Raffaele Palladino.
Many at Fiorentina — as well as the fans — remember former captain Davide Astori, who was found dead in his hotel room in March 2018 before a match in Udine.
It is the second incident this year of a player collapsing during a Serie A match. It happened to Roma defender Evan Ndicka during his team's match at Udinese in April.
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