He was encouraged and supported by the entire Parc des Princes on June 3. At the time, Kylian Mbappé’s teammates, already assured of the title of French champions, lost 3 goals to 2 against Clermont on the last day of Ligue 1. But the main thing was elsewhere, as they were seriously affected head, their second guardian was then between life and death, plunged into a coma in a hospital in Seville.
The supporters expected to find him this Wednesday evening. Expected time in the stands to meet and encourage his teammates at the reception of AC Milan, their third opponent in the Champions League this season, Sergio Rico will ultimately, according to our information, not make the trip to in Paris this Wednesday.
On June 2, on the occasion of the last day of Ligue 1, the Parc des Princes paid tribute to Sergio Rico. The Spanish goalkeeper was then in a coma. LP/Arnaud Journois Arnaud Journois
Since his release from hospital in the middle of August, the player has remained calm, convalescing at his home in Seville. After losing nearly 20 kg (he measures 1.94 m and went from 91 to 73 kg), which he has since regained according to those around him, the player was able to reunite with his family and his closest friends. At the beginning of September, they even gathered to celebrate its thirtieth anniversary.
Today, Sergio Rico is “in good health” according to those around him, who assure us that the cancellation of this trip is not linked to his condition. The goalkeeper continues to recover but for now, the pitches and the balls are still far away. His physical practice is limited to simple stretching.
“The fact of being in bed for three months caused me more pain than the accident,” he told the Spanish press in a long interview given to Lecturas magazine, published on October 11. But Sergio Rico is making progress and wants to believe in a return in the coming months. A feat when he left the hospital, he struggled to go up and down the stairs in his house…
The risk of a stroke
As he tells it alongside his wife, the player is still undergoing significant medical monitoring. In particular, a persistent aneurysm (a localized abnormal dilation of the wall of an artery) in the head, where he was affected during his accident.
“I still have a slightly open aneurysm with three millimeters to fill before it closes,” he explains, “then I will return to sport and getting back into shape. (…) This is a growth in an artery, which can rupture and cause a stroke because of the blood that accumulates there. (…) I was reassured because the doctors told me that once the aneurysm was closed, they would no longer see any obstacle (at [sa] reprise) ».
But for now, no date or estimated period. “Until the doctors give their approval, we don’t know what’s going on. But I hope as soon as possible, I miss my teammates,” continues the player who says he remembers nothing about this accident.
“It’s a strange feeling, you wake up in the hospital and you don’t know what happened, how serious it is, or what you could have caused,” he explains. . You have to stay calm and keep a cool head so that we can explain to you little by little what happened. »
“His physical condition saved his life,” his wife adds in the same interview. Very affected herself, Alba Silva, explains that she has had recourse to psychological monitoring for several weeks. Very religious, like her husband, she had installed an altar in Sergio Rico’s hospital room, with the saints that their loved ones had brought them. Next to them sat the PSG jersey signed by all of his teammates. The guard will have to wait a little longer before finding them.
