Tobias Sylvester
Spanish football coach, Francisco Garcia has passed away at the age of 21, a few days after contracting Coronavirus COVID-19.
Mr Garcia is believed to be the youngest victim of coronavirus in Europe and possibly the world, and the fifth person in the Malaga region to die from the disease.
The Spaniard, who managed the junior team of Malaga-based club Atletico Portada Alta, died on Sunday after testing positive for Covid-19 lask wee Friday, having been sent to the Regional Hospital of Malaga for treatment.
Upon his arrival at the facility, Garcia was found to be suffering from leukaemia which made him more vulnerable to coronavirus currently sweeping the globe.
Spanish newspaper El Mundo reported the death, stating that his leukaemia was not detected until he was taken to hospital with coronavirus symptoms.
“He went to the clinical hospital thinking that he had a bad cold,’ a source told the newspaper, ‘but they ended up detecting pneumonia’.
“The doctors did tests and more tests and, in addition to confirming that he had a coronavirus, it was learned that he had leukaemia. He fought for a few days and finally died this Sunday.”
Garcia had been training with Atletico Portada Alta for four years and was coach of the junior team, with club president Pep Bueno paying tribute to him after revealing how quickly his condition declined.
“Francisco was a great guy and a very talented coach. We are all still shocked.
“The hospital rang me at 7pm on Sunday to say his condition had stabilised, but then an hour later because of the coronavirus and (cancer) … I do not believe it. It seems impossible to me,” Bueno said.
Meanwhile, Spanish football’s major leagues have all been shut down indefinitely to contain the spread of coronavirus, with 9,190 cases recorded in the country to date and 309 deaths.
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