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Former
Man U and Newcastle Star, Andrew Cole has questioned whether more can be done to help protect
footballers from heart problems (Nigel French/PA)
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Former Manchester United
and Newcastle striker Andrew Cole has questioned whether more can be done to
help protect footballers from heart problems following the death of Cheick
Tiote.
Press
Association report continues:
Tiote
died this week while training with Chinese club Beijing Enterprises. His family
remain in the dark over what caused his sudden and tragic death at the age of
just 30 as they await the results of a post-mortem, but a suspected heart
attack appears the likely cause at this stage.
Tiote’s
death comes little under two months after former Aston Villa defender Ugo
Ehiogu, Tottenham Under-23 coach at the time, died of a cardiac arrest while
Fabrice Muamba (2012) and Marc-Vivien Foe (2003) both also collapsed on the
pitch due to heart problems, with the latter dying.
Deeply
sad to hear the news about Cheick.. One of my favourite teammates.. My thoughts
are with his family. pic.twitter.com/FvS6TdDctP
—
Tim Krul (@TimKrul) June 5, 2017
Dreadful
news that Cheick Tioté has passed away. So young. So tragic.
—
Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) June 5, 2017
“If
someone is only 30 and they pass away, the question that is naturally going to
be asked is ‘Why? What’s gone on there? Why has he passed away so early?” Cole
told BBC Radio Five Live’s Sportsweek programme.
“It’s
a strange one. Cheick Tiote hadn’t been in China that long – a few months – so
he must have had a medical to complete the transfer. Was nothing picked up in
that medical?
“You’d
like to think that things have moved on these days and that these types of
things could be picked up in medicals.
“Players
are going for vast amounts of money so you’d think the tests would be very
stringent, there’s no cutting corners if clubs are parting with large fees. But
it’s just so strange that players are passing away or having to retire with all
the same sorts of problems.
I
am speechless and so incredibly sad. Cheick Tioté was one of the nicest and
toughest teammates I have ever had. Rest in peace brother.
—
Vincent Kompany (@VincentKompany) June 5,
2017
“Is
anything actually being done? Is it being looked into? We need to nail it down
and get to the bottom of why and what it is, because it seems to be happening
to more and more professional footballers – fit, strong men.”
Cole
himself has been unwell recently and is currently recovering from a kidney
transplant. The 45-year-old suffered kidney failure in 2015 after contracting
an airborne virus.
His
28-year-old nephew Alexander donated a kidney and Cole said: “It has given me
my life back again.
It's
now been over 4 wks post op.. just want to thank every1 for their continued
support! Slow progress as expected but feeling stronger 👊🏾 pic.twitter.com/4TzANtdTme
—
Andrew Cole (@vancole9) May 5, 2017
“I
was struggling before I had it, finding everyday chores very difficult. But
since having the transplant things have been different. It’s been tough but
fingers crossed I can keep recovering
“I
was fortunate enough to have a transplant and it has worked very well for me.
People would say to me that I’m still fit and a young man, but illness has no
age. If it’s meant to be you, then it’s meant to be you.”
Cole has returned to his role as an ambassador for Manchester United and intends to coach a club legends team to face Barcelona in Spain at the end of the month.
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