Former Manchester United forward Diego Forlan was rushed to hospital with three broken ribs and a partially collapsed lung following a nasty coming together in a veterans match in Uruguay.
The frightening incident occurred while Forlan was turning out for his side Old Boys in their over-40s Liga Universitaria clash with Old Christians on Saturday.
The 46-year-old, who won the Golden Ball award at the 2010 World Cup, is said to have fallen awkwardly after a heavy aerial collision with one of Old Christians’ players, leaving him in serious discomfort.
According to Uruguayan publication El Observador, Forlan ‘gave everyone a scare’ as he lay motionless on the turf in the amateur match.
A video captured from the sidelines shows several of Forlan’s Old Boy’s team-mates running over to comfort the ex-United man, who also represented the likes of Atletico Madrid, Inter Milan and Villarreal across a glittering playing career.
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After receiving medical attention on the field, Forlan was transported to a nearby hospital, where his lung ‘had to be drained due to the fluid that had entered it’.
The former Uruguay international, who was capped 112 times by his country, is expected to remain in hospital until Tuesday.
Forlan had scored twice in the match before the collision, with Old Boys playing on in his absence to secure a comfortable 4-1 victory.
The report claims Forlan is now in a ‘good condition’, with the 2002/03 Premier League winner telling close friends that he holds no will towards his opponent involved in the clash.
‘They’re going to admit me and put a tube in to drain the blood. I’ll be hospitalised until Tuesday,’ Forlan reportedly told pals on WhatsApp from his hospital bed.
‘In 20 years as a professional, this has never happened to me before.’
Forlan added: ‘It wasn’t his fault. The truth is, it wasn’t his fault.
‘He knocked me off balance and I was in the air, you see? And my hand stayed there… I couldn’t get it out to support myself.
‘I fell like a sack of potatoes.’
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After a brief spell with Kitchee in the Hong Kong Premier League, Forlan officially announced his retirement from professional football in August 2019.
However, as of last year, Forlan has been competing as a professional tennis player, stunning fans as he made his ATP debut at the 2024 Uruguay Open.
‘I need something where I can run,’ Forlan told The Athletic about his switch to tennis.
‘Golf, you play in beautiful places – I like it and I still do it, but I need something different, something more similar to football.
‘I started training and playing tennis and I was getting better and better. At first, I would play the top players at the club and players from around Uruguay and it was easy for them to beat me.
‘Then it became more difficult. Now I can win. At the club tournaments, I was losing in the first round, now I’m winning a lot of them.’
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