Edoardo Bove health update as Fiorentina player collapses to the ground during match against Inter Milan

Fiorentina midfielder Edoardo Bove, 22, suddenly dropped to the ground in the 16th minute of a Serie A match against Inter Milan at the Artemio Franchi Stadium. The match was immediately suspended.Fiorentina midfielder Edoardo Bove, 22, suddenly dropped to the ground in the 16th minute of a Serie A match against Inter Milan at the Artemio Franchi Stadium. The match was immediately suspended.
Fiorentina midfielder Edoardo Bove, 22, suddenly dropped to the ground in the 16th minute of a Serie A match against Inter Milan at the Artemio Franchi Stadium. The match was immediately suspended. | Getty Images
A footballer who collapsed during a match on Sunday is now awake and responding to questions after spending the night in hospital, according to Italian media reports.

Fiorentina midfielder Edoardo Bove, 22, suddenly dropped to the ground in the 16th minute of a Serie A match against Inter Milan at the Artemio Franchi Stadium, shocking the crowd and leaving his teammates frozen in horror. Footage showed no players near him at the time, with Bove appearing to bend down to tie his laces before collapsing.

He regained consciousness in the ambulance but was placed in a medically induced coma upon arrival at Careggi University Hospital in Florence. According to reports, his night "went well," and he has been taken off artificial ventilation, now awake and lucid. However, this has not been officially confirmed by the hospital or the club.

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Corriere dello Sport quoted Fiorentina's David De Gea, who visited Bove with team-mate Lucas Beltran, saying, "Bove is better." The club said on Sunday that Bove was under "pharmacological sedation" in intensive care. Initial tests showed no severe damage to his central nervous or cardio-respiratory systems, and further evaluations are expected within 24 hours.

Fiorentina midfielder Edoardo Bove, 22, suddenly dropped to the ground in the 16th minute of a Serie A match against Inter Milan at the Artemio Franchi Stadium. The match was immediately suspended.Fiorentina midfielder Edoardo Bove, 22, suddenly dropped to the ground in the 16th minute of a Serie A match against Inter Milan at the Artemio Franchi Stadium. The match was immediately suspended.
Fiorentina midfielder Edoardo Bove, 22, suddenly dropped to the ground in the 16th minute of a Serie A match against Inter Milan at the Artemio Franchi Stadium. The match was immediately suspended. | Getty Images

The match was paused following Bove's collapse, with both teams and coaching staff rushing to assist. Fiorentina players, visibly distressed, were comforted by staff and Inter players, with some in tears. The game was abandoned, with the score at 0-0.

Bove’s family, including his parents and girlfriend, along with Fiorentina coach Raffaele Palladino, team-mates, club officials, and the mayor of Florence, remain by his side at the hospital.

This is the second incident of a player collapsing in a Serie A match this year. In March, Roma defender Evan Ndicka suffered a collapsed lung during a game but recovered and returned to play this season. In 2018, former captain Davide Astori was found dead in his hotel room before a match.

Bove, a product of Roma’s youth academy, joined Fiorentina on loan this summer, with an option for a permanent move.

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