Dnipro midfielder Jaba Kankava has been credited with saving the life of Dymano Kiev captain Oleg Gusev in a Ukrainian Premier League game on Sunday.
Gusev swallowed his tongue after being accidentally caught by the knee of Dnipro goalkeeper Denis Boyko in the 22nd minute and Kankava rushed to the scene and frantically cleared Gusev’s airway before medics arrived on the scene.
Gusev regained consciousness on the stretcher before being taken to the Boris clinic in Dnipropetrovsk, with clinic chief Mikhail Radutskyy hailing Kankava’s actions as he believes the player's speed of thought prevented a fatality.
He told Dynamo Kiev’s official website: "I can say one thing: The Dnipro footballer, Jaba Kankava, saved the life of Oleg.
"Had he acted later, I do not know what the consequences would have been. He did everything a qualified medic would have done.
"Currently, Oleg is in a stable condition. Everyone knows that Oleg is a strong-willed person. Therefore, medical rehabilitation should not take too long."
Dynamo team doctor Leonid Myronov outlined the severity of Gusev’s injuries.
"He has a closed craniocerebral injury, medium severity concussion, facial soft tissue bruise, big graze on the face, mandibular joint bruise and damage to three teeth."
Dnipro won the game 2-0 to leapfrog Dynamo into second place in the table, behind leaders Shakhtar Donetsk.