Argentine José Alberto Crespo is fighting for his life after collapsing on the pitch and suffering three consecutive cardiac arrests during an amateur football match.
It happened on Saturday evening during a match in the "Torneo Don Pedro" amateur tournament, at the "Cuvito" sports complex in the Argentine city of Neuquén. Crespo, a player for "La Banda de Judiciales", went down suddenly.
According to the British newspaper the Daily Star, a nurse in the crowd rushed over to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation on the player while staff prepared the ambulance at the ground.
His teammates ended up bundling him into a private pick-up truck and driving him to the "Bouquet Roldán" hospital, keeping the resuscitation going throughout the journey.
By the time Crespo reached the hospital, he had suffered three consecutive cardiac arrests. Doctors described his condition as critical. He remains in intensive care in a medically induced coma.
The match organisers admitted the ambulance's rear door had failed. They explained that the vehicle had been at the venue and reached the player within two or three minutes of being called, only for his transfer to become complicated.
Crespo's family and teammates are living in a state of anxiety, praying for his recovery. The incident has also sparked demands to strengthen medical cover and emergency equipment at amateur football competitions.