AmaZulu coach Romain Folz says the situation of George Maluleka is worrying after the midfielder collapsed on the pitch in the dying minutes of their match against Swallows at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday.
Maluleka collapsed on the pitch towards the end of the game, triggering medical staff from both clubs to sprint to the pitch after a signal from the players.
Usuthu assistant coach Ayanda Dlamini pulled out a defibrillator on the far end to pump him after he lied motionless on the floor and the good news was that, after he was attended to by medical staff, Maluleka was breathing and moving.
An ambulance, that kind of took forever to enter the pitch, whisked him away for further assessment, but the player was not taken to hospital, with club officials saying he is fine. As the incident left everyone stunned, referee Xola Sitela decided to end the game.
It’s the second time this season that Maluleka broke down motionless on the pitch as he had a similar incident in his side’s 0-0 draw with Sekhukhune United in January. However, back then he even returned to the pitch and continued to play.
“It is usual the heart situation and I will have to check if there is a tricky side on the results,” said Folz to iDiski Times after the game.
“Yes, this is a second time as you said in the spell of six months, so we need, one, to be cautious. Two, we need to check what is exactly happening because it is happening quite often with footballers – you saw what happened to Richards Bay player (Sphamandla Mtolo). So let’s protect the man first.”
Mtolo passed away late in February after he collapsed on the training ground for Richards Bay and was declared dead when the club medical staff rushed him to the hospital.
At the end, Swallows collected the three points, second win away this season, thanks to a first-half goal by Kagiso Malinga to climb to 27 points on the log. The Dube Birds, in the battle for survival, are just one behind Usuthu, who have now lost four of their six games since handing Romain Folz a new three-year deal.
