Omar Elabdellaoui made his comeback on the football field on Monday evening after 423 days. The 30-year-old Galatasaray winger suffered an exploding fire arrow in his face on New Year’s Eve in 2020 and suffered serious injuries in his right eye. Elabdellaoui returned on Monday with special glasses against Göztepe (2-3 win) and could not hold back his tears afterwards.
Elabdellaoui suffered second-degree burns to his face and damage to both eyes, with his right eye being the most severely damaged. The ex-Feyenoord player lost his eyesight and was told by doctors that he may have to end his football career. “Everything was dark”, the Norwegian international told beIN Sports† “I couldn’t tell if it was day or night. I lost track of time. I started hearing more and more voices because I couldn’t see. As the process progressed, my fear increased.”
??Omar Elabdellaoui,who regained his sight after a long break,could not hold back his tears after the final whistle. †#GalatasaraySK†#GÖZvGS†#GOEZvGS pic.twitter.com/s7dKRdUBc4
— #ChampionsLeague (@alimo_philip) February 21, 2022
No fewer than eleven operations were required, but Elabdellaoui gradually regained his sight. Before that, the attacker underwent a corneal transplant in the United States, in which eye cells are transplanted from a donor, in this case his sister. The surgical procedure proved successful and thus allowed Elabdellaoui to think about football again. The damage to his left eye is still visible, but he can play again with special glasses.
Elabdellaoui immediately completed the ninety minutes in the game with Göztepe on Monday, in which Galatasaray turned a 2-1 deficit into a victory in the absolute final phase. Elabdellaoui was visibly emotional afterwards. “I went through a difficult process,” he said. “It was a difficult injury. I struggled a lot. I’m back on the pitch doing what I love most. It’s my dream to make my debut for the second time because that’s how it feels. second time start playing football.”
Related
More sports news