Brazilian soccer legend Pele on Saturday said that he feels “strong, with a lot of hope,” despite medical problems that have kept the 82-year-old sports icon in the hospital with a respiratory infection.
Pele, widely regarded as the greatest soccer player of all time, was hospitalized earlier this week amid ongoing colon cancer treatments.
“My friends, I want to keep everyone calm and positive,” Pele wrote on Instagram. “I’m strong, with a lot of hope and I follow my treatment as usual.”
Photo: AFP
Doctors treating Pele earlier on Saturday said that the Brazilian legend remained “stable,” with his condition not having deteriorated over the past day.
Pele “has had a good response to care without any worsening in the clinical picture in the last 24 hours,” doctors at Sao Paulo’s Albert Einstein Hospital said in a statement.
Doctors made no reference to media reports earlier on Saturday that the three-time FIFA World Cup winner was receiving end-of-life care.
Pele was admitted to hospital earlier this week for what doctors said was a “re-evaluation” of the chemotherapy he has been undergoing since surgery to remove a colon tumor in September last year.
At the World Cup in Qatar, players expressed their support for Pele.
“Pray for the King,” France striker Kylian Mbappe wrote on Twitter.
England captain Harry Kane offered his support for Pele at a news conference.
“We send our best wishes to him and obviously all his family as well,” Kane said. “He is an inspiration amongst our game and an incredible footballer and incredible person. We wish him well.”
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