In a horrible tragedy for the entire football fraternity, Czechoslovakian striker Josef Sural died after his team bus suffered a terrible crash in Turkey. The 28-year old forward was rushed to the hospital in a critical state but was unable to recover from his injuries. There were severe wounds on the head resulting in fractures while other parts of his body were also hurt. The doctors took him immediately to the intensive care unit but after failing to revive him, pronounced him dead.
Steven Caulker, a defender formerly with Tottenham Hotspur also sustained serious injuries but is expected to recover. Another player formerly belonging to English Premier League – Papiss Ciese who played for Newcastle United – are among the injured. In all, apart from these two, there are four more players who were part of the crash and are receiving treatment for their injuries. They are Djalmo Campos, Isaac Sackey, Welinton and Baiaino.
Sural's international career saw him represent Czechoslovakia while in Turkish Super League, he played for Alanyaspor. All the players caught in the accident were travelling by a luxury minivan which was conveying them to their base after earning a 1-1 draw against Kayserispor.
Details of the accident
As per information that has appeared in the media, the former center-forward and his six teammates had hired this minivan while the rest of the team used the teambus. The cause of the crash presently seems to be that the two drivers fell asleep at the wheel. The main driver has been taken into custody and an investigation is already underway. The exact sight of the crash lies around three miles from Alanya which is a city situated on the southern Mediterranean coast of Turkey.
Career
Sural started his league career through the academy of FC Zbrojovka Brno and joined their main team. In club football, after Zbrojovka, he moved to Slovan Liberec and managed to capture the title with them in the first division of Czech football. After this club, his next stop was Sparta Prague which he went on to captain. The last club he represented was indeed Aytemiz Alyanaspor in Turkish Super League.
The late footballer got his big international break in 2013 when he played in for his country. Overall, he played 20 matches for his national side and scored one goal. This solitary strike came in a game against Netherlands where his team emerged victorious with a 3-2 margin, in 2015. Sural is survived by his wife and two kids.
