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Belgian footballer Gregory Mertens in artificial coma after collapsing during match
A BELGIAN footballer is reportedly in an artificial coma after collapsing during a game.
Gregory Mertens was reportedly seen by medical staff
Gregory Mertens of Jupiler Pro League side Lokeren suffered a cardiac arrest in a game against Genk.
Play was stopped 25 minutes in after the 24-year-old defender suddenly went down.
According to Belgian newspaper HLN.be, he was rushed to hospital and is "fighting for his life".
An ambulance service arrived on the field and medical staff immediately applied CPR.
Mertens has made 15 league appearances for Lokeren this season
The newspaper report Mertens was taken under artificial respiration to Ziekenhuis Oost Limburg hospital in Genk.
"The attack was finished and the referee went to see what was wrong," said Davy Vanhaen, communications manager at KRC Genk.
"It immediately looked serious and he motioned to the bench.
Ploegmaats en publiek schreeuwden vanaf de zijlijn dat Gregory Mertens moest blijven vechten. Reanimatie duurde lang. pic.twitter.com/h5wClLVio3
— Sven Claes (@svenclaes) April 27, 2015
"Then a defibrillator was taken out of the locker room and resuscitation initiated by the club doctor of Genk and the physiotherapist of Lokeren."
Mertens started his playing career at Cercle Bruges in 2011 before moving to Lokeren last summer.
He has played 15 league games for the Belgian side this season and starred in three Europa League appearances - including their 2-1 defeat at Hull last August.