25-year-old Marsonia striker Bruno Boban dies after ball hits his chest

Bruno Boban, the 25-year-old striker for Croatian football club Marsonia and the division's top scorer, passed away on Saturday after being hit by a ball in the chest at close range.

Just 15 minutes into Marsonia's game against Slavonija Pozega, Boban took a ball to the chest from close range, but continued on with the match. Moments later, after play had continued and the innocuous looking action had been forgotten about, he collapsed to his knees and then fell on the pitch.

Players immediately called for help and medics spent 40 minutes trying to revive him. Despite hard efforts by the medics, he did not recover. The cause of death has not yet been announced.

As the shocking event happened, his teammates and opponents struggled to fight back tears.

Boban played for Pozega for two years, until transferring to Marsonia this season.

News of his tragic death comes three weeks after Fiorentina captain Davide Astori passed away in his sleep before a Serie A match with Udinese.

(CGTN)