Pele still smiling despite setback
PELE has revealed he is very well despite “a little step back” in his recovery after surgery to remove a tumour from his colon earlier this month.
The three-time World Cup winner was expected to return home shortly after he left intensive care at the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo on Tuesday.
But after reports in Brazil on Friday stated that the 80-year-old was back in the ICU, his daughter sought to reassure the football community over his health before Pele also provided a social media update.
He said on Instagram: “My friends, I am still recovering very well. Today I received visits from family members and I continue to smile every day. Thank you for all the love I get from you.”
Hours earlier his daughter Kely Nascimento, one of his visitors on Friday, had revealed the latest on her father’s progress following the procedure.
“There’s already a lot of anxiety roaming the world these days and we don’t want to be the reason for more,” she wrote on Instagram in a post which included a picture with her dad in hospital.
“This photo was taken just now. He is wearing a vest because he is from Santos and the cold in SP bothers him! He is recovering well and within normal range. Promise!
“He doesn’t like it when I say this so please don’t tell him but he is an O’Keefe (sic) gentleman.
“The normal recovery scenario for a man of his age, after an operation like this, is sometimes two steps forward and one step back.
“Yesterday (Thursday) he was tired and took a little step back. Today he took two forwards! I want to thank again, and always, the brilliant team here at Einstein and even more gratitude for all of the good energy that you are transmitting.”
Pele revealed on September 6 a “suspicious lesion” had been detected during tests, prompting surgeons to operate, but vowed to tackle it “with a smile on my face”.