Former Liverpool star Sebastian Coates dramatically saved the life of his goalkeeper during a match in Portugal.
Coates’ Sporting Lisbon team were beaten at Portimonense in the Premeira Liga – but the ex-Reds defender came to the rescue of one of his teammates.Romain Salin was on the ground following a collision with the post trying to prevent Portimonense’s second goal, scored by Shoya Nakajima.
He was seemingly unconscious on the turf when Coates, 28, opened his goalkeeper’s mouth and put his fingers inside to prevent Salin swallowing his tongue.
Uruguayan Coates then gestured to the medical team to come to the aid of his teammate.Salin was taken was treated before being substituted and taken for further treatment.
Coates went on to score later in the game but could not prevent a 4-2 defeat. He was on the books at Anfield for three seasons but spent time on loan with Sunderland before making a permanent switch to Wearside.
Coates initially joined Sporting on loan in 2016 but made the move permanent in 2017.
He has 31 caps for his country. Although injury saw Coates miss out the entire Premier League season, he made a full recovery in time to be selected in the final 23-man squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He made one appearance as the side reached the last 16, playing two minutes as a substitute for his Liverpool teammate Luis Suárez in the 2–1 group stage victory over England. The following year at the 2015 Copa América in Chile, Coates played Uruguay’s final group match, a 1–1 draw against Paraguay, due to the suspension of captain Diego Godín; Uruguay were eliminated in the quarter-finals by the hosts.