Sevilla striker cheats death

Sevilla FC striker José Antonio Reyes has escaped death by centimetres in a freak training accident.

Metal spike
The 18-year-old was speared in the forehead when a pole used as a goalpost at a training ground was struck by a football. The impact caused the pole to spring out of the ground and a 15-centimetre metal spike at the bottom embedded itself in Reyes's forehead, near his left eye. Reyes was rushed to hospital where doctors told him how lucky he had been. Had the spike entered his eye, it could have killed him.

'Just a shock'
"Thank God - everything was just a shock in the end," said Reyes. "I can't remember anything about it, but they tell me the pole sprang up and hit me in the face."

'Not get carried away'
The accident is expected to sideline the Utrera-born forward for two to three weeks. "The doctors have told me I have to take things calmly for a while. I will rest for ten to 15 days to see how the problem develops," added Reyes, who with eight league goals this term has been one of this season's revelations in the Primera División. "The most important thing now is to relax and not get carried away."