Former Cardiff City captain and favourite defender Sol Bamba has died aged 39.
The former Ivory Coast international, who also played for Leicester City, Leeds United and Middlesbrough, was taken to hospital on Friday after feeling unwell before a match in Turkey.
Turkish first division club Adanaspor, where Bamba had been head coach since the summer, confirmed the news of Bamba’s death on Saturday night.
Adanaspor said in a statement: “Technical director Sulaiman Bamba fell ill before yesterday’s Manisa Football Club match and was admitted to Manisa Celal Bayar University Hospital where he sadly lost his battle for life. Our deepest condolences go to his family and our community.”
Cardiff said: “It is with deep sadness that we learned this evening of the death of club legend Sol Bamba. “Sol’s impact on our football club, both as a player and as a coach, is immeasurable.
“He was a hero to us all, a leader in every dressing room and a true gentleman. Our thoughts are with his friends, family and all who were fortunate enough to know and love Sol,” said Bamba. Our thoughts and condolences go to his family and friends at this tragic time. Rest in peace, Sol, you will be forever in our hearts.”
Middlesbrough also posted on social media: “We are shocked to learn of the passing of Sol Bamba, aged 39. Our thoughts are with Sol’s family and friends at this time.
Another of his former clubs, Trabzonspor, added: “We learned with deep sadness of the death of Sol Bamba, manager of Adanaspor, who was our team from 2012 to 2014. May God have mercy on him. We offer our deepest condolences to his family and all his loved ones.
Bamba was a key part of the Cardiff team that won promotion to the Premier League under manager Neil Warnock in 2018, captaining them. The centre-back, who joined the Bluebirds in 2016, made a total of 112 appearances over five seasons.
He was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in January 2021. Four months later, he announced he was cancer-free. He reunited with Warnock at Middlesbrough later that year, before spending the next 18 months in the North East.
After retiring, Bamba focused on his coaching career, returning to Cardiff in 2023 as assistant coach to Sabri Lamouchi. In the summer, he moved to Turkish club Adanaspor, who finished 14th in the Super Lig last season.
Bamba has become a popular figure in English football due to his work as a pundit. Less than a week later, Bamba posted on social media platform X to express his sadness over the death of former Leicester and England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson.