Al Wakrah star Ousmane Coulibaly suffered a heart attack during a domestic match in Qatar.
The 32-year-old was competing against Al Rayyan during a QNB Stars League clash.
However, the Mali international collapsed late in the first half, sparking horrifying flashbacks to Christian Eriksen’s cardiac arrest in last summer’s European Championships.
Medical professionals sprinted onto the pitch to treat the central defender, stopping the match in its tracks to allow time for treatment.
When the severity and danger of the situation was assessed, the match was abandoned and awarded as a 1-0 win for Al Rayyan, as that was the score at the time of the incident.
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After the match, a statement released by the league confirmed Coulibaly had suffered a heart attack and is subsequently “receiving necessary medical car and attention”.
"During the QNB Stars League match between Al Rayyan and Al Wakrah on Saturday, Ousmane Coulibaly suffered a heart attack which required the intervention of medical and ambulance staff present at the venue,” a short statement released by the division said after the incident.
"It may be noted that the player is currently receiving necessary medical care and attention.
"The Qatar Stars League wishes the player a fast recovery, and we would like to thank the medical staff of both teams, paramedics and doctors for their great efforts during such events.
"Regarding the status of the match, it was agreed to end it and complete the remaining time later starting with the score when it was stopped (1-0 in favour of Al Rayyan)."
The Qatar Player’s Association also offered their best wishes to the 32-year-old on social media.
They tweeted: “Get well soon Ousmane Coulibaly."
While Coulibaly now plies his trade in Qatar, the Mali star has played most of his football in Europe.
Coulibaly’s early footballing years were spent at French sides Brest and Guingamp before he moved to Greece to play for Platanias and Panathinaikos.
He has played for Al-Wakrah since departing the Greek giants for the Qatari side in 2019 and has remained with the club ever since.
Coulibaly is the latest in a very concerning trend of footballers suffering from cardiac and heart problems on the pitch.
Eriksen’s horrifying ordeal in Denmark’s opening Euro 2020 match against Finland - a game which was not abandoned but instead restarted and completed after the former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder was brought off the pitch – resulted in the 29-year-old being fitted with an Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator (ICD).
A matter of months after Eriksen’s horrifying ordeal, Manchester City legend Sergio Aguero was forced to retire from the game after being diagnosed with a Cardiac Arrhythmia.
The Argentine star went down after suffering chest pains and breathing difficulties while playing for Barcelona against during their 1-1 draw with Alaves on October 31.
Manchester United defender Victor Lindelof also went down clutching his chest and complaining of breathing difficulties during Ralf Rangnick’s side’s 1-0 away victory against Norwich City.
The Swedish defender was subsequently fitted with a heart monitor to ensure there were no more irregularities in his heartbeat.
Coulibaly’s cardiac arrest happened the same day former United ace Will Keane opened up on Charlie Wyke’s terrifying training ground heart attack last November.
Wyke suffered a heart attack during a training session with the Latics, prompting Wigan manager Leam Richardson to give vital CPR to the 29-year-old.