Adanaspor paid tribute to Cardiff legend Sol Bamba on their first home game since the iconic defender’s tragic passing.

 

Bamba died at the age of 39 after a long battle with non-Hodgkin lymphoma on August 30 before a two-week international break. The Ivorian was manager of the Turkish second-tier side, who played their first home game last night following the awful news.

Adanaspor’s players adorned T-shirts with Bamba’s face and the words “You are in our hearts” on them during the warm-up, while the club framed a shirt with Bamba’s name on it and placed it in the dugout for the game.

Bamba’s face also lit up the huge screen inside the stadium, while a banner in the crowd read: “The smile on your face will stay with me.”

Cardiff, meanwhile, are set to honour Bamba at the match against Leeds United this Saturday. Prior to this game, a special Q&A evening has been organised in memory of the beloved former defender, following discussions with his family and several of his ex-team-mates including Sean Morrison, Lee Peltier and Anthony Pilkington.

The Cardiff City stalwarts will share their career experiences and fond memories of Sol’s remarkable time with the club. All proceeds from the event will be donated to Lymphoma Action, as per the wishes of Sol’s family.

The tribute will take place at 6pm on Friday, September 20 at Cardiff City Stadium, with tickets available for £10 and can be bought online

Injured player returns

Injured defender Ryotaro Tsunoda has made the next step towards his return to action after filming himself training on the grass for the first time at the club’s training base.

Tsunoda started like a house on fire at KV Kortrijk last season, where he was loaned after signing permanently with the Bluebirds back in January. However, a nasty hamstring injury meant he required surgery and months of rehabilitation.

However, there is a chink of light at the end of the tunnel, with Tsunoda posting a video to his Instagram along with the caption: “Back on the grass.”

Quite how long it will be before we see him in a Cardiff City shirt for the first time is anyone’s guess, however. When manager Erol Bulut was asked last month about his potential involvement this season, he said: “He had a big injury. We loaned him out to Kortrijk and he got an injury. I think October was what we talked about, now he doesn’t have to train with us.

“It’s not easy after a big injury like that. He will either continue with us or maybe go on loan again. I didn’t see him in the team training so I cannot speak a lot about him.”

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