Robin van Persie’s son Shaquille was carried off on a stretcher on Thursday night while playing for his father at Feyenoord as the Dutch giants lost 2-1 to Real Betis in the Europa League.
Shaquille van Persie suffers knee injury (Image: Maciej Rogowski/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)
Feyenoord manager Robin van Persie said he was “heartbroken” to see his son Shakir suffering from what appeared to be a serious injury. The 19-year-old injured his knee late in Feyenoord’s 2-1 away defeat to Real Betis in the Europa League on Thursday night and was carried off on a stretcher.
Shaquille came on midway through the second half and was on the pitch for just 10 minutes. The forward assisted Kasper Tengstedt’s goal, which ended up being a nail-biter, but landed awkwardly after a high challenge.
Shakir, clutching his knee in pain, was immediately treated by Feyenoord’s physiotherapists. The former Manchester City academy star was then taken on a stretcher, but before he went down the tunnel his father asked for the stretcher to be placed on the touchline to comfort his son.
Van Persie knelt down, touched Shakir’s shoulder, approached him and spoke to him. The former Arsenal and Manchester United striker has had his fair share of injuries during his career, and it doesn’t seem to be boding well for his son.
Join us on Facebook! For the latest news, analysis and more on our Mirror Football Facebook page
read more: Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest discover Europa League opponents after progressread more: Manchester United target Roberto de Zerbi after Champions League exit, ‘in danger of being sacked’
“I’m not feeling well,” Van Persie admitted after the match. “The tests will have to point out how he’s doing, but the initial signs don’t look good.
“When you go down with an injury, any player shuts down and that’s exactly what happened today with Shaquille. You hope for the best, but when you hear the first sign that it’s not going to be that way, it’s heartbreaking.”
“I’m the coach, but I’m also his father, and I think this is terrible. It’s both. It’s heartbreaking that he’s going through this.”
“When Shaquille was carried off the field, I asked him how he was doing. I put my arm around his shoulders. That’s all you can do in that moment as a coach and in this case as a father. I just wanted to give him that warmth and that feeling that we are there for him.”
Will Robin van Persie be a successful manager? Let us know your predictions in the comments section.
Shaquille van Persie’s injury appears to be serious (Image: CRISTINA QUICLER / AFP via Getty Images)
A two-goal win against Betis would have been enough for Feyenoord to finish in the playoffs. Instead, their European tour ended with a 29th place finish.
Shaquille, who was given his professional debut by his legendary father in November, scored his first goal at the top level earlier this month. He came on as a substitute and scored two goals in Feyenoord’s 4-3 home defeat to local rivals Sparta Rotterdam.
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive Mirror Football content every day. Community members also receive special offers, promotions, and advertisements from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can always check out. If you are interested, please read our privacy notice.
