LONDON: Bolton manager Owen Coyle has acknowledged the manner in which the football world has stepped up in sympathy and support for Fabrice Muamba, who remains in a coma in the London Chest Hospital after suffering a cardiac arrest during Saturday’s FA Cup-tie at Tottenham.

Coyle said: “The support from within the game has been fantastic. We all saw the pictures from round the world. When you see the players of Real Madrid and Gary Cahill, wearing T-shirts, and David Beckham sending over a message, that shows you the opinion they have of Fabrice as a man.

“It’s great to be talented, at whatever vocation you are in, but it is more important to be genuinely nice and humble, which Fabrice is.”

Bolton’s Premier League game against Aston Villa tomorrow has already been postponed. Blackburn are due to visit Bolton on Saturday but their manager Steve Kean has said he would be happy for the match to be postponed if felt appropriate.

Kean said: “We hope he makes a full recovery but, if they need a little bit more time and the game doesn’t go ahead, we would respect that from Bolton’s point of view.”

Coyle said: “The family have been inundated with messages of support. We all know he’s such a wonderful lad . . . and  players from all over the world they feel they undersdtand. I’ve had phone calls and text messages from every manager in the Premier League, passing on well wishes to Fabrice and his family. It’s so humbling to have such a  level of support.

“We’re all praying for a hopeful outcome. The family are bearing up as best they can. When you look at what Fabrice has already come through in his life he’s obviously a fighter and if that can help it will be a souref of encouragement.

“We also have to thank the staff at the hospital for how hard they’ve worked. Their skill is incredible. He has such a fantastic smile and that’s what we want to see again.”

Muamba’s condition has been described as stable but critical.

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