Brazilian soccer legend Pele said on Saturday that he feels "strong, with a lot of hope" despite medical problems that have kept the 82-year-old sports icon in the hospital with a respiratory infection. Pele, widely regarded as the greatest soccer player of all time, was hospitalized in São Paulo this week amid ongoing colon cancer treatments. "My friends, I want to keep everyone calm and positive," Pele said in an Instagram post. "I'm strong, with a lot of hope, I follow my treatment as usual. "Doctors treating Pele said earlier Saturday that he remained "stable, with his condition not having deteriorated over the last day. Pele "has had a good response to care without any worsening in the clinical picture in the last 24 hour, doctors at São Paulo Albert Einstein Hospital said in a statement. Doctors made no reference to media reports earlier on Saturday that the three-time World Cup winner was receiving end-of-life care.
Pele was admitted to hospital earlier this week for what doctors said was a re-evaluation of the chemotherapy he has been undergoing since surgery to remove a colon tumor in September last year. At the ongoing World Cup in Qatar, players expressed their support for Pele. France striker Kylian on Saturday tweeted: "Pray for the King. "England captain Harry Kane offered his support for Pele at a press conference ahead of his team's last-16 tie against Senegal. "We send our best wishes to him and obviously all his family as well," Kane said. "He is an inspiration amongst our game and an incredible footballer and incredible person. We wish him well. "Pele is the only soccer player in history to win three World Cups — 1958, 1962 and 1970 — and is one of the most successful and popular sports figures of the 20th century. Nicknamed "O Ran" (The King), he scored more than 1,200 goals in one of the most storied careers in sport, before retiring in 1977. Pele dazzled from an early age and took the 1958 World Cup by storm when he was 17 years old, netting a hat trick in the semifinals and two more goals in the final, catapulting his own career and launching the soccer dynasty of the Brazilian national team. In recent years, Pele has faced deteriorating health has dealt with the issues with trademark good humor. São Paulo: Brazilian soccer legend Pele is receiving palliative care after chemotherapy stopped having the expected results as he battles colon cancer, newspaper Fol ha de S. Paulo reported on Saturday.
Pele, 82, who is widely considered one of the greatest footballers of all time, was admitted to hospital on Tuesday to re-evaluate his cancer treatment and was later diagnosed with a respiratory infection, according to medical reports.
His manager and the Albert Einstein Hospital, in São Paulo, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
A medical report released on Friday said Pele had an adequate response to an antibiotic treatment and was in a stable condition "with general improvement in health status".
He had a tumor removed from his colon in September 2021 and has been receiving hospital treatment on a regular basis.
Fol ha São Paulo reported that chemotherapy had been suspended and that Pele was under palliative care, and being treated only for symptoms such as pain and shortness of breath.
The newspaper also said he had a general swelling and cardiac issues when admitted to hospital earlier this week, as previously reported by ESPN Brazil.
Pele said in an Instagram post on Thursday that he was at the hospital for a "monthly visit" and thanked his supporters for the positive messages he had received.
The former Brazil, Santos and New York Cosmos striker posted a picture of his face projected on a building in Qatar, where the World Cup is being held, next to a message saying "Get well soon".
A sign with the same message was displayed by Brazilian fans at the Lu sail Stadium on Friday ahead of the national team's 1-0 defeat against Cameroon.
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