Alex Sandro dos Santos Apolinário (7 November 1996 – 7 January 2021) was a Brazilian professional
footballer who played as an
attacking midfielder. On 7 January 2021, he died due to a cardiac arrest suffered
during a match.
Career
Born in
Ribeirão Preto,
São Paulo, Apolinário started his career at
Botafogo Futebol Clube (SP) in his native city before signing with
Cruzeiro Esporte Clube in 2015. In 2016, he was promoted to their senior team, and on 9 March he made his professional debut in the
Primeira Liga
The Primeira Liga (; English: Premier League, also written as Liga Portugal 1), also known as Liga Portugal Bwin for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga Portugal, ...
in a 2–1 home win over
Club Athletico Paranaense, as a 64th-minute substitute for
Matías Pisano
Matías Pisano (born 13 December 1991) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a right winger for Aldosivi.
Club career Chacarita
Pisano started playing in the youth divisions of Chacarita Juniors and debuted in 2009 in a mat ...
.
In January 2018, Apolinário transferred to Paranaense on a one-year loan deal. The team won the
Campeonato Paranaense
Campeonato Paranaense, which has been contested since 1915, is the top-flight football league of the state of Paraná, Brazil.
Format
The format has changed in 2014. 12 teams are together in a single group. They play against each other once, ...
, though he was not a regular. On 10 March as a first-half substitute for
João Pedro Heinen
João is the Portuguese equivalent of the given name John. The diminutive is Joãozinho and the feminine is Joana. It is widespread in Portuguese-speaking countries. Notable people with the name are enumerated in the sections below.
Kings
* ...
, he scored his only goal to conclude a 7–1 home win over
Rio Branco Sport Club.
Apolinário moved abroad for the first time in January 2019, joining
F.C. Alverca
Futebol Clube de Alverca is a Portuguese Association football, football club based in Alverca do Ribatejo, Vila Franca de Xira. It currently plays in the Portuguese 3rd Division.
History
F.C. Alverca was founded on 1 September 1939.
After many ...
of the
Campeonato de Portugal, the third tier of the
country's football league system. On 17 October that year, he opened the scoring as the club eliminated holders
Sporting CP from the third round of the
Taça de Portugal with a 2–0 home win; it was only the second time in its history that team was eliminated by a third-tier club.
Death
On 3 January 2021, in a Campeonato de Portugal match against Almeirim in
Alverca do Ribatejo, Apolinário went into cardiac arrest in the 27th minute of the match. He was revived after several attempts and stayed at the
Vila Franca de Xira Hospital, where he was put in an induced coma. He died four days later; he was 24.
See also
*
List of association footballers who died while playing
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Apolinário, Alex
1996 births
2021 deaths
People from Ribeirão Preto
Brazilian footballers
Association football defenders
Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players
Campeonato de Portugal (league) players
Cruzeiro Esporte Clube players
Club Athletico Paranaense players
F.C. Alverca players
Brazilian expatriate footballers
Expatriate footballers in Portugal
Sport deaths in Portugal
Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Portugal
Association football players who died while playing
Footballers from São Paulo (state)