Remembering Miklos Feher - A moment that shook the footballing community

Miklos Feher (1979 – 2004)

“Death smiles at us all, all a man can do is smile back”- Marcus Aurelius

Death, it is astounding how it manages to take away people in the harshest of manners. There he was, smiling, over getting into the referee’s book for the silliest of offences, time wasting, as it was only a matter of moments before his team would clinch the game with the only goal scored, a goal he had assisted for his fellow teammate.

He was smiling, when suddenly something happened, something neither the fans, nor his teammates or the opposition could have ever imagined in their wildest dreams. He leaned forward and kneeled over, before dramatically collapsing to the ground. Sadly he never got back up.

Miklos Feher was a Hungarian professional footballer, who was a striker by trade and had scored 7 goals for his country in 25 matches. In his career of 9 years, most were spent playing in the Portuguese league. He was spotted by FC Porto scouts while playing for Hungarian club Gy?ri ETO FC and signed with the Portuguese outfit in 1998, but was never able to make a breakthrough into the first team.

He was sent off on loan stints to SC Salgueiros and Sporting Braga, as he started gaining experience over the years. The Hungarian’s best season was at Braga when he scored 14 times in his 26 appearances for the club in the 2000-01 season. Problems at his parent club Porto led to him being sold to capital side SL Benfica once he returned from loan. He didn’t make much of an impact while with Benfica, as he scored a mere 8 goals for his side in his two seasons there, but he was showing signs of improvement. Expectations were high from the Hungarian striker, but he passed away in tragic circumstances even before he could try to fulfil them.

The date was 25th January 2004; Vitoria de Guimaraes were hosting Benfica in a league tie. The match was a heavily competitive one. With the tie still goalless, the Hungarian came off the bench and it was he who helped his side break the deadlock, as he assisted fellow substitute Fernando Aguiar. It seemed that the game had been done and dusted as the match went into injury time.

Time wasting has always been a part of professional football and most of the times, the offender doesn’t mind picking up the booking that follows, if it ensures their side the victory. Feher was doing just that, blocking a throw trying to prevent it from being taken. The referee spotted it and booked him. Feher smiled and went back to his defensive position.

The game was being broadcast globally, and the cameras were focused at the Hungarian who had picked up the booking, when the world saw it all happen in front of their eyes. Feher was seen leaning forward and then kneeling, before suddenly collapsing to the ground. It was a matter of moments and the striker was gone.

Some of the players and paramedics sprinted to his side, as they hurriedly began performing CPR. The players on the field were shell-shocked, some were in tears and some unable to process what had just happened. An ambulance was hurried onto the field, and the world saw his teammate and Benfica centre back Argel, open the door shouting “Don’t let him die!”

Sadly nobody could save him. His death was confirmed 3 hours later, the cause being cardiac arrhythmia brought on by hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (a disease of a muscle within the heart).

Benfica’s next matches were postponed and the club decided to retire Feher’s number 29 jersey as a mark of respect to the young Hungarian. The club went on to win the League title, and Feher’s parents were given a League Championship medal.

10 years have gone by since Miklos Feher passed away in a tragic manner which was mourned by fans all over. One should never, I repeat, never have to go through such a thing. Succumbing to death doing something you love, you cherish, death on the very field where you practice your trade is absolutely devastating. A player who was adored by both sets of fans of Lisbon’s rival clubs, Miklos Feher lives on in our memories forever.