Austria defender Stefan Lainer diagnosed with cancer and faces months of treatment
FILE -Austria’s Stefan Lainer controls the ball during the Euro 2020 soccer championship group C match between Netherlands and Austria at Johan Cruyff ArenA in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Thursday, June 17, 2021, (Dean Mouhtaropoulous/Pool via AP, File)
FILE - Austria’s Stefan Lainer reacts during the Euro 2020 soccer championship round of 16 match between Italy and Austria at Wembley stadium in London, Saturday, June 26, 2021. Austria defender Stefan Lainer has been diagnosed with lymphoma, a form of cancer. His club Borussia Moenchengladbach says Lainer faces several months of treatment but that the cancer was found early and is treatable.(Justin Tallis/Pool via AP, File)
FILE -Austria’s Stefan Lainer controls the ball during the Euro 2020 soccer championship group C match between Netherlands and Austria at Johan Cruyff ArenA in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Thursday, June 17, 2021, (Dean Mouhtaropoulous/Pool via AP, File)
FILE -Austria’s Stefan Lainer controls the ball during the Euro 2020 soccer championship group C match between Netherlands and Austria at Johan Cruyff ArenA in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Thursday, June 17, 2021, (Dean Mouhtaropoulous/Pool via AP, File)
FILE - Austria’s Stefan Lainer reacts during the Euro 2020 soccer championship round of 16 match between Italy and Austria at Wembley stadium in London, Saturday, June 26, 2021. Austria defender Stefan Lainer has been diagnosed with lymphoma, a form of cancer. His club Borussia Moenchengladbach says Lainer faces several months of treatment but that the cancer was found early and is treatable.(Justin Tallis/Pool via AP, File)
FILE - Austria’s Stefan Lainer reacts during the Euro 2020 soccer championship round of 16 match between Italy and Austria at Wembley stadium in London, Saturday, June 26, 2021. Austria defender Stefan Lainer has been diagnosed with lymphoma, a form of cancer. His club Borussia Moenchengladbach says Lainer faces several months of treatment but that the cancer was found early and is treatable.(Justin Tallis/Pool via AP, File)
MOENCHENGLADBACH, Germany (AP) — Austria defender Stefan Lainer has been diagnosed with lymphoma, a form of cancer, his club Borussia Moenchengladbach said Thursday.
The 30-year-old right-back, who can also play in midfield, has appeared 38 times for Austria, including at the European Championship in 2021. He has been with Gladbach in the German league since 2019. The club said Lainer faces several months of treatment.
“The cancer has been detected extremely early and is treatable with medication. There is an extremely high chance that he will get back to full health, and a normal life including professional sport could still be possible,” the club said in a statement.
“We will do all we can to get Stevie the best possible treatment. We wish him and his family lots of strength and optimism in the fight against this disease,” Roland Virkus, Gladbach board member for sport, said.
Gladbach said it would not provide further details of Lainer’s treatment to preserve his privacy.
___
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports