Former Croatian national football team player Nikola Pokrivač killed in a car crash

The 39 year-old footballer was killed when a car driving in the opposite direction performed an illegal maneuver and crossed a solid line into oncoming traffic in a bid to surpass another vehicle.

Football player Nikola Pokrivač was killed last night in a head on collision in Karlovac on Friday night. His car was hit when a car bearing Austrian plates being driven by a Slovenian citizen of Bosnian extraction, crossed into the opposite lane while trying to overtake another car. The Slovene driver was also killed in the crash. The head of the Karlovac Traffic Police Station, Davor Boljkovac: "Unfortunately, the drivers of both vehicles died at the scene of the crash as a result of the injuries they sustained. The vehicle bearing Austrian plates, in its further uncontrolled trajectory damaged another two vehicles bearing Slovenian plates but being driven by citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina."

Pokrivač was in a car with three of his teammates, all of whom were taken to hospital.

"Three injured patients were brought to the emergency ward a little before 9PM last night. One of them had only minor injuries and was released today to home care, while the other two patients are unfortunately sustained life-threatening injuries. One of them underwent emergency surgery immediately upon arrival. Both of them are currently in the ICU," the on duty anesthesiologist at Karlovac General Hospital, Jasna Topić, told reporters on Saturday.

According to the shift commander of the Karlovac Public Fire Station, Roland Puljak, his team was called in to perform an emergency extraction from the crumpled vehicles: "A number of vehicles were involved in the crash, but only two of them required our presence for vehicle extraction. The newer a car is the stronger its frame is and the technology is better, but these cars were destroyed beyond all recognition. It's been quite a while since we've had this kind of intervention that required our involvement."

Pokrivač was 39 years old and still playing for fourth-tier club Vojnić. Throughout his career he played for numerous domestic and foreign clubs, including Dinamo Zagreb, Monaco and Salzburg. The Dinamo Football Club issued this statement: "It is with great sadness and disbelief that we received the news of the serious traffic accident in Karlovac in which, unfortunately, our former player Nikola Pokrivač lost his life. Nikola will forever remain a part of the Dinamo family - as a talented midfielder, a fighter on the field and a man with a big heart. He played 69 games for Dinamo and participated in four championship titles and three Cup Winners' Cups."

He was also capped by the Croatian national team fifteen times, playing in the 2008 European Championships. The President of the Croatian Football Association Marijan Kustić issued this statement: "Nikola was a great footballer, who lived football until his last moment in this world, and who showed great courage in life by overcoming a terrible disease. This is a great loss for our football community, and especially painful for the family. Our prayers are with Nikola and his family."

Forced to retire in 2015 after being diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma, Pokrivač managed to overcome the disease and rekindle his career in Vojnić.

Source: HRT