Las Palmas called an impromptu press conference on Thursday afternoon to announce unexpected and brilliant news. Captain and club icon Kirian Rodriguez told the press that he would be returning to the game after a second bout with cancer.

The 29-year-old midfielder announced in February that he would be taking time out of the game for a second time to deal with cancer. Kirian has suffered Hodgkin’s Lynphoma on two occasions, and underwent treatment earlier this year. He returned to preseason training apparently without issue in July.

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‘I have the green light, I can kick a teammate and be kicked’

Rodriguez announced at the club facilities with a smile that he was free to get back to playing football for Las Palmas.

“I’m letting you know I’m medically cleared. A cancer patient needs five years to recover. That’s why I had a relapse; I wasn’t completely cured. During those five years, I will continue to be an oncology patient, and I will keep having tests.”

“But I am medically cleared, competitively cleared. That allows me to get back to my daily routine, to kick a teammate or have them kick me, and to give the manager the cold shoulder when he doesn’t play.”

Kirian’s experience in hospital

Kirian explained that he spent time in hospital in May, which was the worst stage of it.

“The 25 days in the hospital were horrible. At first it was fine, the following days I didn’t even know what to do. When the autologous transplant happened after the six sessions of chemotherapy I couldn’t even eat. I had a closed stomach, I was surviving on protein shakes.”

He admitted that a second relapse might force him to act differently.

“The day I found out I had the disease was because, besides the check-ups, I pushed my body to the limit. Otherwise, you wouldn’t notice the fatigue, that exhaustion. There was a conversation at home where we said that if we recovered from this, great, but if there was another relapse, I would dedicate myself to my family, my people, and to being at peace at home.”

Following his first battle from cancer, Kirian returned late on in the season three years ago, and even scored a goal to get Las Palmas into the play-offs. Pio Pio eventually came through those play-offs, and Kirian would score their first goal back in La Liga. He was a crucial part of their side until dropping out earlier this year, and will be looking to help Las Palmas back into contention in Segunda this season.