French club Olympique Lyonnais have been forced to confirm that their player Mathieu Valbuena is alive and well, after unfounded rumours about his death circulated on social media.
The rumours began on Saturday after it was revealed that Valbuena would not be in the squad for his side's fixture against Toulouse, in which they claimed a 2-1 victory.
However, some people on social media, in particular Twitter, believed that his absence fromt he teamsheet was as a result of his death, and began to spread the rumour that the midfielder had passed away.
In an effort to quell the speculation online, Lyon took to the social media network themselves to confirm that Valbuena was "happily alive and well, contrary to what those despicable individuals are spreading on Twitter. Lyon are horrified at such disgraceful and inhuman acts," they added.
Mathieu Valbuena est heureusement bien vivant contrairement à ce que d’ignobles individus colportent sur twitter. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/AP6TlFgEJg
— Olympique Lyonnais (@OL) October 31, 2016
Valbuena has not had a great time of it over the past 12 months or so, and was sidelined through injury most recently after he injured his shoulder just seven minutes after making his way on to the field in the loss against Guingamp.
The player, who has earned 52 caps for France, updated his condition on his Facebook page last week after the injury, stating that he would be out for about three weeks with a separated shoulder.
"This will not affect my determination to return to the highest level and to be available for my club," wrote Valbuena. "My motivation to get on the pitch and to dedicate myself to OL is still intact."
On Sunday, Valbuena also posted to say that he was already back on the road to recovery, training to return to the field of play as soon as possible.
Via The Mirror
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