Sinisa Mihajlovic, the Bologna coach, will return to the hospital for another round of leukemia treatment after scans revealed a danger of relapse.
The 53-year-old, who has been battling a severe form of the condition since 2019, first battled it with three cycles of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant.
“My recovery after the transplant (of bone marrow in 2019) was great, but unfortunately, these diseases are devious,” Mihajlovic told reporters at a news conference.
“From the latest analysis some alarm bells have emerged and there could be a risk of a reappearance of the disease.
“To prevent this from happening, I was advised to undertake a therapeutic path. This time I will not put in a slide tackle like I did two and a half years ago on an escaping opponent. I’ll get a head start.”
Mihajlovic won the European Cup in 1991 with Red Star Belgrade and the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1999 with Lazio. He also won two Serie A championships and four Italian Cups with Lazio and Inter Milan.
He took over at Bologna in 2018 with the team mired in relegation and guided them to a 10th-place finish.
Bologna finished 12th in the previous two Serie A seasons and are presently 12th with 33 points after 12 games.
We wish him all the best.