Cagliari centre-forward Yael Trepy has been admitted to intensive care at Sassari hospital in northern Sardinia after nearly drowning in a swimming pool on Sunday, August 16.
The 20-year-old French striker lost consciousness while in a pool at a villa on the Costa Smeralda and was placed in a medically induced coma after ingesting a large quantity of water into his lungs.
Cagliari Calcio confirmed the hospitalisation on Monday, August 17, stating that the player remained under intensive medical care. The Italian club said officials were maintaining close contact with hospital staff and Trepy's family, while requesting privacy and promising to release updates as soon as possible.
Pool accident in Porto Cervo
According to reports in Italian daily newspapers La Repubblica and Corriere della Sera, Trepy was spending time with friends at a villa in Porto Cervo when the incident occurred on Sunday. Bystanders rescued the player quickly from the water before emergency medical services attended to him.
Doctors placed Trepy into a medically induced coma to manage severe fluid accumulation in his lungs. His condition was described by local media as serious but stable on Monday.
A medically induced coma is a temporary state of profound unconsciousness brought on by the controlled administration of drugs. Medical teams frequently use the procedure to protect lung function and minimize systemic stress following severe trauma or oxygen deprivation.
Rise from French youth football to Serie A
Born in Villeneuve-Saint-Georges in the Paris suburbs in 2006, the tall left-footed forward began his youth development at French club US Créteil. He moved to Italy in January 2023 to sign with Cagliari, completing his academy progression in the club's Under-18 and Under-20 junior teams.
Trepy earned promotion to Cagliari's senior squad at the start of 2026. He scored his first professional goal in January 2026 during a 2-2 draw against Cremonese in Serie A, going on to make eight league appearances during the remainder of the season.
Season opener in the Coppa Italia
The French attacker had just started his second senior season with Cagliari on Friday, August 14. He was named in the starting lineup for Cagliari's 1-0 victory over Arezzo in the opening round of the Coppa Italia, just two days before his accident in Porto Cervo.
Cagliari and the Costa Smeralda
Cagliari Calcio is the primary professional football club of Sardinia, competing in Serie A, the top tier of Italian football. The club plays its home matches in Sardinia's capital city of Cagliari.
Porto Cervo is a luxury resort town on the Costa Smeralda in northern Sardinia, known internationally for its private villas and coastal scenery. Sassari, where Trepy is currently receiving treatment, is the island's second-largest city and the location of northern Sardinia's primary medical center.
