Angel City’s Savy King discharged from hospital following heart surgery as NWSL players pay tribute

Angel City Defender Savy King was fired from the hospital after having undergone successful heart surgery, starting the next phase of her recovery about a week after a medical event during the match of her team against the Utah Royals.

“Savy King was fired yesterday, May 17 from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and is comfortable at home with her family,” Angel City said in a statement on Sunday. “On behalf of Angel City FC and the family of Savy, we are so grateful for the expert medical care she has received by the world-class providers at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in consultation with our medical staff. Angel City is willing to support Savy while she continues her recovery.”

In the second half of the 2-0 victory of Angel City, King collapsed on the royals on 9 May, and after having received medical attention on the field for about 10 minutes, she was replaced by the game and then brought to a hospital in the Los Angeles area. The player was later diagnosed with a heart defect and underwent a successful operation to correct it on Tuesday.

Many had criticized the decision of the NWSL not to leave the competition because of the medical event, including Royals -head coach Jimmy Coenraets and the national team of American women and Washington Spirit -star Trinity Rodman, who wrote the next day on Instagram that “in any world should continue that game.”

The NWSL Players Association then argued for a policy update in which games would be left in the event that a player needed life -saving care such as King.

“If the safety of players is of the utmost importance, I wonder which other factors can play here in a life -saving situation,” said Meghann Burke, executive director of NWSLPA, in an interview with the attacks of Third. “We are making it too difficult. This is a very simple decision. Life-saving measures on the field to breathe new life into a player or to stabilize-or should stop playing the game … and this is the reason that the players ask for a clear rule.”

The NWSL eventually admitted on Friday that the game should not have resumed and that their policy has changed in the future.

“After they have assessed our protocols and how they were implemented, and when listening to feedback from our stakeholders, the Angel City vs. Utah match had not had to continue last Friday evening and we regret that it did,” the NWSL said in a statement. “The health and well-being of the entire NWSL community remains our top priority, and in any similar situation in the future the game should and should be left.”

King remained the top of the head when Angel City returned on Saturday to play, in which her teammates arrived at their match at Bay FC in black shirts with the text “SK3”, her initials and her song. The starters of Bay FC on Saturday also wore those shirts shortly before the kick -off.

NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman was present for that match, who then won Bay FC 2-0 and described King’s medical emergency as a learning moment during an exchange with members of the media.

“While we went through it and regrouped internally, we of course came to the conclusion that the game should not have continued and that we were dedicated – and are dedicated – to ensure that in a similar situation, Berman said on Saturday. “Everything we do gives us the opportunity to learn and do better every season and that is what we want to do in the future.”