Embarrassing faux pas

Minute’s silence for ex-player – but he’s still alive

The players of PFC Arda Kardzhali paid tribute to Petko Ganchev.(Bild: X/NiltonLevenie)

Petko Ganchev must have looked puzzled when he learned that the players of PFC Arda Kardzhali and Levski Sofia held a minute's silence in his honor on Sunday. After all, the 78-year-old Bulgarian is still alive ...

Even during the game, PFC Arda Kardzhali must have realized what a faux pas they had made: the club declared on Facebook that they had received false information about Ganchev's alleged death.

"Dear journalists and Arda fans, the management of PFC Arda would like to apologize to former Arda player Petko Ganchev and his relatives after the club received false information about his death. We wish Petko Ganchev many more years in good health and much joy in Arda's successes," the statement reads.

"Must remain positive"
According to a report in the Bulgarian newspaper "Blitz", Ganchev himself was at the wheel of his car when his cell phone started ringing incessantly. At home, his wife received him in tears after hearing about the alleged death of her husband on television. Thank God it was just a false report, Ganchev is fine and enjoying his life in the south of Bulgaria. "At the end of the day, we have to stay positive. Here, yesterday, when I heard the news, I drank a little brandy," the 78-year-old toasted to life.