fBundesliga soccer club Hertha BSC has to do without Jean-Paul Boetius. The Dutch player, who switched from Mainz 05 to the Berliners this summer, was diagnosed with a tumor in his testicles during a urological examination on Wednesday. This was announced by Hertha on Thursday. The 28-year-old midfielder will have surgery on Friday.
His former club and many others, including Union and Borussia Dortmund, sent Boetius well wishes on social networks. Hertha President Kay Bernstein wrote on Twitter: “When the brain doesn’t want to believe what the ears hear. Family is always with you! Think positive, hope for the best, fight and get well soon!”
“As bitter as this news is at first, we are full of hope and confidence that Jean-Paul will get well again and return to our circle as soon as possible,” said sporting director Fredi Bobic, “until he returns, he will get every one of us support.”
Marco Richter, a Hertha professional with testicular cancer, had already dropped out last season. The winger has been back on the pitch for a few games and scored two goals on his return to the Bundesliga. This is the fourth case in the Bundesliga since spring.
In addition to Boetius and Richter, urological examinations also discovered tumors in the testicles of Timo Baumgartl from Union Berlin and Dortmund striker Sébastien Haller. The 28-year-old Haller from Ivory Coast, like Union professional Baumgartl, had to undergo chemotherapy.
