A former Premier League star came to the rescue as he put out a fire that was raging on the pitch during the middle of a football game
A former Premier League star turned firefighter as he rushed to put out a fire on the pitch during the middle of a match.
Ex-Brighton & Hove Albion defender Ezequiel Schelotto had a bit of a shock during a Swiss third division match between his FC Paradiso and Bavois when he was forced to quickly retrieve a hose from the side of the ground and put out a potentially scary fire.
The 36-year-old, who played 28 times in the top-flight for the Seagulls, and lists Inter Milan and Sporting CP among his former clubs, raced off to pick up a hose and returned to spray the blaze that had started behind the goal and threatened to spread onto the pitch.
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It’s unclear what caused the fire, but it appeared to start near a Paradiso fan banner in front of the car park of the club’s 1,000-capacity ground. Thankfully, there were no fans standing behind the goal.
‘The Greyhound’ as nicknamed by Brighton fans did a perfect job of tackling the blaze as he helped one steward who was attempting to stamp out the fire by dousing the flames before the game resumed.
Schelotto turns out for the third-tier Swiss side based in Ticino, in the south of Switzerland. Despite being born in Argentina, the versatile right-sided player made his name in Italy at Atalanta and earned a solitary cap for the Azzurri in 2012.
He joined Inter from the Bergamo side but failed to nail down a place at San Siro and he signed for Brighton in 2017 after multiple loan spells in Italy and two years at Sporting.
Schelotto made 23 appearances in all competitions in his first season on the south coast as he rotated with club captain and current Tottenham assistant manager Bruno Saltor under Chris Hughton.
However, he returned on loan to Italy with Chievo Verona and played just nine times for Brighton after returning the following campaign.
The feisty defender is remembered for a bust-up with Wilfried Zaha during a clash against Crystal Palace. Warming up as a substitute, Schelotto kicked the ball at Zaha and was shoved by the winger. He was booked and continued to wind the Ivorian up by making a ‘cry baby’ gesture. But Zaha had the last laugh in the 1-0 win.
After falling out with Graham Potter he returned to Argentina and joined Racing Club before spells at Aldosivi and Deportivo Moron. He then made the switch back to Italy with Serie D club Barletta before joining Paradiso in 2024.