Abdelhak Nouri’s brother gives encouraging update nine years after cardiac arrest

Former Ajax midfielder Abdelhak Nouri is in a stable condition and has made progress since suffering a cardiac arrest during a football match nine years ago, his brother Abderrahim has revealed.

Nouri was 20 when he collapsed during Ajax’s pre-season friendly against Werder Bremen in Austria in July 2017.

The incident caused severe and permanent brain damage after his brain was deprived of oxygen and brought his promising playing career to an abrupt end.

Nouri stable after difficult years

Speaking on Dutch journalist Matthijs van Nieuwkerk’s podcast Schuilen in Schoonheid, Abderrahim said his brother’s condition had improved significantly compared with the period immediately after the incident.

“He is doing well, he is stable. Especially when you compare his condition to how he was at the beginning. When my brother returned to the Netherlands after the incident, it was a very strange period. Compared to that time, things are much better now,” Abderrahim said.

Nouri spent almost three years in a coma before eventually returning home, where he has continued his recovery with the support of his family.

His condition has remained closely followed in Dutch football, particularly by Ajax supporters who watched him develop through the club’s academy.

‘His smile means something completely different’

Abderrahim also spoke about an emotional moment in Nouri’s recovery when his brother smiled and laughed spontaneously for the first time following the cardiac arrest.

“To this day, his smile means something completely different to us compared with the smiles of other people. It was a kind of confirmation that he knew who we were and that he understood us,” he said.

Nouri had been regarded as one of Ajax’s brightest young prospects before the incident ended his football career.

The Amsterdam club later retired his number 34 shirt in his honour, ensuring the midfielder’s number remains permanently associated with his legacy at Ajax.

Nine years after the cardiac arrest, Abderrahim’s latest comments provide an update on Nouri’s condition and the family’s continuing journey since one of the most difficult moments in Dutch football.