'I'm just blank' - Ivory Coast sensation Yan Diomande opens up on tragic death of his 15-year-old sister Roxanne after drink spiked at party

The highly-rated RB Leipzig forward, who is starring at the World Cup for Ivory Coast, has experienced a meteoric rise in European football, scoring 12 Bundesliga goals following a move from Leganes. However, this sporting success follows immense personal devastation after his younger sibling passed away two years ago in Abidjan.

Opening up on what happened, Diomande wrote in an emotional open letter on The Players’ Tribune: "Someone kept calling me from back home. I was annoyed. I didn’t understand why they kept calling me. I picked up, and they didn’t even soften it. You know how it is back home. No emotions. Just……..

'Your sister is gone.' 'What?' 'She died.' 'What are you talking about?' 'Somebody put something in her drink at a party, and she never woke up. She is gone.'

"You were 15. 15.

"I never got any answers. I don’t know if I want to know why. Maybe it was jealousy. Maybe it’s just something that happens in our country. Maybe I could have protected you. I don’t know."

The international prodigy detailed the enduring numbness and mental toll caused by the heartbreaking loss within a deeply personal media address. Diomande said: “I used to have emotions. Now, I don’t feel anything. It’s like I’m not even human. Since you died, I’m just blank.”

Despite this heavy emotional burden, the attacker maintains a profound sense of purpose on the pitch to honour her memory. He added: “All I can do is use the pain to work harder, and to do everything we dreamed about. I want you to know that I will make sure that you live on. I will make sure that everybody knows your name. The whole world. Everything I do on a football pitch, it’s for you.”

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