Dutch player Leon was convinced he was dying.

The Dutch footballer was enjoying a holiday in Malta with his friends in June when the car he was travelling in was involved in a head-on collision with a taxi, crushing his left leg.

De Kogel began saying his goodbyes, a report on the BBC says. 

But waking up in a Maltese hospital, the Cornella striker's thoughts moved from death to whether doctors could save his leg.

Eight months later De Kogel is walking with the aid of crutches after an intensive rehabilitation programme, but has been hit with tens of thousands of euros in legal costs following disputes over both his contract and compensation fees.

Sitting in the passenger seat of a car, De Kogel says his driver took the wrong exit off a roundabout and collided with a vehicle coming the other way.

"My friend, who was behind me, came running and offered help," De Kogel told BBC Sport. "I remember saying goodbye to everybody because I felt that I was going to die - I was saying goodbye to my kids, to my loved ones.

"I was told not to look down... I did, and saw my knee next to my leg. It was totally broken and then I became unconscious. I felt like I was entering into a tunnel.

"It was very scary but it was also weird, because it was only later that I was aware what had happened. Of course, it's horrible to think you are going to die."

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