Serie B footballer Matthias Verreth has returned to his home country of Belgium following the tragic death of his one-year-old son.
After suffering relegation from the Italian second tier with Brescia last season, Verreth signed a three-year deal with Bari earlier this month.
The 27-year-old had begun pre-season preparations with his new club when tragedy struck.
On Sunday, Verreth’s 14-month-old son Elliot Charles died following a short illness.
The child had reportedly been hospitalised days earlier after suffering with virus-like symptoms.
Bari’s pre-season training camp was subsequently cancelled and Verreth was driven to the airport by club president Luigi De Laurentiis to travel back to Belgium, where he joined his partner and their three-year-old daughter in mourning.
Serie B footballer Mathias Verreth’s 14-month-old son tragically died on Sunday following a short illness
Verreth recently joined Bari from fellow second-tier side Brescia on a three-year deal
In a statement on the club’s website, Bari expressed their condolences.
It read: ‘We are speechless and deeply shocked. We express our deepest condolences to Matthias Verreth and his family in one of the most terrible moments one can experience.
‘President Luigi De Laurentiis, the technical staff, the entire team, the management and the red and white collaborators stand with Matthias and his family in one of the most terrible moments that a parent and a human being can experience.
‘We ask all the fans to join Matthias in spirit and emotion, to his wife, to their firstborn daughter and to all their loved ones in this time of terrible grief.’
A Belgian youth international, Verreth began his playing career in the Netherlands as part of PSV’s famed youth academy.
After spending more than a decade at the Eindhoven club and making a single Eredivisie appearance for the first team, the winger departed in 2019 to join Belgian side Waasland-Beveren.
In 2022 Verreth joined Dutch second-tier side Willem II and in his second season at the Koning Stadion helped lead the club back to the top flight as champions.