Cali, Colombia, Aug 26 (EFE).– Uruguayan soccer player Alexis Viera, a former goalkeeper for America de Cali, sustained a spinal injury and lost sensation in his legs after being shot during a robbery attempt in Colombia, doctors said.

Viera, who currently plays for the Colombian Second Division’s Depor Futbol Club, was shot in the left side of his chest and the injury affected his lungs, prompting doctors to perform emergency surgery to save his life, the Clinica Valle del Lili said.

“The patient, Alexis Viera, who was injured by a gunshot, was evaluated and resuscitated by the emergency team, and a few minutes later it was decided that emergency surgery was required since he had lesions in both lobules of the left lung,” surgeon Alberto Garcia said.

The soccer player suffered a spinal injury and preliminary assessments by the clinic’s neurosurgeon found loss of sensation in Viera’s legs, Garcia said.

Viera will undergo surgery again to repair the area torn by the bullet, the clinic said.

The 37-year-old Viera was leaving a bank when two people approached to rob him.

The soccer player, who was accompanied by his wife, struggled with the robbers and was shot.

Police are offering a reward of 50 million pesos (about $15,000) for information leading to the suspects’ arrest. EFE