Juventus star Dybala phones Chinese boy hurt in Turin stampede

Juventus' Paulo Dybala celebrates scoring their second goal against Crotone at the Juventus Stadium in Turin, Italy on May 21, 2017. [Photo/Agencies]

ROME - A Chinese boy who was injured in a stampede at a June 3 public screening of the UEFA Champions League final has received a video call from Juventus striker Paulo Dybala on Monday, local media reported.

Seven-year-old Kelvin Liu was one of over 1,500 people hurt in the mass stampede in the northern city of Turin, where Juventus fans had gathered in the city's central San Carlo Square to watch the Champions League final against Real Madrid on giant screens set up by the city authorities.

"When will you come to visit me?" Kelvin, who spent most of last week in intensive care with head and chest injuries, asked the Juve champ, according to Italian news agency Ansa.

"You must give me advice on how I can become as good as you," the little boy, who was born in Italy of Chinese parents, reportedly told Dybala.

A representative from the Italian champions delivered a Dybala shirt that the Argentine star had given to the little boy, a football lover who plays for a local amateur club.

One of the first things Kelvin asked when he came round after being in an induced coma was when he would be able to play football again, according to Ansa.

Kelvin was saved from more drastic injuries by a member of the Italian armed forces, Federico Rappazzo, who had gone to watch the game as a Juventus fan and covered Kelvin with his own body to protect him from the panic-stricken crowd.

"I acted instinctively," Rappazzo told La Repubblica newspaper in a video interview last week, adding that he had visited Kelvin in hospital and met his family.

"It's as though he were my own brother," said Rappazzo who has a little sister the same age as Kelvin.

Kelvin should be able to leave hospital within days, local media reported.