Doctors are fighting to save the left leg of West Ham defender Calum Davenport after he was stabbed several times by thugs yesterday morning, while relatives have told Goal.com that he will never play football again.
The 26-year-old Davenport and his mother Kim, 49, were both attacked outside their property in Springfield Avenue, Bedford, at 5am yesterday morning. Calum was stabbed several times in both legs and was rushed to hospital along with his mother.
A main artery in Calum’s left leg was severed, causing him to lose pints of blood, and he was forced to undergo emergency surgery yesterday as doctors battled not only to save his leg but also his life.
There are still fears that Calum may have to have his left leg amputated, with the next 24-48 hours being crucial, while relatives have told Goal.com that the West Ham star “probably will never play football ever again”.
Goal.com sources have learned that the attackers deliberately targeted Davenport’s legs in an attempt to end his professional career and that the defender and his family knew the assailants, who allegedly possessed a grudge against them. Calum's sister Cara, 28, was at the house at the time of the crime, but was not hurt.
There is currently a police guard outside the private hospital room Calum is being treated in. The ex-Coventry player’s mother is also in a “serious” condition in hospital with stomach wounds.
Two men are currently in police custody connected with the attack. A 19-year-old man and a 25-year-old man, the latter who has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
Knife crime in the United Kingdom has become a serious problem in recent years, with the UK often described as the 'knife crime capital' of the developed world.
In Bedford alone, a town of just approximately 80,000 people, there have been six stabbings in the past week.