Cardiff City boss Neil Harris has revealed the emotional training ground scenes as Sol Bamba insisted on telling his team-mates about his cancer diagnosis in person.
Bamba addressed the players on Monday morning after discovering he has Non-Hodgkin lymphoma around Christmas time. A public statement was then released by the club on Monday evening.
Harris spoke of the players' difficulty in coming to terms with the news.
"Obviously it was very sad news and very hard-hitting for everybody within the club and the fanbase and, most of all, for Sol and his family," he said.
"It's been a difficult few weeks for everyone involved. I spoke to Sol regularly over the Christmas period when he first found out.
"Then it got to a stage where he's had time to take it in and find out where he's at in terms of treatment and what his next steps are. He's had time to digest that with the family and speak to them about it.
"He thought it was only right he had the chance to come in on Monday and speak to the players in person and staff and then release the statement on Monday night.
"I've got to say the man is incredible. An incredible human being. The humility of wanting to put other people first is astonishing. As you can imagine Monday was very emotional at the training ground. For people who have been here a lot longer than me and even the team-mates who have not been here for long. Everyone loves the man and realises how important he is to Cardiff City and my changing room.
"It was a day I'll never forget and something that makes people take a step back and think about how lucky we are in life and how we are now going to support Sol and his family in the coming months.
"He's a leader in the group, by age, personality and presence. He's been fantastic for me in that leadership role and we have certainly missed him in the last few weeks.
"He's talking about coming in to help lead the changing room and lead the group. He wants to be there at games, he wants to be there at the training ground."
Harris himself was diagnosed with testicular cancer at the age of 23 but overcame the disease after surgery, going on to have a successful career.
"The problem at a time like this is you feel helpless because there's not a lot you can do other than support," he said.
"I've been able to do that from my own experiences of cancer when I played but also the lads have just shown they are good human beings and all care for Sol.
"I'll draw on that experience. I know where he's at. It's a very tough period and it brings back raw emotions. It's important we all find our own ways to help Sol."
