How the Late Croatian Legend Spoke About His Illness: “People Avoided Me When They Saw Me”

Ivan Gudelj, the Hajduk great once on the verge of signing for Real Madrid, died at 67 after a serious illness. His career had promised a move to the Santiago Bernabéu, but hepatitis B changed everything when he was only 25.

Gudelj had already built an extraordinary reputation. He was named Europe’s best young player in 1979, became the youngest captain in the history of the Yugoslavia national team, and was selected among the ideal 11 players at the 1982 World Cup in Spain.

The illness emerged before a 1986 match against Red Star Belgrade. Gudelj recalled feeling weak, vomiting and losing weight. Spectators noticed his condition but jeered, believing he was pretending to be ill. “First of all, that virus was a taboo subject in the 1980s,” he said. “The first reactions were that I had jaundice and that it would be easily resolved.”

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First of all, that virus was a taboo subject in the 1980s. The first reactions were that I had jaundice and that it would be easily resolved. I did not learn how I became infected, which is very difficult because the incubation period lasts from two to six months.

He said he never learned how he contracted the virus because its incubation period can last from two to six months. Rumors spread that he had AIDS after two AIDS patients were hospitalized on a floor below him at Dr. Fran Mihaljević Hospital. “There were situations when some people crossed to the other side of the street when they saw me or did not want to shake my hand,” Gudelj said.

After a detailed blood analysis, a Hajduk doctor told him he had a condition from which he could recover, but which could also prove fatal. Gudelj later said that, after 37 years of struggle, the virus had disappeared because his body had developed antibodies.

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There were situations when some people crossed to the other side of the street when they saw me or did not want to shake my hand.