Avi Cohen, the 54-year-old ex Israel captain, was pronounced dead on Tuesday, eight days after sustaining severe head injuries when his scooter collided with a car in Ramat Gan.

Investigations have suggested that Cohen was wearing an unstrapped helmet, which came off before his head hit the ground.

His son, Tamir, who plays for Bolton Wanderers, read a brief statement on Tuesday evening at Ichilov Hospital. "A Ministry of Health committee met today and confirmed that my father is clinically dead. The significance of this is that my father has died. That is the situation now.

"Thank you and all the people of Israel for your support and assistance. The family would like to get together and digest the situation."