Video Cosmin Lambru was in a car accident aged eight

Seldom does football provide such heartwarming stories, yet that is exactly the case for Cosmin Lambru's professional debut as the 18-year-old made his first senior appearance whilst wearing a prosthetic arm.

Despite being involved in a serious car accident at age eight, he was hit by a truck and lost his left hand, Lambru has risen through the ranks of Petrolul Ploiesti and was given his first appearance as a substitute in a cup match against Mioveni.

Unfortunately for the midfielder, Petrolul were eliminated from the tournament on penalties after a 1-1 draw.

The story of the teenager's survival is miraculous, despite the harrowing injuries he suffered and has had to learn to live with ever since, it is only courtesy of the truck passing over him that he survived.

"We were coming home when a truck skidded and headed towards me," he explained in an interview with Romanian sports paper Daily Sport. "I threw myself into the vehicle to try and get under it.

"I felt terrible pain but I was aware that I had been taken to hospital."

Ever since it has been his dream to be a professional footballer, a decade later he has achieved this dream, a moment that Lambru saw as a reward for his refusal to ever give up.

"When I first returned to football, I had to learn how to fall on my arm," he intimated.

"It was not easy, but I did not complain and I never will."