Sol Bamba was a colossus on the pitch and a beacon of humanity in private

‘You could not help but warm to Sol Bamba and his beaming smile.’ Photograph: Gareth Phillips/The Guardian

It’s not often journalists are invited into football players’ promotion parties but Sol Bamba made a beeline for me.

It was May 2018 and Cardiff City had just made history, promoted to the Premier League in Bamba’s first full season at the club. He had just helped the Bluebirds grind out a draw at home with Reading, which was enough to seal second place in the Championship and spark wild celebrations across the city. There was an outpouring of joy and Bamba, in unison with his old mentor Neil Warnock, had made it all possible.