Helio Hermito Zampier Neto, a 31-year-old defender for Chapecoense, was in a stable condition, doctors said, after surgery on a lung, a knee, a wrist and his head.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that five other people survived the crash, which killed 71 people.

Neto’s father, Helam, said on Facebook that news of his recovery was giving the family “renewed hope and faith’’.

“My son is getting better and better. He has just undergone surgery on his leg and doctors say he will return to football,” he said.

“We shall continue praying because we still need his discharge from hospital to see him closely.”

Doctors have also said 24-year-old goalkeeper Jakson Ragnar Follmann would not lose his left leg, after having his right one amputated.

Defender Alan Ruschel, 27, had spinal surgery, but his movements were not affected, they added.

Journalist Rafael Henzel was listed as stable.

Many of the victims were players and staff of Chapecoense, who were due to play in the final of the Copa Sudamericana against Medellin team Atletico Nacional.

In the squad’s home town of Chapeco, in southern Brazil, temporary structures have been set up in the football stadium for an open-air wake on Saturday.