Chapecoense plane crash survivor Alan Ruschel swapped seats during flight

Alan Ruschel, one of just six survivors from last month's tragic Chapecoense plane crash, has spoken for the first time about the devastating air disaster which killed most of his teammates.

In the press conference, Ruschel said he couldn't understand how he had survived, but revealed that he had swapped seats during the flight.

Club director Cadu Gaucho, who also perished in the ill-fated flight, asked Ruschel to move towards the front of the plane so that the journalists on board could sit together.

Though the 28-year-old defender said he had not wanted to move, but his friend, goalkeeper Jackson Follman, asked him to sit next to him.

Ruschel said: "Only God can explain why I survived the accident. He grabbed me and gave me a second chance."

Speaking about the crash, Ruschel said he didn't remember anything about it, and avoided the news stories around it: "I avoid the news, but from the little I've seen I think it was greed on the pilot's part," referring to claims that there was not enough fuel in the plane to complete the journey.

The plane crashed carrying the team dubbed as the "Brazilian Leicester City" as well as directors, staff and journalists, crashed into the hills, close to its intended destination of Medellin, Colombia. The team had been due to play in the final of the Copa Sudamericana against local team Atletico Nacional. It would have been the club's biggest ever game.

Investigators said the site indicated that the plane had no fuel when it crashed. This appeared to have been confirmed by a call to air traffic control, in which the pilot requested permission to land stating that the flight was "total electrical failure and without fuel".

The flight was just 8.2 miles from the runway when it crashed from an altitude of 9,000 ft on November 29.

Follmann survived the crash, though was forced to undergo a partial leg amputation as a result. Another defender, Helio Zemper Neto, also survived despite severe head trauma.

Ruschel underwent spinal surgery after the crash, but was able to walk when he left the hospital and has vowed to return to the pitch.

He said: "When I got here today I had the sensation that I was coming home. I promise to give lots more happiness to this team. With a lot of effort and hard work I am going to be back playing again soon."