Former Ghana Striker Dwamena Dies At 28 After Suffering On-Pitch Cardiac Arrest
Former Ghana striker Raphael Dwamena has died at the age of 28 after suffering a cardiac arrest while playing in Albania.
Dwamena was playing for Egnatia against Partizani earlier on Saturday when he collapsed on the pitch in the 23rd minute and efforts to resuscitate him proved futile.
Dwamena, who won nine caps for Ghana, and scored a brace on his international debut against Ethiopia back in 2017, played for the likes of FC Zurich, Levante, Real Zaragoza and Austria Lustenau.
A transfer to Brighton and Hove Albion fell through in 2017 when an issue with his heart was detected during his medicals and Dwamena was advised by medics to retire from football.
Nonetheless, he was determined to follow his passion and continued to play after he was fitted with an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator(ICD).
Dwamena had a scare in October 2021 when he collapsed on the pitch while playing for Austrian side BW Linz but was shocked by the ICD and stabilised.
Dwamena had scored nine goals in 11 games in the Albania top flight this season.
An official statement from the Ghana Football Association read: “Our thoughts are with the family of Raphael Dwamena at this difficult time.”
“Raphael represented Ghana wholeheartedly and paid his dues to the country until his unfortunate passing. We will forever miss him for his dedication to the National Coarse.
“Rest In Peace Raphael.”
