Ghanian footballer dies after collapsing on pitch during League game
Ghanian footballer, Raphael Dwamena has died after suffering a fatal cardiac arrest during a league game in Albania on Saturday, November 12, 2023.
The unfortunate incident occured during a football match between his side, Egnatia and Partizani in the Albanian Super Liga.
Aged 28, Ghanian footballer, Raphael Dwanena collapsed in the first half of the match.
Raphael according to reports suffered a heart attack and collapsed.
The forward was immediately rushed to the hospital, where he unfortunately passed away.
The game was abandoned with scores tied at 1-1.
Dwamena had previously received a diagnosis of a longstanding heart issue, and he experienced a cardiac arrest during a OFB Cup round of 16 match against TSV Hartberg in 2021.
Dwamena started his career at Red Bull Salzburg and also played for Spanish teams like Levante and Zaragoza.
The Ghana Football Association (GFA), in a statement on X, said: “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!”
His former teams have taken to social media to pay tribute to the late forward.
Estamos devastados por la triste noticia del fallecimiento de nuestro exjugador Raphael Dwamena
Queremos mandar todo nuestro cariño y afecto para su familia y sus seres queridos. Siempre estarás en el recuerdo de todo el zaragocismo
Descansa en paz 🙏 pic.twitter.com/zXuTXgpfzQ
— Real Zaragoza 🦁 (@RealZaragoza) November 11, 2023
🕯️ Der FC Zürich trauert um Raphael Dwamena.
Rest in Peace Raphael Dwamena. Du bleibst immer einer von uns!#fcz pic.twitter.com/rIwaMyYsKx
— FC Zürich (@fc_zuerich) November 11, 2023
In 2017, the Late Raphael received his maiden Ghanian national team call-up and was as part of the 30-man preliminary list squad the 2017 African Cup of Nations but was dropped from the final 23-man squad.
He made his international debut on the 11 June 2017 in an African Cup of Nations qualifier against Ethiopia, where he scored a brace to mark the new era of youngsters being introduced into the national team.
