He passed away at the age of 28/ Who was Dwamena, the player who immediately stood out in Albania

2023-11-11 15:36:32, Sport CNA

Albanian football in mourning for the loss of the attacker and captain of Egnatia, Raphael Dwamena. He died on Saturday afternoon, after a heart attack on the football field, while he was playing in the Egnatia-Partizani match.

Raphael Dwamena is one of the best quality foreigners who has landed in Albanian football. The Ghanaian striker, author of 8 matches and 2 goals with the African national team, signed with Egnatia in January of this year.

The 28-year-old immediately showed his abilities as a scorer, while he ended the second half of last season with 11 goals in the Super League and 1 in the Cup of Albania.

Egnatia ensured a historic qualification in the Conference League, while for the first time it also tasted the Albanian Cup trophy.

Dwamena also did well in Europe with the Rogozhinas, in the two duels against the Armenians of Ararat, during which he scored 3 goals.

The African started the current season in an excellent way, as he led the scoring list with 9 goals, giving a great contribution to the leadership of the Rrogozhin team together with Partizan.

And today, in the match between the two most fit teams in Albania, the captain of Egnatia was knocked down in the 25th minute. Not to rise again, causing a pain that will take time to pass to his family, the club and the fans of Egnatia, but also to all Albanian sports fans.

Who was Dwamena?

Born on September 12, 1995 in Nkaukau, Ghana, Rafael Dwamena played and trained with the Red Bull Ghana development program. At the International Tournament in Croix, France, in 2013, he helped the RB Ghana U17 team to win the silver medal and was named the "Best Player" of the tournament.

Before returning to Ghana, Dwamena first traveled to Austria for a week-long trial with FC Red Bull Salzburg. He joined Salzburg's youth team in January 2014, and immediately made an impact on the U18 side. In a tournament in June that year, the Ghanaian scored seven goals in four games. Although Salzburg finished in third place, he won the "Golden Boot".

In July 2014, Dwamena moved to Liefering where he made his debut at the age of 18 in the Austrian First League. In the 2015-16 postseason, he would also score his first goal as a professional player, on September 18.

In the summer of 2016, Dwamena moved to another Austrian club, Austria Lustenau for 600,000 euros. There he scored 18 goals in 20 games, before that performance earned him a move to Switzerland to Zurich on January 27, 2017.

His impact on the new club was visible and immediate. With 12 goals in 18 games, the Ghanaian helped Zurich secure the league title and promotion to the Swiss Super League. And, in the Swiss top flight, he scored twice on his debut against Grasshoppers.

In August 2017, the 28-year-old was very close to realizing his dream of moving to the English Premier League. Brighton and Hove Albion had agreed a deal with Zurich for his transfer, but everything was cut short when medical tests revealed problems with his heart. Thus, he remained in Zurich.

Although medical examinations at Brighton showed problems with his heart, he still continued to play football and in August 2018 he moved to Levante in Spain, after the latter paid 6.2 million euros for his card.

With Levante in La Liga, Dwamena appeared in 12 matches, providing two assists. He would then go on loan to Real Zaragoza in La Liga 2 for one season.

October 2019 would bring a big blow to his career. After new medical examinations, the doctors suggested Dwamena's immediate withdrawal from football.

He, however, continued to play after having an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) fitted in January 2020.

After that, the Ghanaian's career would continue in Denmark, where he signed for Vejle. After making his debut with a goal in 2020, he played four more games before doctors ruled him out due to heart problems.

"God has always thought well of me," Dwamena said at the time, explaining that the incident came as a result of the defibrillator's shock. Even the doctors then confirmed that such blows were not dangerous for the player's life, although the best would be for him not to play football again.

Due to a heart condition and some worrying measurements, Vejle confirmed on October 26, 2020, that Dwamena could not play for a period. Later, in November 2020, Vejle's sporting director stated that Dwamena had played his last game for the club.

Despite the concern of the doctors, the Ghanaian did not give up football. He returned to Austria, signing with Blau-Veis Linz on 25 June 2021. However, two months later, Dwamena would suffer his first real shock. He collapsed on the pitch during an Austrian Cup match against TSV Hartberg and was hospitalized afterwards.

But his love and passion for football made him not give up this sport. In January 2023, Dwamena signed for a small Swiss fifth division club, BSC Old Boys. There he scored eight goals in 11 appearances, before arriving in Albania at Egnatia.