Brighton have confirmed that Enock Mwepu has been forced to end his playing career as a result of being diagnosed with an inherited heart condition. The 24-year-old Zambia international, who joined Brighton for around £20million from Red Bull Salzburg last July, fell ill while on a flight to join his national team during the break international Mwepu was admitted to hospital for four days in Mali before returning to Brighton for further cardiac tests and continued care.
According to a statement from Brighton, tests “concluded that his condition is due to an inherited heart condition, which manifests itself later in life and was not previously evident on regular heart screening. Unfortunately, this can be exacerbated by playing sport , so Enock has been advised that the only option, for the sake of his own safety, is for him to stop playing football.”
“A boy from a small township in Zambia called Chambishi has news to share,” Mwepu wrote in a message on Twitter. “He stayed strong to follow his dreams of playing football at the highest level and by the grace of God he lived his dream by reaching the Premier League.
“Some dreams, however, have an end, so it is with sadness that I announce the need to hang up my boots due to the medical advice I received. But this is not the end of my involvement in football, I intend to remain involved to some extent. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who supported me in my football journey including my wife and family, my agent 12MAN, the Zambia FA, all my teammates and previous managers, especially all at Brighton & Hove Albion.
Club chairman Tony Bloom said: “We are all absolutely devastated for Enock. He and his family have had a traumatic few weeks and while we are grateful he has come through this period, he has seen such a promising career cut short at such a young age. As a club, we will give him all the love, help and support we can to make a full recovery, and then when he decides on the next steps in his life.”
Head coach Roberto De Zerbi added: “I feel really sorry for Enock. I looked at the whole squad before I arrived, and he was a player I was really excited and looking forward to working with. We will do our best to help him.”
Mwepu, who was known as ‘the computer’ in his homeland for his ability to read the game, started Brighton’s 5-2 win over Leicester last month in what turned out to be his last match with the club. He played 27 games in total for Brighton, scoring three goals and won 23 caps for Zambia.