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Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion have announced that midfielder Enock Mwepu has been forced to retire from football aged 24 due to a hereditary heart condition.
The club have stated that Mwepu has been diagnosed with a condition that can worsen over time. They added that playing competitive football 'would put Enock at an extremely high risk of suffering a potentially fatal cardiac event.'
Following the sad news, Mwepu released the following statement on Twitter, where he described playing in the Premier League as 'dream':
The attacking midfielder signed for the Seagulls on a four-year deal after moving from RB Salzburg in the summer of 2021. Mwepu scored three times in 21 appearances in his first season in English football as he struggled to nail down a regular first-team place under Graham Potter.
The Zambian international played six times in the Premier League this term, starting once against Leicester City. The 5-2 win over the Foxes at the Amex Stadium on 4 September turned out to be the final game of Mwepu's all-to-brief career.
Following the announcement, Brighton released a statement explaining when they first detected the health problem, which read:
"Enock was taken ill while on a flight to join up with Zambia during the international break and after a period in hospital in Mali he returned to Brighton to undergo further cardiac tests and ongoing care."
"These tests have concluded that his illness is due to a hereditary cardiac condition, which manifests later in life and was not previously evident on regular cardiac screening."
The statement continued:
"Sadly 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."
Club chairman pays tribute to Premier League player forced to retire at 24
The announcement is not only a huge blow to Mwepu, but also to Brighton ahead of a packed Premier League schedule before the FIFA World Cup.
The South Coast club have taken the sensible decision to prioritize the player's health over their own interests. Club chairman Tony Bloom stated:
“We are all absolutely devastated for Enock. He and his family have had a traumatic few weeks and while we are just thankful he has come through that 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 possibly can to make a full recovery, and then as he decides on the next steps in his life.”
