Sergio ‘Kun’ Aguero, who moved to Barcelona after his career peaked in Manchester
City, announced his retirement from professional football, due to heart problems.
He suffered from chest struggles and breathing difficulties during Barcelona’s
match against Alaves, on October 30. He stated at the conference that this
decision was a difficult one but had to be made for the sake of his health.

With one of the most talismanic strikers in modern football waving
goodbye to the arena, we take a look at other footballers who have suffered
from heart problems, sometimes with fatal consequences, in their careers.

Also Read | Who is Sergio Aguero?

Christian Eriksen

Denmark’s Christian Eriksen fell to the field during the match against
Finland in the 2020 Euro Cup. The Tottenham Hotspur midfielder’s heartbeat had
briefly stopped, and he needed to receive cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Later,
he was rushed to the hospital and his condition improved. The incident brought
the football community to a moment of absolute silence, and catapulted Eriksen’s
name to one of the most searched terms on Google that year.

Marc-Vivien Foe

He was part of Cameroon’s squad, and in the match against Colombia,
during the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup, Foe collapsed suddenly with nobody
around him. He was immediately carried off the field in a stretcher, and medics
tried to resuscitate him. Although Foe was alive when taken to the medical
centre, he died soon after. It was determined that he had hypertrophic
cardiomyopathy, a hereditary condition increasing the risk of sudden death due
to exercise.

Also Read | 5 reasons why Sergio Aguero will be recalled as Manchester City legend

Iker Casillas

The Spanish legend suffered a heart attack in 2019, while training with
Porto. He was 37 at the time and was immediately rushed to the hospital. The
incident prompted Casillas to retire from football shortly after.

Miklos Feher

In 2004, Benfica was facing Vitória de Guimarães, when Feher suddenly
bent forward. His teammates rushed to help him, and he was soon taken off the
field to be resuscitated. However, news of his death reached by evening, and
the cause was determined to be cardiac arrythmia.

Antonio Puerta

Tragically, during the Sevilla Getafe fixture in La Liga, Puerta suffered
a heart attack. He recovered upon receiving treatment from the medical team but
fainted again. He was taken to intensive care soon after. Unfortunately, he
passed away three days later, from multiple organ failure brought on by arrhythmogenic
right ventricular dysplasia, a hereditary heart disease.

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Other players who suffered from heart problems include Fabrice Muamba of
Bolton Wanderers, who announced his retirement from professional football in
2012, much like Aguero has done now. While Muamba managed to survive the heart
condition, players like Bruno Boban, Daniel Jarque, Davide Astori, and Eri Irianto
tragically succumbed to it.