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Patrick Ekeng: Cameroon footballer dies after collapsing on pitch during match

Patrick Ekeng, left, seen here playing in a Primera Division match in 2015 Credit: PA

Cameroonian international footballer Patrick Ekeng has died after collapsing on the pitch during a match, his club Dinamo Bucharest confirmed.

The 26-year-old midfielder reportedly collapsed without any player making contact with him, just seven minutes after coming onto the field.

He had been brought on as a substitute during a league match against Viitorul Constanta.

"Resuscitation attempts were made for an hour and half without success," the AFP news agency reported Liviu Paltinean, the team doctor, as saying.

Ekeng was taken to hospital but could not be resuscitated.

Fans of the team gathered outside the hospital late in the evening in tribute to the player.

Patrick Ekeng:

  • Born Patrick Claude Ekeng on 6 March 1990

  • Joined Dinamo Bucharest in January this year

  • Previously played for Le Mans, Lausanne and Cordoba

  • Represented Cameroon at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations

Patrick Ekeng, left, seen here playing for Cordoba in a Primera Division match in 2015 Credit: PA

In 2003, Marc-Vivien Foe, the Cameroon international midfielder, died after collapsing during a Confederations Cup match against Colombia in France.

In October 2000, Catalin Hildan, who was then captain of Bucharest, collapsed and died during a friendly game.