Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu recounts near death experience in 2019

Ghanaian midfielder Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu has given an account of his near-death experience from a pulmonary embolism.

The 29-year-old was struck by the illness and subsequently hospitalised for several weeks before the start of the season in August 2019.

In an interview with BBC, Agyemang-Badu recounted "In August I came close to dying myself."

"We were in pre-season, everything was going well. It was a week before the league started."

"The morning after a game I came to the gym to do some gym work. That night I came home and was struggling to breathe."

"I didn't take it seriously at first - I thought it was tiredness."

"In the morning they gave me some painkillers. But the next night it was even worse."

"At 2 am I called the doctor and fortunately he was awake. He sent a physio who was closer to me and he came - and immediately said, "we need to go to the hospital".

"Eventually they found out that I had a blood clot in my lungs. I had to stop playing football for three to four months."

"It was a very dramatic time for me but in certain times like this you need to be strong, thank god I'm back on my feet and doing well now."

"It was very serious, I think if I hadn't got the physio and the doctor to check up on me it would've been a disaster."

He returned to action in January 2020 and played just 30 minutes for Hellas Verona in the Serie A.

The league is currently on Coronavirus-induced suspension.