Former Ghanaian international, Manuel Junior Agogo is dead.
Agogo died this morning in London after the striker suffering a stroke back in 2015 which left him debilitated just two years after retiring from playing.
Agogo was a star of the national team and the poster boy of the 2008 African Cup of Nations hosted in Ghana.
He scored 12 goals in 27 caps during the height of his career between 2006 and 2009.
Agogo enjoyed the best spell of his career with Nottingham Forest between 2006 and 2008, scoring over 20 goals for the club.
Shortly after the news broke, Forest tweeted: “Rest in peace, Junior. #NFFC is saddened to learn that former striker Junior Agogo has passed away.
“The thoughts of everyone at the club are with Junior’s family and friends at this sad time.”
Agogo opened up on his health problems in an emotional BBC interview called “Speechless” two years ago, discussing his battle to regain his speech.
“I was running with my dog. I was coming back home. I was near the Marriott Hotel and the stroke happened,” he said.
“When I woke up I was in the hospital with my mum. I couldn’t speak. I was in a bad way.
“I had thoughts, but I was like where is my voice. I was baffled, man.”
At the time, he was reported to be living in London with his mother and dog, Blanket, in a flat described as a shrine to his career.
“I’m alive. I’m well. Let’s get onto my football days,” he said in the program, pointing to shirts on the wall.
Agogo started his career with Sheffield Wednesday during their time in the Premier League, making two appearances for the club, before a stint in the United States.
He returned to England with QPR in 2002 then moved to Barnet, bagging 19 goals in 39 games to earn a move to Bristol Rovers.
It was with Rovers that he starred with over 40 goals across three seasons, earning his move to Forest and firing them into the Championship.
He scored 13 goals as they earned promotion to the Championship from League One before being sold to Zamalek in 2008.
He finished his career in Scotland, being signed by former Forest boss Colin Calderwood at Hibernian on a one-year deal in July 2011.
Agogo scored once in 14 appearances before retiring at the end of the season.
On the international stage, he scored the winner for Ghana in the 2008 African Cup of Nations quarter-final against Nigeria and was a key part in their third-place finish.
Samuel A. Boakye-Buckman (popularly known as Dada Oliseh) is a self-motivated young journalist with a passion for telling stories better with pictures. He is the founder, owner, editor and bankroller of www.ghanasoccernews.org as well as this website, www.totalsportsgh.com. Dada Oliseh is again the brain behind the Dada Oliseh Photos brand that produces awesome pictures of all sporting activities, nature, and other occasions.
He has a vast experience in the reporting of sports in Ghana especially football-related activities in Ghana and beyond. A former employee of Hearts News (official mouthpiece of Accra Hearts of Oak), 90 minutes sports paper, National Sports Authority, Footballcrusader.com, sportscrusader.com, and ghanafootballnews.com, Samuel is one of the few energetic and self-motivated young journalist in Ghana with a large following on social media, especially Facebook (https://web.facebook.com/boakye.buckman.9). He is well known for his frequent updates from all over the country with pictures to match. He is also a correspondent for a few international websites, including CAF. In recent times, he has introduced, as part of his many talents, the live streaming of matches and football-related activities. He lives in Accra Ghana.