Former Chelsea youth player Lamisha Musonda has revealed that he has only a short time to live despite being only 33 years old. The Belgian joined the west London club from Anderlecht in 2012, along with his younger brothers Tika and Charlie, and spent two years in the Blues’ youth set-up.
After that, he returned to his hometown and played in Mechelen. After that, he played for Llagostera and Palamos in Spain’s lower league, as well as Congolese powerhouse Mazembe. He also won nine caps for the Belgium U-21 national team before retiring in 2020. However, despite his young age, he admitted that he was seriously ill and did not have much time left to live.
In an emotional statement, he wrote, “I realized that I only had a few days left, and that so many people were by my side. I will always cherish those memories. Life is hard, but the scenery is beautiful.”
“Life is made up of ups and downs, and no one can truly understand the pain you go through. The last two years have been particularly difficult and challenging for me. It is with great sadness that I announce that I am struggling to regain my health.”
“This is why I have been away from social media. I have to face the facts. My health is in crisis and I am fighting to survive right now. Your assistance and prayers will be of great help during this time. Me and my family are fighting and I will not quit until my last breath.”
“I was lucky to have a beautiful childhood, and I still have so much to offer. But there are so many wonderful people that I would have loved to thank in person, and the fact that I will probably never get that opportunity makes me deeply sadden.”
Following the outpouring of support following his initial statement, he returned to social media to thank those who had reached out. Mr Musonda made it clear that he wanted to be remembered for the positive impact he had on the people he met throughout his life, rather than basking in accolades.
“I’m by no means a perfect person. No one is perfect. I also want to thank football and school for giving me real life lessons. I want to be remembered as someone who wasn’t fooled by the accolades. But the good people I met along the way…my teammates, my teachers, my coaches, my bus driver…it’s for them. I’ll keep fighting and getting stronger. Let’s win one day at a time.”
Musonda’s younger brother Charlie, 29, made seven appearances for Chelsea’s first team and also spent eight games on loan at Celtic. Another younger brother, Tika, later quit his job and went into scouting.
