Former England defender Ugo Ehiogu, 44, dies after cardiac arrest

Ugo Ehiogu died early Friday morning in hospital after suffering a cardiac arrest a day earlier, Tottenham Hotspur has confirmed. He was 44 years old.

The former England and Aston Villa defender, who was working as Spurs' Under-23 coach, collapsed at the club's training ground on Thursday. He was rushed to hospital, where he passed away in the early hours of Friday morning.

"Words cannot express the shock and sadness that we all feel at the Club," Tottenham's head of coaching and player development, John McDermott, said in a statement.

"Ugo's immense presence will be irreplaceable. Our heartfelt sympathies go out to his wife Gemma and his family."

Ehiogu, who spent nine successful seasons with Aston Villa before enjoying a seven-year stint with Middlesbrough, earned four England caps in his career. He scored his lone goal for the Three Lions on his debut, a 3-0 victory over Spain in a friendly that also served as Sven Goran-Eriksson's first contest on the England touchline.

It was at Villa Park, though, where he made his greatest impact, and developed into something of a cult hero among supporters. The native of Homerton, east London, joined Villa in 1991, and went on to make over 300 appearances for the club, winning two League Cups in that time.

Middlesbrough paid £8 million to acquire his services in 2000 - at the time a club-record fee for a defender - and Ehiogu helped deliver a League Cup title to the Riverside Stadium in 2004.

Hampered by knee injuries in the final years of his career, Ehiogu spent time with Leeds, Rangers, and Sheffield United before retiring in 2009.

He subsequently moved into coaching, and had been a member of Tottenham's staff since 2014.