Ex-Arsenal academy player left tetraplegic after his drink was “spiked” on night out with friends

A former Arsenal academy player has been left tetraplegic and needing 24-hour medical care after his drink was “spiked” on a night out with his friends.

Daniel Cain, 23, was a fit and healthy footballer until a night out with his friends took a devastating turn.

On June 9, 2020, the young footballer’s friends noticed he looked pale and was not responding.

They called an ambulance for Daniel and attempted to perform CPR on him as they waited for paramedics to arrive.

After working on him for 24 minutes, paramedics got his heart beating again but his brain and spinal cord had been starved of oxygen.

Speaking to The Independent, his mum, Tracey Cain, said: “When I found out I just went into automatic mum mode.

“I phoned his father who was at work and his sister came back from Essex.

“At around 3-4am in the morning they tried to prepare us that he was not going to wake up but I said to keep trying.

“I wasn’t going to accept he wasn’t going to come around”.

Doctors told the family to be prepared for Daniel to be in a vegetative state if he woke up.

After 25 days in a coma he defied all odds and “woke up”.

His cognitive function began to return, something that his mum describes as a “miracle”.

Daniel’s short-term memory was significantly damaged by his injuries but he could still remember things from his childhood and Tracey says that he is “gradually coming back and improving all the time”.

His sister, Natalie describes her brother as being an “avid” footballer for Arsenal and he also played for Comets, Hemel Aces, and Hemel Town youth FC’s.

Two and a half years after, Daniel is now at home with his family, but he needs round-the-clock care, something that his mum has taken upon herself.

Daniel has also been given the opportunity to stand and walk again through an organisation called Neurokinex, which provides him with intensive rehabilitation therapy at a cost of 1,008 to £2,016 per month.

Daniel’s sister, Natalie insists that her brother is “not giving up” and wants to “keep his spirit and hope alive” by ensuring they have the funds to continue with the rehabilitation treatment.

Highlighting the difference continued treatment could make to Daniel’s life, she said: “He will be empowered to return to full physicality and strength, standing alone on his own two feet once again as well as resuming his previous hobbies and beginning a career.”