BREAKING NEWS, Passage
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STEPHEN Keshi, former coach and captain of the Super Eagles is dead. Keshi, 54, popularly known as the Big Boss reportedly died of cardiac arrest in the early hours of Wednesday, June 8, in Benin, Edo state. His death was confirmed in a statement by the family signed by Emmanuel Ado, titled: ‘Stephen Keshi CON has gone to be with his wife.’
He said, “With thanksgiving to God, the Ogbuenyi Fredrick Keshi family of Illah in Oshimili North Local Government Area of Delta State, announces the death of Mr. Stephen Okechukwu Chinedu Keshi. Our son, brother, father, father-in-law,brother-in-law, has gone to be with his wife of 35 years (Nkem), Mrs. Kate Keshi, who passed on on the 9th December 2015.
“Since her death, Keshi has been in mourning. He came back to Nigeria to be with her. He had planned to fly back today Wednesday, before he suffered a cardiac arrest. He has found rest. We thank God for his life. We want to ask for understanding in this very difficult time for the family,” Ado said.
According to family sources, Keshi died just about six months after his wife, Kate, died in the United States. The sources explained that Keshi complained of being unwell just before midnight on Tuesday and he was found to be gasping for breath. He was rushed to Faith Hospital in the Benin Government Reservation Area. He died around 00.30 this morning and his body has been deposited at the Central Hospital in the city.
Keshi is the only Nigerian coach to have won the Africa Cup of Nations. He also became the second person in history to win the competition as a player and as a coach after Mahmoud El-Gohary of Egypt when he led the Super Eagles to win the tournament in 2013 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
He rose to national prominence when debuted for the Super Eagles in 1981 at age 20. The late central defender withdrew from the national team in 1994. He had 64 caps and scored nine goals.
As coach, he qualified an unknown Togolese national team for the 2006 World Cup in Germany but was sacked and replaced with German Otto Pfister, just before the tournament. He, however, achieved his dream to manage a team at the World Cup when he coached the Super Eagles side to the tournament in 2014.
He is the fifth member of the glorious 1994 Super Eagles team to die, after Uche Okafor, Thompson Oliha, Rashidi Yekini and Wilfred Agbonavbare. He is survived by four children and his mother.
— Jun 8, 2016 @ 12:45 GMT
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