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Former Super Eagles Coach and one time defender of the Super Eagles, Stephen Okechukwu Keshi is dead.
Stephen Keshi
A tweet on the Nigeria Football Federation's handle, @thenff, says the legend died in the early hours of today (Wednesday).
Also Ademola Olajire, an Assistant Director of Communications in the Nigeria Football Federation, said that Keshi died after he was rushed to an hospital in Benin after complaining of his legs. He said that Keshi had problems with his legs and that he could not stand for long.
More so, Valere Hounandinou, an Assistant Coach to Keshi, confirmed to Vanguard that "last week Stephen Keshi complained to him that he was having irregular heart beats and he advised him to go the hospital".
The former international football player and coach, lost his wife, Kate, last year after a prolonged battle with cancer.
Keshi has coached the national teams of Togo and Mali, qualifying the former to the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
In his last job with Nigeria, he won the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations and reached the Round of 16 at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
The Chairman of the Edo State Football Association (EFA), Frank Ilaboya, has quoted Stephen Keshi’s faimily member, Ricky Aburimen, as saying that the Super Eagle’s former coach only complained of a leg ailment while holidaying at his Airport road home in Benin before he passed away on his way to the hospital at about 3:00 am.
Frank also confirmed on Wednesday that the remains of Keshi who is survived by four children and his mother, had been moved to a privately-owned mortuary, Faith Mediplex, located on the Benin Airport road in the Edo State capital.
Recall that the ex-international player and coach lost his wife, Nkem Kate Keshi only last December. They had been married for more than 30 years. She died after a prolonged battle with cancer.
A statement on the coach's death was released by the late trainer's brother and aide, Emmanuel Ado, which read;
“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.”.
