In a statement issued by the Special Assistant, Media to the
Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalong, the Federal Government has
promised to seek ways to immortalise the late Stephen Keshi.
In his statement:
“I will formally inform the government of the death of this
great Nigerian and I want to assure Nigerians that government will seek ways to
immortalise him,” the minister said.
He said the news of Keechi’s death came to him as a big
surprise as the former coach was neither sick nor had any health issues before
his demise.
“It is with a heavy heart but gratitude to the almighty God
that I, on behalf of the Ministry and the Federal Government of Nigeria,
sympathise with the family of Coach Stephen Keshi (MON).
Also, the Nigerian football family mourns over the untimely
death of our amiable, dedicated and outstanding hero.
He added that as Captain and Coach of the Super Eagles,
Keshi contributed greatly to the development and popularity of football in
Nigeria.
“He was a trailblazer who dedicated his life and talents to
his fatherland. I join millions of soccer followers across the world to mourn
this illustrious son of Nigeria, Africa and the world,” Dalong said.
He said Keshi during his life time was an embodiment of all
that was good about Nigerian Football.
“He was one of the longest serving captains of the national
team and won the prestigious Africa Cup of Nations in 1994 in Tunisia as
captain of the team.
That was the same year Nigeria was ranked 5th in the FIFA
World ranking, the highest ever ranked African team till date.
After his playing career, Keshi began his coaching career
and managed Togo and Mali national teams before returning home to Nigeria in
2011 to handle the Super Eagles.
This time, he won the Africa Cup of Nations in 2013 as a
manager, making him one of two people to have won the tournament as a player
and a coach.
He also qualified Nigeria for the World cup and took the
nation to the knockout stage of the World Cup against all odds,” the statement
noted
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