ABUJA, Nigeria - Stephen Keshi, Nigerian soccer's charismatic “Big Boss” who won African Cup titles as both captain and coach of his country, died early Wednesday. He was 54.
Keshi, one of only two men to win the African Cup of Nations as a player and a coach, died after being rushed to the hospital in Benin City in southern Nigeria, the Nigerian Football Federation said.
“This is devastating. We have lost a superhero,” NFF president Amaju Pinnick said in a statement.
The federation said Keshi died of suspected heart problems and was experiencing an irregular heartbeat and pain in his legs when he was taken to the hospital. He was preparing to fly back to his home in the United States.
Keshi captained Nigeria to the African Cup title in 1994 and was coach when Nigeria won again in 2013. He also coached the Togo and Mali national teams.
His time in charge of Nigeria was marked by disputes with his NFF bosses, but Keshi was so popular that former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan once personally intervened to make sure he remained as national team coach.
As a tall, muscular central defender, Keshi led Nigeria's golden age of players to the African Cup title in Tunisia in 1994 and to the brink of the World Cup quarterfinals the same year in the United States. That team contained the likes of Finidi George, Jay-Jay Okocha, Sunday Oliseh and Rashidi Yekini.
Keshi was coach when Nigeria won its first African title in nearly 20 years in South Africa three years ago.
“Horrible news & Sad day as Our legendary Captain & brother Stephen Keshi dies,” Oliseh, a former teammate and Keshi's successor as Nigeria coach, wrote on Twitter. “We lost an iconic Hero 2day.”
English club Chelsea tweeted: “All at CFC are saddened to hear of former Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi's death.”
