10 Things You Didn’t Know About Stephen Keshi

The Nigerian football defender and manager of the Nigerian national team, Stephen Keshi was born as Stephen Okechukwu Keshi was born on 23 January 1962 in Azare, Bauchi State, Nigeria and pasted away on 7 June 2016. He served as head coach for the Junior Eagles at the 2001 African Youth Championship. The first football club he ever played for in Nigeria was ACB Football Club, before joining New Nigeria Bank, Stade d’Abidjan, Africa Sports, Lokeren, Anderlecht, RC Strasbourg among other clubs. He was one of the only two soccer stars, along with Egypt’s Mahmoud El-Gohary, to have won the Africa Cup of Nations both as a player and a coach. He is the only coach to have taken the Togolese team to the World cup championship till date. There is no doubt that the 54-years-old legendary Nigerian football coach will definitely be missed in the world of entertainment and sports.

Here are 10 things you probably didn’t know about the Nigerian legendary football manager, Stephen Keshi:

1. Stephen Keshi was born as Stephen Okechukwu Keshi was born on 23 January 1962 in Azare, Bauchi State, Nigeria.

2. He was blessed with four children and his wife, Kate died on December 9, 2015 after losing a long battle with cancer.

3. The first football club he ever played for in Nigeria was ACB Football Club, before joining New Nigeria Bank, Stade d’Abidjan, Africa Sports, Lokeren, Anderlecht, RC Strasbourg among other clubs.

4. He played as a defender for Super Eagles of Nigerian and several football clubs.

5. He is the only coach to have taken the Togolese team to the World cup championship till date.

6. He served as head coach for the Junior Eagles at the 2001 African Youth Championship.

7. He spoke English and French fluently.

8. He was one of the only two soccer stars, along with Egypt’s Mahmoud El-Gohary, to have won the Africa Cup of Nations both as a player and a coach.

9. From 1981 to 1995 when he stopped playing international football for Nigeria, Keshi appeared 64 times in the Eagles colour and scored a total of nine goals.

10. He won the African Nations Cup in 1994 as a captain and as a coach in 2013.