Babalola Oluwatomiwa
Social Member
Super Eagles coach, Stephen Keshi has expressed shock at the news of the death of his ex-teammate Wilfred Agbonavbare.
Agbonavbare died on Tuesday morning after losing his battle to cancer in a hospital in Florida, USA.
Keshi who was teammates with Agbonavbare both at the national level and their local club, New Nigeria Bank, was left saddened by his demise.
"Wilfred is dead? No! This is a bitter pill to swallow," Keshi told supersport.com. "What do I say about him now? I still remember our time together as teammates while at NNB many years back. Wilfred was one goalkeeper who was good at what he did."
Keshi also recounted Agbonavbare's role in helping Nigeria qualify for its maiden FIFA World Cup tournament in 1994.
"I cannot forget the role he played in our qualifying for the first (FIFA) World Cup in 1994. He was very, very important for the team and especially in the World Cup qualifying matches against Algeria and Ivory Coast before 1994. I cannot forget how he saved us several times in those games in Lagos before we went on to win 4-1 against the two teams.
"It is so sad to hear that Willy Fancy is gone. That's how we call him because he was one of our best goalkeepers and whenever he made a save he would shake his body and we would just break into the chorus of 'Willy Fancy.'"
"With Wilfred there was no cause for any kind of trouble. He was a cool-headed guy. I cannot recall him getting angry at any time. He was always open to advice and he was never afraid of taking chances. I am happy I played alongside him at club and national team level. It is sad that he is gone so soon though death is one thing we can't escape from. But I am happy because he has given us all memories to live with. I pray his soul rest in peace," said Keshi, who captained the 1994 squad of Nigeria, which Agbonavbare was a prominent member.
Agbonavbare died on Tuesday morning after losing his battle to cancer in a hospital in Florida, USA.
Keshi who was teammates with Agbonavbare both at the national level and their local club, New Nigeria Bank, was left saddened by his demise.
"Wilfred is dead? No! This is a bitter pill to swallow," Keshi told supersport.com. "What do I say about him now? I still remember our time together as teammates while at NNB many years back. Wilfred was one goalkeeper who was good at what he did."
Keshi also recounted Agbonavbare's role in helping Nigeria qualify for its maiden FIFA World Cup tournament in 1994.
"I cannot forget the role he played in our qualifying for the first (FIFA) World Cup in 1994. He was very, very important for the team and especially in the World Cup qualifying matches against Algeria and Ivory Coast before 1994. I cannot forget how he saved us several times in those games in Lagos before we went on to win 4-1 against the two teams.
"It is so sad to hear that Willy Fancy is gone. That's how we call him because he was one of our best goalkeepers and whenever he made a save he would shake his body and we would just break into the chorus of 'Willy Fancy.'"
"With Wilfred there was no cause for any kind of trouble. He was a cool-headed guy. I cannot recall him getting angry at any time. He was always open to advice and he was never afraid of taking chances. I am happy I played alongside him at club and national team level. It is sad that he is gone so soon though death is one thing we can't escape from. But I am happy because he has given us all memories to live with. I pray his soul rest in peace," said Keshi, who captained the 1994 squad of Nigeria, which Agbonavbare was a prominent member.
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