Rashidi Yekini buried, team mates eulogise him in death

The late Nigerian prolific striker, Rashidi Yekini, was on Saturday eulogised by his team mates and football fans as he was buried, saying he would be remembered for his great contributions to football.

Mutiu Adepoju, a former team mate and Manager of 3SC of Ibadan, said Yekini  would be remembered for so many good things, especially for his football exploits.

``Yekini is the one and only great man and player who has done Nigeria proud on many occasions when he was playing. I wish him eternal rest,’’ he said.

Adepoju added that he saw Yekini three weeks ago without any sign of illness or fatigue.

``I saw him about three weeks ago and he didn't look sick, though we didn’t see at close distance but he looked healthy,’’ Adepoju said.

Thompson Oliha described the death of Yekini who played for Victoria Setubal FC of Portugal as sad and untimely.

``It's sad that he has to leave us now, when so many young talents can benefit from his wealth of experience, but nobody can question God.

``We also lost our medical man in person of Alashi Johnson in Kwara; may his soul rest in peace,'' Oliha said

Ike Shrounmu, a former Super Eagles goalkeeper said Yekini's  death was painful.

``It’s very painful, we tried our best to support him, it was shocking news from his family; we lost a great player.

``I am on my way for his burial at Irra now, I pray God will give family and friends the fortitude to bear the loss,’’ Shrounmu said

For Nduka Ugbade, the death of his former team mate was a shocking development.

Others who mourned Yekini are Sanusi Mohammed, the Director of Competitions, Nigeria Football Association (NFA) and former Super Eagles Assistant coach, Joe Erico.

Mohammed said the NFA and Nigerians would miss him, saying his goals made Nigeria to feature in its first World Cup.

``He served his country with all seriousness and Nigerians had this belief then that whenever he was on the field, we were bound for greatness.

``He would be missed by the NFA and Nigeria as a whole. I pray that the God will grant him eternal life.

``I also plead with his family to take heart because God gives and he takes but we should all pray that our life should not be cut in its prime,’’ he said.

Erico described the deceased as a player who was committed to football and his team mates.

He noted that he had the opportunity of being  Yekini's coach, saying he used to crack jokes with his team mates whenever they were discouraged.

``I really do not know why he had to go into his shell because I noticed him not to be his jovial self. I talked to him a couple of times but it did not help," he said. ``He used to be a jovial person who carried his team mates along, he also loved football and his country to a fault. I do not know why he should be forgotten like that because whenever he played, he played with all sense of commitment."

He said the family should take heart and rejoice in the fact that the deceased was a good and committed man.

Nnenna Etim, a former Super Falcons assistant coach said the deceased would be greatly missed, saying he was a dedicated player.

``As far as male football is concerned, Yekini served his country wholeheartedly," she said.

Godwin Dudu-Orumen, a renowned sports analyst and a former member of the Technical Committee of the NFA said his demise was unfortunate.

Orumen, said Yekini's reclusive nature had made it impossible to know what he went through before his sudden death on Friday.

``If he had made himself accessible we would have known what he was going through, and possibly assist him," he said. If he had the services of a good business manager, his resources would have been properly managed. This should serve as a warning to others and the need to get experts to manage their resources after they retire from the game."

Source: BusinessDay