Eagles yet to get replacement for Yekini – Chukwu
By JOE APU
Tuesday, May 08 , 2012
Chairman Christian Chukwu
Super Eagles’ former coach, Chairman Christian Chukwu has said that a replacement of the late Rashidi Yekini in the senior national team is still elusive as no striker has matched the level of the former African Footballer of the year’s performance during his days in the Super Eagles.
Chukwu, a member of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, Technical Committee, while reacting to the death of his former striker, Rashidi Yekini, said he was taken aback by the news of the passing on of the striker, noting that since Yekini quit active football, he is yet to see a striker in his mood.
“I was shocked at the news of the death of Yekini. It’s unfortunate that he kept to himself for a long time and did not interact with his pears even those who live in Ibadan. We feel sad that he died the way he did. Nigeria has lost a gem and I pray for his soul to rest in peace.”
On what he would miss most about the former UNTL of Kaduna star, Coach Chukwu said that with Yekini, he was always sure of goals for the Eagles. “Yekini came to the Super Eagles and turned things around. He was always ready to give his best and as a coach, you can be rest assured that the goals would come no matter the opposition. I can recall how many times he had brought us out of very difficult situations. Our run up to the 1994 Nations Cup and World Cup in Tunisia and USA, Yekini proved he was a striker to reckon with.”
Yekini’s professional career, which spanned more than two decades, was mainly associated with Vitória de Setúbal in Portugal. He scored nearly 40 goals as a Nigerian international, and represented the nation in five major tournaments, including two World Cups, where he scored the country’s first-ever goal in the competition. He was also named the African Footballer of the Year in 1993.
Yekini was born in Kaduna. After starting his professional career in the Nigerian league, he moved to Côte d’Ivoire to play for Africa Sports National. From there he went to Portugal and Vitória de Setúbal, where he experienced his most memorable years, eventually becoming the Portuguese first division’s top scorer, in 1993-94, as his performances (32 matches, 34 goals) earned him the title of African Footballer of the Year in 1993, the first ever from the nation.
He was part of the team that participated in the 1994, where he scored Nigeria’s first-ever goal in a World Cup, in a 3-0 win against Bulgaria. Yekini’s celebration after scoring the goal, holding the net and shouting became one of the iconic images of the World Cup. This was his only goal in the tournament. Yekini also played for Nigeria in the 1998 FIFA World Cup. He didn’t score.
Additionally, Yekini also helped the Super Eagles win the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations, where he also topped the goal charts, and participated at Olympic level in Seoul 1988. He died on May 4, 2012.
