Former Nigeria international midfielder Ayo Ogunlana has died after observing his early-morning walk in Kaduna.
Ayo Ogunlana passed away at his home in Kaduna on Friday, February 14, which was Valentine’s Day.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, has condoled the family of the former Super Eagles midfielder.
The NFF in a statement by its General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, paid glowing tribute to one of Nigeria’s greatest midfielders of all time.
“We are very sad to learn of the sudden passing of Ayo Ogunlana, only a couple of weeks after the demise of another former Eagle, Moses Effiong (a member of the 1980 AFCON-winning Green Eagles squad in faraway USA). Ogunlana was a great midfielder who made playing football look so easy with his majestic touches and turns and his magnificent free-kicks,” he said.
“We pray that the Almighty will grant both of them eternal rest and grant the families they have left behind the fortitude to bear the losses.”
Ogunlana was magisterial in the midfield as Nigeria overhauled Guinea and Zimbabwe to qualify for the 1990 Africa Cup of Nations, and was imperial against Cameroon in a 1990 FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Ibadan that the Super Eagles won with an emphatic 2-0. He also played in the 1990 ECOWAS Cup competition that Nigeria hosted in Kaduna.
In March 1990, the midfield generalissimo earned rave reviews as Nigeria finished with the silver medals at the 17th Africa Cup of Nations in Algeria, even coming close to bagging Nigeria a late equalizer in the final against hosts and winners Algeria, from his favourite dead-ball position.
Source: TVC
