MOTHER CONFIRMS YEKINI BATTLED MENTAL ILLNESS BEFORE DEATH

Alhaja Sikiratu Yekini

Grieving mother of the late ex-Super Eagles striker Rashidi Yekini has revealed that the late footballer was indeed battling mental illness.

Speaking with Supersport, Alhaja Sikiratu Yekini disclosed that her son had been battling mental illness since the year 2010 and that several attempts made to take care of him proved abortive as the deceased on many occasions claimed he was mentally sound.

‘We have been on the problem since 2010 and we tried our best but my son refused to be taken care of’, Yekini said.

‘When he came back, we asked him why he has done what he did but he replied by burning all his belongings. I lost my husband in 1978 and Rashidi has been with me since then’, she added.

The late Yekini was buried according to Muslim rights in his hometown in Irra, Offa, Kwara State.

The burial ceremony was attended by his daughter Yemi Yekini Oyo State Commissioner of Sports, Dapo Lam Adesina, Mutiu Adepoju, Dimeji Lawal, Ajibade Babalade and a long list of other dignitaries.


Continue to Read on Rashidi's Life Achievements so far......

The country’s football administrators were in the media, telling who cared to listen, about the late player’s contribution to Nigerian football. But top officials of the Nigeria Football Federation were conspicuously missing at the burial of the player, nicknamed the Goals Father, on Saturday.

But while the gangling ex-player was alive- after retirement- no one heard about him despite his exploits for Nigeria and at club level.

It seemed quite odd that the former Portugal-based player, who was never given any honour or award by the administrators in recognition of his awesome contribution to the country’s football after retirement, had suddenly a hero in death.

It brought to the fore once again the country’s disregard for her living sporting heroes.

He was Nigeria’s all-time record goal scorer, netting 37 goals in 58 appearances and represented the country at the 1984, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994 Africa Nations Cup finals. His five goals in the 1994 finals in Tunisia earned Nigeria the trophy for only the second time.

He also represented Nigeria at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea where  he scored Nigeria’s only goal in the championship in the 3-1 defeat to Yugoslavia.

Yekini played for Nigeria at the USA’94 and France ’98 WorldCups finals.

He was a man of many firsts. In 1993, he was crowned African Footballer of The Year; the first time a Nigerian would be so honoured.  It was the first time that CAF was organising the awards, which had earlier been staged by a French football magazine.

He also scored Nigeria’s first ever World Cup goal grabbing the curtain raiser in the 3-0 demolition of Bulgaria at the Cotton Bowl, Dallas.

Yekini was a coach’s delight; never one to play around with the ball, he was always in the right place at the right time to get the crucial goals during his time with the Super Eagles.

His name sparked fear in the hearts of Nigerian opponents when he held sway as one of the African continent’s best strikers.

He made the business of goal scoring look easy where other strikers struggled.

US-based ex-international, Dehinde Akinlotan, describes the tremendous ability of the Kwara-born Yekini.

“He (Yekini) didn’t have much technical skills but he was very aggressive and could hit the ball real hard. He was one player our goalkeepers back then; Peter Rufai, the late Patrick Okala, David Ngodigha and Peter Fregene didn’t want to see him play against them,” Akinlotan said.

Like most African footballers, Yekini began his football career on the streets. Born in Kaduna, he expectedly joined UNTL before moving to giants Shooting Stars of Ibadan in 1982.

He spent two seasons there before he joined big-spending Abiola Babes of Abeokuta and helped the club, which paraded other big players like Toyin Ayinla, Dominic Iorfa, Muda Lawal, Best Ogedegbe and Yisa Sofoluwe, win the FA Cup for the first time in 1985.

He also emerged as top goal scorer in the domestic league while at Abiola Babes. He was snapped up by Ivoirian side Africa Sports. He was a hero there as he and his national teammates Stephen Keshi and Henry Nwosu blazed the trail as the first set of Nigerians to play in the West African country.

Portuguese side Vitoria Setubal came for him in 1990 and he would experience his most outstanding years as a footballer. In his four seasons there, Yekini played 108 games scoring 90 goals. In 1993/94 season, he emerged highest goal scorer in Portugal’s flight, scoring 34 goals in 32 games. His goals also ensured Nigeria’s qualification for the World Cup and the CAF consequently rewarded him with their top player’s award.

Yekini also played for Olympiacos, Sporting Gijón, Setubal (second stint), FC Zürich, Bizerte, Al-Shabab, Africa Sports( second stint) and Julius Berger. He ended his playing career at Gateway FC of Abeokuta in 2005.

Off the pitch Yekini was a quiet man despite his 6 ft 3 in frame, which gave him a commanding role on the pitch.  He was not known to vices such as womanising, smoking and drinking. His quiet mien reportedly did not go down well with some of his national teammates.

His coach at the 1988 Nations Cup in Morocco, Paul Hamilton attests to that.

“Yekini was part of the Green Eagles before former Vice-President Augustus Aikhomu rechristened the team Super Eagles due to our performance at Maroc ’88. He was such a quiet person. After a game, he goes back to his room till the next morning’s training,” Hamilton said.

Akinlotan said, “We were in the Green Eagles camp together preparing for the 1984 Nations Cup and the Olympic qualifiers against Morocco.

“He was a soft-spoken person, very jovial and liked to play with people. He never fought nor argued with anyone; he loved to train hard either running or doing other physical activities. He was always in front.”

The former Vitoria Setubal man was a role model for up-and-coming strikers during his time.

Vietnam-based Timothy Anjembe, who was joint top goal scorer in the domestic league with Joseph Akpala in 2005 says, “He (Yekini) spoke to me two weeks ago because he helped bring in Nigerian players to Vietnam.

“He was slow in speaking and was always alright with whatever you told him; he would always believe you. He would simply say ‘okay, no problem.’

“As a player he was not very skillful but he was an accurate shooter. I was in Primary 4 when I watched him play at the 1994 World Cup ’94. He made me want to score goals.”

How should Yekini be immortalised?

“Those who feel concerned should ask this question. He is one of our best players in recent times. He deserves to be in the Hall of Fame,” Hamilton said.