Amodu’s death a mystery, Izilein says

A former coach of the Golden Eaglets, Godwin Izilein, says the death of the National Technical Director of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Shuaibu Amodu, is a mystery to him.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the former Super Eagles chief coach was pronounced dead Saturday morning in Benin.

Izilein said on Saturday in Benin that he was with Amodu until about 9 p.m. on Friday, and they had agreed to meet again by 10 a.m. on Saturday.

The coach, who wept while speaking with NAN, said: “I don’t just know what is happening anymore. We were together last night and he complained of nothing.

“He was hale and hearty. I got him a driver and he was happy with it. I even went with him to the Commissioner of Police’s office to sort out some family issues last night.

“He only said he was hungry and I told him to go home to eat while I left for home too. It was then we agreed to meet again this morning with the driver I got him.

“I was woken up this morning by a call from his brother that they didn’t know what was happening to Amodu.

“I rushed to the Central Hospital and searched all the wards but did not find him, only for me to be told his lifeless body was in the morgue of Stella Obasanjo Hospital.

“I am in a trance. Amodu was a great guy. Seeing his body in the mortuary is a confirmation that he is gone.

“My greatest pain or fear now is what is going to happen to the family. Amodu was more than a friend to me,” he wailed.

Meanwhile, a cousin of the deceased who is also the Commissioner of Information in Edo, Kazeem Afegbua, said Amodu died in his sleep at about 4 a.m. on Saturday.

He said Amodu who led prayers before the family went to bed Friday night only complained of chest pains and a doctor was called to the house to check him.

“He was checked and certified okay and they all went to bed.

“He was actually a BP (high blood pressure) patient and his BP last (Friday) night when the doctor checked was 140/100. The doctor only warned him to stop fasting.

“After the prayers, he went to bed but asked that he should be wakened up at 4 a.m. to prepare for the fasting.

“It was around 4 a.m. when they tried to wake him to prepare for the fasting that they saw him dead. That was all. He didn’t wake up,” Afegbua said.