Ex-international, Others mourn ex-Eagles striker Usiyan

Ex-international, Felix Owolabi, has described the demise of his former national teammate Thompson Usiyan as painful and sad.

Both played together in the Green Eagles in the late 70s.

Usiyan, who died on Tuesday (today) in his Lamest, Redonda Beach home in California, USA at the age of 65, was born April 27, 1956 in Effurun, Delta State.

“Just two weeks ago we lost Segun Adeleke, also in America, and now it is Usiyan. I pray God will grant his family the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss,” Owolabi said.

“Usiyan was a delight to watch in the attack. One cannot forget his contributions in a hurry. His departure for the US at that time created a big vacuum in the team.

“If not for the ingenuity of coach Father Tiko that converted Segun Odegbami into a striker, we would have found it difficult to win the Nations Cup in 1980,” he said.

Usiyan scored on his debut, a friendly match against Kenya, in 1976 and played his last match for the national team – a 2-0 defeat to Algeria – during the qualifiers for the 1982 World Cup on October 10, 1981 in Lagos.

In between, the 6ft1in striker represented Nigeria at the 1976 African Cup of Nations in Ethiopia, before winning a silver just click to continue reading..
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https://coolstories.com.ng/forum/topic/ex-international-others-mourn-ex-eagles-striker-usiyan/#postid-549

Rip

RIP to him