sport.wikisort.org - Athlete

Rashidi Yekini (23 October 1963 – 4 May 2012) was a Nigerian professional footballer who played as a forward. He is all-time top goalscorer for his nation.

Rashidi Yekini

Yekini in 1998
Personal information
Date of birth	(1963-10-23)23 October 1963
Place of birth	Kaduna, Nigeria
Date of death	4 May 2012(2012-05-04) (aged 48)
Place of death	Ibadan, Nigeria
Height	1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
Position(s)	Forward
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1981–1982	UNTL Kaduna	30	(12)
1982–1984	Shooting Stars	53	(45)
1984–1987	Abiola Babes	100	(80)
1987–1990	Africa Sports	113	(105)
1990–1994	Vitória Setúbal	114	(91)
1994–1995	Olympiacos	4	(2)
1995–1996	Sporting Gijón	14	(3)
1997	Vitória Setúbal	14	(3)
1997–1998	Zürich	28	(14)
1998–1999	Bizerte
1999	Al-Shabab
1999–2002	Africa Sports	130	(112)
2002–2003	Julius Berger	50	(10)
2005	Gateway	26	(7)
Total		673	(483)
National team
1984–1998	Nigeria	62	(37)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

His professional career, which spanned more than two decades, was mainly associated with Vitória de Setúbal in Portugal, but he also played in six other countries besides his own.[1]

Yekini scored 37 goals as a Nigerian international footballer, and represented the nation in seven 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.[2][3]

Club career

Yekini was born in Kaduna, of Yoruba origin.[4] After starting his professional career in the Nigerian league, he moved to Ivory Coast to play for Africa Sports National, and from there he went to Portugal and Vitória de Setúbal where he experienced his most memorable years, eventually becoming the Primeira Liga's top scorer in the 1993–94 season after scoring 21 goals;[5] the previous campaign he had netted a career-best 34 in 32 games to help the Sadinos promote from the second division, and those performances earned him the title of African Footballer of the Year once, the first ever for the nation.[6]

In the summer of 1994, Yekini signed for Greek club Olympiacos, but did not get along with teammates and left soon after. His career never really got back on track, not even upon a return to Setúbal which happened after another unassuming spell, in La Liga with Sporting de Gijón;[7] he successively played with FC Zürich, Club Athlétique Bizertin and Al-Shabab Riyadh, before rejoining Africa Sports. In 2003, aged 39, he returned to the Nigerian championship with Julius Berger FC.[8]

In April 2005, 41-year-old Yekini made a short comeback, moving alongside former national teammate Mobi Oparaku to Gateway United FC.[8]

International career

Scoring 37 goals for Nigeria in 62 appearances,[9] Yekini is the national record goalscorer. He was part of the team that participated in the 1994 (where he netted Nigeria's first-ever goal in a World Cup, in a 3–0 win against Bulgaria, his celebration after scoring, crying while holding the goal's net, became one of the iconic images of the tournament[10]) and the 1998 FIFA World Cups.

Additionally, Yekini helped the Super Eagles win the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia where he also topped the goal charts and was named best player of the competition.[11] He also participated at Olympic level in Seoul 1988.

International goals

Scores and results list Nigeria's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Yekini goal.[9]

List of international goals scored by Rashidi Yekini

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	6 April 1985	Nairobi, Kenya	Kenya		3–0	1986 World Cup qualification
2	20 April 1985	Lagos, Nigeria	Kenya		3–1	1986 World Cup qualification
3	23 June 1985	Abidjan, Ivory Coast	Ivory Coast		1–1	Friendly
4	26 June 1985	Bouake, Ivory Coast	Ivory Coast		1–1	Friendly
5	14 March 1988	Rabat, Morocco	Kenya		3–0	1988 African Cup of Nations
6	5 March 1990	Algiers, Algeria	Egypt		1–0	1990 African Cup of Nations
7	8 March 1990	Algiers, Algeria	Ivory Coast		1–0	1990 African Cup of Nations
8	12 March 1990	Algiers, Algeria	Zambia		2–0	1990 African Cup of Nations
9	27 July 1991	Lagos, Nigeria	Burkina Faso		7–1	1992 African Cup of Nations qualification
10
11
12
13	14 January 1992	Dakar, Senegal	Kenya		2–1	1992 African Cup of Nations
14
15	19 January 1992	Dakar, Senegal	Zaire		1–0	1992 African Cup of Nations
16	25 January 1992	Dakar, Senegal	Cameroon		2–1	1992 African Cup of Nations
17	10 October 1992	Lagos, Nigeria	South Africa		4–0	1994 World Cup qualification
18
19	20 December 1992	Pointe-Noire, Congo	Congo		1–0	1994 World Cup qualification
20	24 April 1993	Enugu, Nigeria	Sudan		2–1	1994 African Cup of Nations qualification
21	2 May 1993	Abidjan, Ivory Coast	Ivory Coast		1–2	1994 World Cup qualification
22	3 July 1993	Lagos, Nigeria	Algeria		4–1	1994 World Cup qualification
23
24	24 July 1993	Lagos, Nigeria	Ethiopia		6–0	1994 African Cup of Nations qualification
25
26
27	25 September 1993	Lagos, Nigeria	Ivory Coast		4–1	1994 World Cup qualification
28
29	26 March 1994	Tunis, Tunisia	Gabon		3–0	1994 African Cup of Nations
30
31	2 April 1994	Tunis, Tunisia	Zaire		2–0	1994 African Cup of Nations
32
33	6 April 1994	Tunis, Tunisia	Ivory Coast		2–2	1994 African Cup of Nations
34	11 June 1994	Ibadan, Nigeria	Georgia		5–1	Friendly
35
36	21 June 1994	Dallas, United States	Bulgaria		3–0	1994 FIFA World Cup
37	22 February 1998	Kingston, Jamaica	Jamaica		2–2	Friendly

Personal life

Yekini married three wives. He had three daughters, named Yemisi, Omoyemi and Damilola.[12][13]

Death

Yekini was reported to be ill for an extended period of time. In 2011, news media in Nigeria begun issuing reports of his failing health, and he was said to suffer from bipolar disorder, depression and some other undisclosed psychiatric condition. He died in Ibadan on 4 May 2012 at the young age of 48,[2] the news being confirmed by former national teammates Mutiu Adepoju and Ike Shorunmu;[14] he was buried at his residence in Ira, Kwara State.[15] He was survived by his aged mother, brother, wives and children, among others.[12][13]

References

External links

• Rashidi Yekini at ForaDeJogo (archived)
• Rashidi Yekini at BDFutbol
• Rashidi Yekini at National-Football-Teams.com
• Rashidi Yekini – FIFA competition record (archived)

На других языках

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[de] Rashidi Yekini

Rashidi Yekini (* 23. Oktober 1963 in Kaduna als Rasheed Yekini[1]; † 4. Mai 2012 in Ibadan) war ein nigerianischer Fußballspieler. Er wurde meist auf der Position des Stürmers eingesetzt.

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- [en] Rashidi Yekini

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[es] Rashidi Yekini

Rashidi Yekini (Kaduna, Nigeria, 23 de octubre de 1963-Ibadán, Nigeria, 4 de mayo de 2012)[1] fue un futbolista nigeriano que jugaba como delantero. A lo largo de su carrera profesional, que duró más de dos décadas, militó en equipos de hasta ocho países distintos. Además, fue internacional con la selección de fútbol de Nigeria en cincuenta y ocho ocasiones en las que llegó a anotar treinta y siete tantos, lo que lo convierte en el máximo goleador en la historia del combinado africano.[2] Participó en dos Copas del Mundo, 1994 y 1998, se proclamó campeón de la Copa Africana de Naciones 1994 y estuvo presente en los Juegos Olímpicos de Seúl 1988.[2] También fue elegido futbolista africano del año en 1993.[3]

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[fr] Rashidi Yekini

Rashidi Yekini[2], né le 23 octobre 1963 à Kaduna au Nigeria et mort le 4 mai 2012 à Ibadan[3], est un footballeur international nigérian, qui évoluait au poste d'attaquant. Deux fois meilleur buteur et une fois meilleur joueur de la (Coupe d'Afrique des Nations), Rashidi Yekini a inscrit plus de 600 buts dans sa carrière.

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[it] Rashidi Yekini

Rashidi Yekini (Kaduna, 23 ottobre 1963[1] – Ibadan, 4 maggio 2012) è stato un calciatore nigeriano, di ruolo centravanti.

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[ru] Йекини, Рашиди

Раши́ди Йеки́ни (англ. Rashidi Yekini; 23 октября 1963, Кадуна — 4 мая 2012, Ибадан) — нигерийский футболист, нападающий.

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