On what would have been his 56th birthday, Keshi has been honoured by tech Giant Google with a doodle

Google has created a doodle of the late former Nigeria coach, Stephen Keshi, on its opening page on Tuesday to celebrate what he would have been at 56.

Google said the doodle was to recognise the legacy of the former coach Super Eagles captain who died on June 7, 2016, at 54.


Doodles are the fun and spontaneous changes that are made to the Google logo to celebrate holidays, anniversaries, and the lives of famous artists, pioneers, and scientists.

The doodle, which will be viewed in all African countries, illustrates the unique achievement of Keshi, who won the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations as player in and as a coach in 2013.


The author of Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe (deceased) was another notable personality honoured by Google in the past.

Google said, “Keshi is one of only two men to win the Africa Cup of Nations as both a player and a manager, a testament to his wit, talent, and love for the sport.”

Mr. Keshi died on the way to hospital in June 2016.

The ex- international lost his wife , Nkem Kate Keshi in December 2015. They had been married for more than 30 years. She died after a prolonged battle with cancer.

Mr. Keshi is survived by four children and his mother.

During his playing career, Keshi earned 60 caps for the Nigerian national football team, making him the nation’s second-most capped player at the time of his retirement.

He represented the country at the 1994 FIFA World Cup and the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations, captaining the Super Eagles to victory in the latter.

He also played club football in five countries, most notably Belgium, where he won the Belgian league championship with R.S.C. Anderlecht in 1991.

As a manager, Keshi achieved success by qualifying Togo for the only FIFA World Cup appearance in its history in 2006.However, he left the position prior to the tournament and was replaced by Otto Pfister. He later coached his native Nigeria, where he became one of only two people, along with Egypt’s Mahmoud El-Gohary, to have won the Africa Cupof Nations as both a player and a coach.