The Nigeria’s topmost football league organizers, Nigeria Premier League Limited (NPL) have directed clubs to put on black armband in all Matchday 17 games of the 2023/24 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) season in honouring ex-Golden Eaglet coach, Sebastien Brodericks Imasuen, platinumnewsng.com is reporting.
Reacting to the reports of his passing, the NPFL Chairman, Hon. Gbenga Elegbeleye said the country has lost an icon of youth and club coaching.
“Sebastien Brodericks Imasuen was a Coach who made youth football popular in Nigeria and at some point in his career, he was one of those that heightened interest in the Professional Football League with a running rivalry with some other top club coaches like Willy Bazuaye, James Peters, Charles Bassey to mention a few. By his death, our country has lost an icon in the coaching echelon,” Elegbeleye noted.
According to Complete Sports, Elegbeleye has instructed that in addition to wearing of black armbands by players and officials of the NPFL, a minute’s silence would be observed before kickoff as a mark of honour to the departed Coach on MatchDay 17 of the season across all match centres this weekend.
Brodericks-Imasuen made global headlines after leading the Nigeria U-16 team to win the inaugural FIFA Cadet Championship in China in 1985, defeating West Germany 2-0 in the final at the Workers’ Stadium in Beijing. Sabara as he was fondly called, also coached El-Kanemi Warriors, Udoji United FC and Bendel Insurance.
Two years later in Canada, he led the team to runner-up position after a penalty shootout defeat to the former Soviet Union, and two years later, in Scotland, his team lost to eventual winners Saudi Arabia on penalties in the quarter-finals.
He died at the age of 85 years in a private hospital in Benin, Edo State on Tuesday, January 2, 2024.