Ex-Golden Eaglets, Flying Eagles Star Peter Ogaba Dies Mysteriously In Abuja

Former Nigeria junior international midfielder cum defender, Peter Ogaba was discovered dead in his apartment in Nigeria’s capital City of Abuja late Thursday.

He was reportedly hail and hearty the last time he was seen alive.

Trouble started when no one saw or heard from him in three days and his lifeless body was discovered after his apartment was forced open.

Until his death., he was the head coach of Abuja based City Strikers FC and had also coached Lobi Stars FC of Makurdi and FC Lokoja in the past.

The owner of the Abuja team, Akin Adejumo confirmed the demise of the star and said Ogaba might have died of heart failure as he collapsed in his house and died before help could reach him.

Ogaba hails from Otukpo in Benue State but was born in Jos, the Plateau State Capital on the 24th of September 1974 and grew up playing football in the Tin City.

A vivaciously gifted footballer during his playing days, Peter Ogaba shot into international reckoning with the Nigeria national U17 team, the Golden Eaglets at the FIFA World U17 Championships in Canada in 1987 where he was the youngest player of the tournament at 13 years.

At the global showpiece, he helped Nigeria reach the final before they lost to USSR on penalties.

Two years later, just a little under 15, he also helped Nigeria to reach the final of the U20 FIFA World Cup in Saudi Arabia, where the Flying Eagles of Nigeria lost to Portugal 2-0 in the final in Jeddah.

He was part of history in that tournament as Nigeria orchestrated one of the greatest comebacks in the history of world football on the 25th of February 1989 at the Prince Muhammad Bin Fhad Stadium in Dammam as the Flying Eagles of Nigeria came back from a 4-0 deficit to level scoreline to 4-4 in the last 28 minutes of their quarter final game with Russia and went on to win 5-4 on penalty shootout after 120 minutes.

Two goals from Chris Ohenhen and one apiece from Samuel Elijah and Nduka Ugbade stretched Nigeria into the unsavoury ballots of penalties in what is today known as the Miracle of Dammam.

At the age of 19 in 1993 he played for the Flying Eagles again at the Africa Youth Championships in Mauritius under Coach James Peters.

A devastating knee injury cut short his playing career but still had stints with Hawks of Makurdi, Lokeren of Belgium and MSV Duisburg of Germany before returning to Nigeria.

Ferdinand Mbum