Adekunle Awesu, the left-footed genius ‘resurrects’

Awesu

Any one born after 1978 may not have heard, or may not know about Adekunle Awesu and may choose to read this out of curiosity, or out of the prospect of informative value, or because I am suggesting they do so because it will be worth their while and time to know about a football genius that lived and died leaving behind only mysteries.

Even those that know the history of Nigerian football very well, from before 1979, may only remember snippets of the life of one of the most gifted, left-footed football players in Nigeria’s history.

To date, no one has been able to tell precisely when and how Kunle Awesu died in the USA. His obituary was never officially published, and, strangely, Nigerian newspapers were not awash with news of the death of the player who was selected as the best left-winger at the African Cup of Nations of 1976 in Dire Dawa, Ethiopia.

So, the big question is: Why am I bringing up the story of Kunle Awesu now, some 28 years, or so, after he died?

The reason is simple. His spirit is hovering around.

Two weeks ago, browsing through one of my web sites, I found a recent message from a complete stranger enquiring about Kunle Awesu. Frank Thomas, an American based in the United States, wanted to know about the whereabouts of his colleague from their days at Clemson University. He told me that since they graduated and parted ways in 1992/93, he had lost complete touch with Kunle. They cultivated a close friendship that grew out of Kunle’s mysterious ways during their four years stay in the University.

I gave him the bad news – Kunle died mysteriously sometime after the 1994 World Cup in the United States. The circumstances of his death are still uncertain till this day. He died alone in his apartment,