article: Keshi will be best remembered as a coach but he also had a successful career as a player at club and international level. Winning the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations with Nigeria was the highlight of his international playing days. As a player he had stints in Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Belgium, France and United States of America. Keshi began his professional career with now-defunct Nigerian side ACB of Lagos and his hometown club New Nigeria Bank of Benin City. His first move abroad was not to Europe but to Ivory Coast where he won the domestic cup with Stade Abidjan in 1985 and 1986, before moving to their local rivals Africa Sports. He became known as the "Big Boss" during his playing days as he was one of the first Africans to move to the European leagues in the 1980's. Belgium was his first port of call when he joined Lokeren, which in later years became a popular destination for other African players. Keshi's compatriots Victor Ikpeba and Sunday Oliseh as well as Ghana's Nii Lamptey also played for Lokeren. It was at another Belgian side where Keshi really thrived, spending four years at Anderlecht a side that he also captained. While at Anderlecht he won the Belgian Cup in 1988 and 1989 before helping them to the league title in 1991. After that success, he moved across the border to French second division side RC Strasbourg and is fondly remembered for scoring the second goal in a 4-1 win over Rennes on 13 May 1992 which secured the team's promotion to the top flight. The following season saw Keshi and Strasbourg finish in eighth place - their highest ever finish in the top division - before he made a swift return to Belgium with Molenbeek that summer. His return to Belgium was not the success he had hoped for and he eventually moved to the United States to play for Jaguar Bay, San Jose and Sacramento Scorpions. He eventually ended his playing career in Malaysia with Perlis in 1995. Keshi earned more than 60 caps for Nigeria and won the 1994 Nations Cup with Super Eagles, although injury prevented him from playing in the final against Zambia. He made two appearances, including as captain for their semi-final win over Ivory Coast on penalties, but the Nigeria coach at the time, Clemens Westerhof, refused to risk playing him in the final. Later that year Keshi, was part of Nigeria's squad at the World Cup in the United States but another injury meant he played only once in the final group match against Greece. Once his playing days were over he made the United States his home and went into semi-retirement. His first coaching experience came when his daughter's elementary school were looking for a coach and she demanded that her father helped out and gave his number to the principle. And so began his journey into coaching as he declared: "I was reborn and discovered it was something I could do." It sparked his dream of one day coaching Nigeria but before
summary: African football is mourning the death of former Nigeria coach and captain Stephen Keshi, who passed away aged 54.