Three players of Enugu Rangers International football club were involved in a fatal accident on Sunday morning.
Information gathered so far reveals that striker Ifeanyi George has been confirmed dead.
Vanguard reports that the players were on their way to Lagos from Enugu, when a trailer container fell on the car they were in on the express way.
It is been speculated that George died on the spot with his two yet-to-be identified teammates. However, that is yet to be confirmed.
Amobi Ezeaku, Enugu Rangers team manager, confirmed the death of George to Newsmen
He could not ascertain others involved in the auto accident, adding that he was on his way to the scene.
“It is a black Sunday in Nigerian football and sad to say the least,” he said.
“Yes, it is true that Ifeanyi George died on the spot but will confirm others to you as I am on my way to the scene of the accident.”
Following the suspension of the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) 2019/20 season amid the coronavirus pandemic on Wednesday, all club sides released their players to go home.
The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) had announced the cancellation of all forms of football activities in the country for the next four weeks.
NFF Director of Communications, Ademola Olajire, in a statement on Wednesday, disclosed that the shutdown was “as a result of the global coronavirus pandemic’’.
He said the shutdown affected all on-field activities involving the various national teams, the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL), the other leagues, youth football programmes and “even street football’’.
He quoted the NFF President, Amaju Pinnick, as saying “the cessation will be for four weeks, after which the situation will be reviewed in line with events and trends worldwide.
“They should observe the precautions as advised by the Federal Ministry of Health and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), such as hand-washing, the use of sanitisers and social distancing.’’
