Published on 12:00 AM, June 09, 2016

Keshi dies

Nigeria Nigeria's coach Stephen Keshi looks on during the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying football match between Nigeria and Sudan on October 15, 2014 in Abuja. Photo: AFP

Former Nigeria defender Stephen Keshi, who won the African Nations Cup as both a player and a coach, died of a suspected heart attack on Wednesday, the country's football association has confirmed.

The 54-year-old coached Nigeria to the Nations Cup title in South Africa in 2013, 19 years after lifting the trophy as a player, only the second man after Egypt's Mahmoud El-Gohary to achieve the feat.

Keshi is regarded an iconic figure in a golden generation of Nigerian players, captaining the team at the 1994 World Cup in the USA.

During a 20-year playing career, Keshi had spells in France and Belgium, most notably for Anderlecht, and also in the U.S. during the Sacramento Scorpions' brief existence in the mid-1990s.

He found almost instant success as a coach, leading Togo to surprise qualification for the 2006 World Cup, one of three spells in charge of the side. He also had a two-year stint with Mali.