Former Nigerian footballer Emmanuel Ebiede is dead

Nigerian former professional footballer, Emmanuel Ebiede, has been reported dead after suffering from an illness.

Ebiede, died at the age of 47 on Friday, April 14, at the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital (RSUTH).

According to reports, he died from hepatomegaly complications. Hepatomegaly is the enlargement of the liver beyond its normal size.

Journalist, China Acheru, who broke the news of Emmanuel's death, is based in Port Harcourt, where Ebiede was receiving treatment.

He wrote on his Twitter page, “Good bye, Emmanuel Ebiede. Your journey on earth has ended”.

Emmanuel Ebiede’s passing comes few weeks after his sister, Joy, shared the news about his health.

Earlier this month, Ebiedi’s sister, Joy, told The Punch how her brother has been suffering from the illness after photos of Ebiede with a protruding stomach surfaced on social media.

She said; “He is in BMH hospital in Port Harcourt but can’t talk properly now. He’s been here (hospital) since Friday, I came in on Saturday from Bayelsa State to look after him,” Joy said.

“His daughter called me that Daddy (Ebiede) was not feeling fine. So, I got here and saw his situation. It was his club members that rushed him to the hospital. Initially, it was malaria and typhoid, but his stomach got swollen.

“He underwent some tests to detect the cause of the swollen stomach. The test results diagnosed Hepatitis B. He’s not stooling freely, so I don’t know if that’s the cause of the swollen stomach.” She said.