Peter Rufai Once Named the Only Player Who Made Him Restless, Now They’re Both Gone, Video
- Super Eagles legend Peter Rufai named the player who sent shivers down his spine during his playing career
- The iconic goalkeeper lost his long battle with illness in Lagos on Thursday, July 3
- The 1994 AFCON winner gave his educational background before breaking into the senior national team in the early 80s
Former Super Eagles goal stopper Peter Rufai has named a football player who gave him a tough time during his playing days.
The legendary goalkeeper passed away at 61 on Thursday, July 3, 2025, after losing his battle with prolonged illness
The former Stationery Stores player became the first goalkeeper to feature in the FIFA World Cup (USA 94), and the first to play professional football in Europe.
Source: Getty Images
The 63-year-old famously led the Super Eagles to victory at the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and won an Olympic gold medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, per Punch.
Rufai names Argentine legend as his toughest opponent
Super Eagles legend Peter Rufai named Argentine legend Diego Maradona as his toughest opponent since he began his career.
In a Facebook post, the former Farense star revealed that playing against the late Maradona during the 1994 FIFA World Cup made him nervous due to Maradona's exceptional qualities.
Rufai admitted playing against other top players, but the 1986 FIFA World Cup winner stood out. He said:
"Let me think about my toughest opponent because it will be difficult to say one incident is the toughest and difficult to measure because it is a collective sport.
"In this kind of question, I give a maximum response and when it has to do the quality of players, Diego Maradona gave me restlessness on the pitch."
Nigeria lost 2-1 to Argentina in their group stage matches, with Claudio Caniggia scoring a brace for the South American team and Samson Siasia scoring the Super Eagles' only goal, per FIFA.
Football legend Diego Maradona died at the age of 60 after suffering a heart attack, per BBC.
Source: Getty Images
Sports made me who I am - Rufai
Founder of Staruf Football Academy, Peter Rufai, said football gave him the platform to further his education.
The Lokeren legend said he joined the national team as a primary and apprentice with a primary school leaving certificate.
He said sports have the capacity to increase the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of any country that has a business model. Rufai said:
"Sports are helping the youth take them out of the streets and are a lucrative business, and if packaged, it adds to the GDP of the country. From that angle, I have tasted all these concepts of what sport is.
"Football gave me the platform to go to school. I only went a primary school in Nigeria and did trade school where I learnt electrical, that was it but through the same football, I went to higher school in Europe, attended the University, got my Bachelor's Degree, and pursued my Master's.
"Sports all over the world is making headway, many countries across the globe are using sports, especially football to make their country an enabling environment for their citizens."
Peter Rufai’s final interview before death
Legit.ng earlier reported that veteran sports journalist, Godwin Enakhena, released an emotional video of the late Peter Rufai, where he stated his goal before his death.
The former chairman of the defunct MFM FC explained that the Super Eagles legend was desperate to publish his book, titled My Story, with plans to hold a launch in June.
Proofreading by Omoleye Omoruyi, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
