The brother and son of Ajax legend Tijani Babangida died in a car accident

Ibrahim Babangida, FIFA Under-17 World Cup winner with Nigeria in 1993, died in a car accident in Kaduna last Thursday, as did his young nephew.

His elder brother, former Nigeria international and 1996 Olympic gold medalist Tijani Babangida, and his wife were injured in the accident, which occurred on the Kaduna-Zaria highway in northern Nigeria.

According to Kaduna State Police spokesman Mansir Hassan, Ibrahim Babangida (47) died at the scene of the accident while his nephew Fadil, the young son of former Ajax Amsterdam player Tijani, died during an operation on Friday evening.

“The accident occurred near a Federal Road Safety Commission checkpoint,” Hassan told ESPN.

“So an ambulance came to them very quickly. But the injuries were so great that they couldn’t do anything to save him (Ibrahim).”

Older brother Tijani, who is also president of the Nigerian players’ union, the Professional Footballers Association of Nigeria, is still receiving treatment at a hospital in Abuja.

His wife is still receiving treatment at the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital in Zaria after undergoing facial surgery.

NFF present Ibrahim Musa Gusau on Sunday led a delegation including General Secretary Ibrahim Sanusi, Executive Committee member Timothy Herman Magaji and Technical Director Augustin Eguavoen to visit Tijani in the hospital.

“We are devastated to learn of this tragedy and our condolences go out to Tijani and his family in this painful loss,” Gusau said. “We join him in mourning the loss of his son and brother and pray for a speedy and full recovery for him and his wife.”

The late Babangida is one of three Babangida brothers, including Haruna, who represented Nigeria at the international level.

He rose to prominence as a member of the Nigeria squad that won the 1993 FIFA U17 World Cup. He scored a brace in the Golden Eaglets’ 8-0 win over Canada in the opening game of the tournament, where he started all group games and the quarterfinals.

Ibrahim moved to Dutch club FC Volendam in 1997, where he played 51 games and scored seven goals.