He was in the first Nigerian team to qualify for the 1983 FIFA World Cup
finals in the national under-20 male squad.
Agbonavbare had also played for defunct Rubber Board FC and New Nigeria
Bank (NNB) FC, both of Benin City.
Expressing a deep grief of loss, over Wilfred Agbonavbare, The Nigeria
Football Association (NFA) in a statement (recently) by its Assistant Director
of Communications, Ademola Olajire, said that, news of Agbonavbare’s death in
Spain had been broken to it.
Agbonavbare, the former senior national team goalkeeper succumbed to an
ailment which the NFA claimed did not get to its notice on time.
“This is very sad, coming only two days after the death of Coach Musa
Abdullahi. The NFA became aware of Agbonavbare’s affliction only a couple of
weeks ago, but it is evident that this is another true hero gone to rest too
early,’’ the NFA’s acting Chairman, Seyi Akinwunmi, said in the statement.
He also said that Agbonavbare was a patriot of the first grade and his
contributions to Nigerian football on-field would never be forgotten.
Agbonavbare was a member of the Super Eagles’ squad which won the Africa
Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Tunisia 1994: he made the final squad to Nigeria’s
debut appearance at the 1994 World Cup finals in the U.S. as one of the three
goalkeepers, alongside Peter Rufai and Alloy Agu.
At the finals in Mexico, the team defeated the then USSR, lost 0-3 to
Brazil and drew 0-0 with Netherland, before crashing out at the group stage.
He had represented the senior team at the 1984, 1988 and 1990 AFCON
finals, winning silver in all the years, before winning gold in Tunisia 1994.
Agbonavbare also played for a Spanish club, Rayo Vallecano, before he
finally settled down in the European country.
He was in the first Nigerian team to qualify for the 1983 FIFA World Cup
finals in the national under-20 male squad.