"Today, Ahmed Radhi died of coronavirus at Nu'man Teaching Hospital in Baghdad," Saef Badr, spokesperson of the Iraqi Health Ministry, confirmed to Rudaw.
Radhi, 56, who scored the first and only goal of the Iraqi national team during their sole FIFA World Cup appearance in 1986, passed away eight days after contracting the virus. News of the retired player’s death quickly spread across social media Sunday morning.
Dr. Salah al-Izzi, head of the Nu'man Teaching Hospital recounted the player’s last moments to Rudaw.
"Last night his health was stable as he spoke with his family and the minister of health. But today, early in the morning at 7:15 he went to the toilet, and removed the oxygen mask from his face,” said Izzi.
“After he did not return to his bed for a long while, health workers went to check on him, where they saw that he had fainted. After performing first aid, he died at 7:45am," the doctor added.
Iraq has only qualified once for the World Cup, losing to Belgium 2-1 in 1986, and placing last in their group. Regardless of the defeat, Radhi’s goal is still a matter of pride for many Iraqis.
The deceased player was on the Iraqi team during two Arab Cup victories, one at the Pan-Arab Games, and one at the Gulf Cup.
The deceased also represented Iraq at the Olympics in 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. In 1988, he was elected the Asian player of the year, and 9th best Asian player of the century in 1999.
Radhi's international career came to an end in 1997; when he failed to save Iraq from a shocking first-round elimination in the 1998 World Cup Asian qualifiers.
Football lovers across Iraq expressed sorrow over the death of the Iraqi football star.
Younis Mahmood, another renowned former Iraqi footballer described Radhi's death as the "biggest shock" that football in the country will witness.Ahmed Radhi passed away wearing the green jersey, which we all loved watching him wear.
— Mustafa Al-Kadhimi مصطفى الكاظمي (@MAKadhimi) June 21, 2020
May he rest in peace.
The life of every Iraqi is precious. Let’s adhere to health precautions to protect ourselves and our communities, until we get through this difficult time together.
Radhi tested positive for COVID-19 last Saturday, and announced in a video that his health was stable. He was discharged on Thursday, but was later readmitted when his health began to deteriorate.
"Today, we woke up to the sad news of the death of Ahmed Radhi. He was the star who became the source of my inspiration to the world of football. I dreamed of meeting him," Arsalan Abdullah, a Kurdish sports journalist wrote on his Facebook wall.
Radhi is the second Iraqi footballer to have died of the virus, following Ali Hadi who passed away on June 12. The two had appeared on pitches together playing for the Iraqi national team.
Radhi was rumored to be a potential nominee for the post of the president of the Iraqi football union.
He fled Iraq in 2006 after its Olympic Committee head was kidnapped during the height of the sectarian violence that followed the US-led invasion of 2003.
Radhi moved with his family to the Jordanian capital Amman but returned to Iraq in 2007 for a career in politics, replacing a member of parliament who defected to join the bloody insurgency raging across the country.
He was an unsuccessful candidate in the 2014 and 2018 elections with the National Alliance, a coalition of Sunni and Shiite figures.
Iraq is currently reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic, with new daily coronavirus cases topping 1,000 since June 10. The country's health system is struggling to accommodate for the high number of the newly sick, with shortages in necessary beds, ventilators and medical supplies.
Iraq’s total COVID-19 caseload has surpassed 29,000. Of this number more than 13,000 have recovered, and more than 1,000 have died.
With reporting from AFP
