Former Super Eagles goalkeeper Dosu Joseph escapes fatal accident
1996 Olympic gold medal-winning goalkeeper, Dosu Joseph, survived a near-death experience when a truck’s brakes failed while he was queueing to buy fuel. The former Super Eagles star, best remembered for his heroics during Nigeria’s gold-winning campaign at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, narrowly avoided disaster in the shocking incident.
A video shared on social media captured the aftermath, showing a red truck that had crashed into several cars, including one reported to contain the former Nigeria international. The truck’s brake failure led to it careening into vehicles waiting at a filling station. Despite the horrific crash, Dosu Joseph emerged unscathed.
This isn’t the first time Dosu has survived a life-threatening incident. His promising football career was tragically cut short following a severe car accident in his youth, which left him with injuries that ended his playing days.
Dosu’s rise to fame began during the build-up to the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, where he surprisingly took over the first-choice goalkeeper role from Celestine Babayaro. His performances were instrumental in Nigeria’s historic Olympic victory, helping the “Dream Team” secure gold with his solid goalkeeping across all six matches.
Following the Olympics, Dosu earned a move to Italian club Reggiana and quickly became a contender for the Super Eagles’ starting goalkeeper position, competing alongside veteran Peter Rufai. His career looked set for great success as he played in World Cup qualifiers and international friendlies for Nigeria. However, his football journey was tragically cut short at the age of 23, following a serious car accident that left him with life-threatening injuries, forcing his early retirement.
