Rufai out of coma

Peter Rufai

Former Super Eagles captain and goalkeeper, Peter Rufai who collapsed on Monday night has regained consciousness after he was resuscitated at a private hospital. 

Rufai opened his eyes for the first time on Tuesday after he slumped at his Adeniran Ogunsanya office in Lagos.

Rufai reportedly slumped at his office in the presence of some close pals and his younger brother Bruce. He was immediately taken to Toki Hospital off Adeniran Ogunsanya where he is presently recuperating after emerging from coma.

Bruce confirmed the incident on Tuesday and admitted that Rufai had not been himself lately.

“He is out of coma and he can now eat and he recognises everyone around. He is fine,” Bruce said. Rufai is now making efforts to communicate, the brother added.

According to him, the legendary goalkeeper had been showing signs of stress before he collapsed. "He had not been eating well and had become unnaturally withdrawn," he noted.

Bruce also believed that his brother must have been suffering from depression after their mother died last week. He noted further that Rufai had been working hard on his football clinic for the past couple of weeks and has had to travel to Calabar and Owerri among other places.

"The death of their mother only burdened him the more," he said. “I was with him when he collapsed on Monday. We just noticed that he was quiet and he could not eat. So, we tried to get him pepper soup which he loves dearly. We thought the spice in it would shake him out of the state. But as he got up, he slumped and I caught him because I was standing next to him. We took him to the hospital, where he is currently recuperating,” Bruce said.

Rufai’s mother died last week and it is strongly believed that this could be responsible for his deteriorating state of health. As at the time of filing this report, Rufai is responding to treatment. According to Bruce, he is awake and able to move some parts of his body.