KARACHI - Abdul Ghafoor an iconic and outstanding national footballer of sixties nicknamed as Pakistani Pele for his football skills and resemblance to the Brazilian great passed away here on Friday at the age of 74 after protracted illness.
For the last three years he was partially paralysed. Sindh sports minister Dr MA Shah when informed about the financial plight of the player had donated Rs one lac some time ago on behalf of the government and had promised the player to pay the treatment bill also.
Ghafoor has left behind three daughters, two sons and a widow along with a huge number of football fans to mourn his death which has also been condoled by those who had known and seen the player in action on the grassy ground of formerly KMC stadium where he represented Sindh Government Press and later KPT from which he separated after a golden handshake in 2000.
He was born in 1938 in Saifi Lane Baghdadi area in the family of Muhammad Ali who was a labourer in the KPT. He started his career with Saifi XI and later joined Sindh Government Press before moving on to the KPT.His fame and skills attracted Calcutta Mohammedan who signed him up.He remained with the iconic club for a number of years before moving on to Dacca Mohammedan as a professional player.
He played for Pakistan during an era where towering football figures like Hussain Killer, Turab, M Omer graced the football pitches in the region. He won Pakistan colour in 1959 and toured Burma and some countries of Indo China region. He was the only Pakistani in an Asian XI which was picked during that era.
In 1967, he developed differences with the then PFF on ignoring Karachi players in national team and announced his retirement. However, when Abdul Sattar Gabole became the PFF chief in early seventies Ghafoor was persuaded to come back and was made captain of Pakistan team at Tehran Asian Games.
A large number of football fans, friends and relatives attended the burial of the football star in a local graveyard later on Friday afternoon. The president of the PFF Faisal Saleh Hayat has condoled the demise of a great football star of the country.