Football icon Helal forget about
Former national footballer Golam Rabbani Helal breathed his last at around 12:00 noon yesterday. He was 67.
Helal, who was on life support at the intensive care unit of Square Hospital carrying out a brain haemorrhage at his Dhanmondi residence on Thursday, left behind his wife and two daughters.
Helal played for the national team from 1979 to 1985. At club level, he previously been a permanent player for Abahani where he played from 1975 to 1988 except for a short spell at BJMC.
After retiring from football, Helal became director of Abahani and occupied different roles for the club. He was also an executive committee person in the BFF for five years.
Three namaz-e-janazas were held, including one at the BFF premises and one at the Abahani Club ground before his burial at the Azimpur graveyard.
Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) president Kazi Salahuddin, Abahani Club, Mohammedan Sporting Club and other clubs and officials from sporting community expressed their condolences at the loss of life of the former national footballer.
Helal had been suffering from kidney disease and undergoing dialysis for the last year. He also underwent an open-heart surgery after cardiac arrest in April, 2017.
