Former Leicester City attacker, Ahmed Musa has joined in mourning the death of the EPL club’s owner, Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, whose legacy he says will remain forever and never to be forgotten.
Although Musa is now at Al-Nassr of Saudi Arabia, where he is doing well after a torrid time at Leicester, the Nigerian star will not be left out of the roll call of soccer icons worldwide joining in the mourning.
Musa, whop is set to captain Nigeria’s national team, Super Eagles for their fourth straight game of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against South Africa next month, added that Srivaddhanaprabha was a good man and someone special, with good memories around him.
Footballlive.ng can report that the late Leicester City owner, born Vichai Raksriaksorn on June 5, 1958, was a billionaire businessman from Thailand and founder of King Power Duty Free shop outlets.
Srivaddhanaprabha was born into a Thai Chinese family, and was married to Aimon, with whom he had four children: Voramas, Apichet, Aroonroong, and Aiyawatt.
He was the owner of Leicester City football club from 2010 until his death this past Saturday in a helicopter crash at King Power Stadium in the British community of Leicester.
In August 2010, Asia Football Investments, a business consortium run by Srivaddhanaprabha and his son, Aiyawatt (aka Top), purchased The Foxes, who were then in the English Championship.
Vichai, who bought his second football club, OH Leuven of Belgium in May 2017, was worth $5.2bn and ranked as the 5th richest man in Thailand.
In 2012, the King of Thailand bestowed the family the new surname of Srivaddhanaprabha, which means “light of progressive glory,” and he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree in 2016 by University of Leicester.
Srivaddhanaprabha’s AgustaWestland AW169 helicopter crashed outside King Power Stadium shortly after taking off from the pitch.
Eyewitnesses described seeing the helicopter spinning before crashing and creating a fireball.
The next day, it was confirmed that Srivaddhanaprabha, as well as two passengers, the pilot and co-pilot had all died in the crash.
The owner had been known to use the helicopter on match days to travel between the stadium and London.
Before he took over Leicester City, the club’s payroll was among the lowest in the league—$70m, about a fourth of what Manchester United and Chelsea spent at the time.
He succeeded Milan Mandarić as chairman of Leicester in February 2011 and his son, Aiyawatt became the vice-chairman.
In July 2011, the club’s home ground, Walkers Stadium was renamed King Power Stadium.
Rather than spending on big-name players, Vichai appointed Claudio Ranieri as manager and tapped relative unknowns like Jamie Vardy, who broke the record for consecutive goals scored and was named Footballer of the Year for 2015-2016.
Leicester then pulled off a football miracle in the 2015–2016 season, when they unexpectedly won the English Premier League, after which Srivaddhanaprabha handed 19 players each £100,000 worth BMW i8 cars as gifts for winning the title, the club’s first in its 132-year history.
Musa wrote in his tribute: “Someone special will not be forgotten, wonderful memories will live on forever.
“Death can never take a good man away, in the hearts of people he inspired, the legacy remains and continues throughout generations.
“He was a great man and father to many, may his soul RIP @LCFC.”
