Legendary coach Seyoum Abate passes away

One of the most renowned football personalities in Ethiopian sport Seyoum Abate passed away on Friday after a long battle against pneumonia. Seyoum is best remembered as the founder of arguably the most popular side in the country Ethiopia Bunna.
One of the brightest footballers among his contemporaries Seyoum  and later coach of  the Ethiopian national side at all levels, many of his admirers prefer the heavy set Coach to remember as Ethiopia Bunna’s all-time best coaches. Seyoum was not only the first architect of Ethiopia Bunna but the Coach who sat “The Brown Shirts” in Ethiopian Football’s larger picture. The likes of the late popular midfielder Mengestu Bogale and striker Asseged Tesfaye, Mulugeta Woldeyes, Million Begashaw and Kassaye Arage were among the few mentioned as the handywork of Seyoum Abate.
Famous for producing young talent and a different style of coaching Seyoum had been arguably the brightest coach of his contemporaries. Despite a graduate of an Eastern Europe Coaching institution, his different style of coaching earned him a reputation in ironing-out an entertaining football playing squad therefore Ethiopia Bunna became the most popular side in the Ethiopian Premier League. “It was fun watching Seyoum’s Ethiopia Bunna in the late nineties and players from the team were dominating the Ethiopian national team,” remarked head Coach Asrat a rival coach among his contemporaries.
Though a huge effort of fund raising followed by an exhaustive medical treatment at home and abroad, Seyoum gave up battling the serial killer thus passed away on Friday. Seyoum Abate leaves behind his wife and five children.