Steve Gohouri dies aged 34: Body of former Premier League footballer recovered from river
THE body of a former Premier League footballer has been recovered from a river in Germany.
Former Wigan defender Steve Gohouri has been found dead
Former Wigan defender Steve Gohouri, who played for the Latics between 2010 and 2012, was reported missing three weeks ago in December.
The 34-year-old footballer had been unaccounted for since attending a Christmas party for his German club TSV Steinbach.
He was then set to visit family in Paris, but never arrived.
TSV said on their website that the death of Mr Gohouri had been confirmed by Duesseldorf police who found his body in the River Rhine, in the western city of Krefeld.
He was reported missing by his family on 12 December.
The 32-year-old footballer playing for Rot-Weiss Erfurt last year
Throughout his career he played for clubs in England, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Greece and Germany
Mr Gohouri, a defender who played for Ivory Coast between 2006 and 2009, scored two goals in 42 games for Borussia Moenchengladbach between 2007 and 2009.
For somebody so young to lose their life is very sad
As well as playing for Wigan in England, he also played for clubs across Europe including Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Greece and Germany.
Wigan manager Gary Caldwell paid tribute to his former team mate today.
He said: "I heard the fans singing his name and we heard about the news in the dressing room.
"For somebody so young to lose their life is very sad, it's tragic to find out about a former team mate passing away."
STV released the following statement: "All the officials, players, coaches and assistants of TSV Steinbach are deeply moved by the death of Steve Gohouri.
"Our thoughts are with his relatives in these difficult hours."
Mr Gohouri (left) was reported missing by his family
Dusseldorf Police confirmed there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the his death.
A statement read: "On December 31 2015, the corpse of initially an unknown man was found in the Rhine near Krefeld.
"In the meantime, the dead could be identified as the 34-year-old who had been reported missing on December 12 2015.
"An autopsy showed no evidence of violence by third parties."