| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 30 October 1961 | ||
| Place of birth | Accra, Ghana | ||
| Date of death | November 18, 1984 (aged 23) | ||
| Place of death | France | ||
| Playing position | Defender/Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1975–81 | FC Nantes | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1981–84 | FC Nantes | 113 | (1) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Seth Adonkor (30 October 1961 – 18 November 1984) was a French football player of Ghanaian extraction.
He was the half-brother of Marcel Desailly, whom later followed him at the FC Nantes Atlantique. Adonkor made his debut for the 'Canaries' on 15 April 1981 in a 2-2 draw against Metz, but only established himself in Jean-Claude Suaudeau's first team in the 1982-83 season, which his club finished as French champions, nearly adding the Coupe de France to their honours list - a game in which Adonkor was sent off. The 1982-83 championship was to be his only major honour. By trade a strong, hard-tackling midfielder who could also play in attack, Adonkor had become a 'rock' (in Suaudeau's words) in the heart of Nantes's defence when his career was cut brutally short. Driving back from Saint Nazaire to Nantes with his teammates Jean-Michel Labejof (who died) and Sidi Kabahe (who survived, but never played again), he was the victim of a fatal car crash. Adonkor was then widely tipped to become a French international. The news of Adonkor's death was passed on to Marcel Desailly by his close friend and team-mate Didier Deschamps. Adonkor was Desailly's role model.