Steve Gohouri: death riddle

How did Steve Gohouri, the 34 year old former Ivory Coast defender die? Did he commit suicide? Was he murdered?

These are riddles yet to be solved by the German police after his body was recovered from the River Rhine on Saturday.

Police said an autopsy found no signs of violence. They gave no indication as to other possible causes of death.

Gohouri who starred 15 times for the Elephants of Cote D’Ivoire went missing in mid- December, German regional league club TSV Steinbach said on Saturday.

He played in the Premier League with Wigan Athletic between 2010 and 2012 after joining from Bundesliga side Borussia Moenchengladbach.

TSV said on their website that the player’s death had been confirmed by Duesseldorf police who found the body near the city of Krefeld.

Gohouri had told teammates he was heading to Paris to see his family but the defender never arrived.

His family travelled from France to Germany to report his disappearance.

Gohouri, who started his career at Paris Saint Germain but failed to make the first team, vanished after attending German fourth tier club TSV Steinbach’s Christmas party on December 12.

Steinbach coach Thomas Brdaric noted after Gohouri went missing that “there is much speculation — but I hope it is not true — that he has personal problems and has abandoned his responsibilities.”

Former team mate and Wigan manager Gary Caldwell, whose side now play in the third tier of English football, expressed his sadness.

“I heard the fans singing his name and we heard about the news in the dressing room,” he said after a 1-1 draw at Scunthorpe United.

“For somebody so young to lose their life is very sad, it’s tragic to find out about a former team mate passing away.”

Former Ivory Coast and Chelsea striker Didier Drogba also paid tribute to Gohouri.

“So sad about this news…lost one of my soldiers, Cote d’Ivoire lost one of its most loyal sons. My thoughts go to the family. RIP bro,” said Montreal Impact player Drogba on his Twitter account.