OM loses Joseph Yegba Maya, seventh-greatest goalscorer in club history, at 82

Joseph Yegba Maya, seventh-greatest goalscorer in Olympique de Marseille’s history, died on Sunday at the age of 82. OM paid tribute to the Cameroonian striker in a statement released Wednesday.

Arriving in Marseille in 1962 when the club was competing in the second division, Yegba Maya spent eight seasons there before joining Strasbourg and then Valenciennes. In 236 matches wearing the white shirt, he scored 113 goals, a total surpassed by only six players in the club’s history: Gunnar Andersson (194), Jean-Pierre Papin (182), Josip Skoblar (176), Jean Boyer (170), Emmanuel Aznar (148) and Joseph Alcazar (140).

His impact transcends statistics. When OM competed in its first European competitions in the Coupe Karl Rappan — the predecessor to the Coupe Intertoto — it was he who opened the scoring: the first European goal in the club’s history bears his signature. Seven years after his arrival, he was decisive in the 1969 French Cup final against Bordeaux (2-0), contributing to a trophy that the club presents as the signal of its return to the top.

Formed at Dragon de Yaoundé, Yegba Maya had joined Marseille from Cameroon at the age of 16. It was two years later, during a Coupe de Provence match played in the colours of Gallia Chutes-Lavie, while he was working as a mechanic at the SNCF, that he was spotted by Marseille’s scouts.

“Olympique de Marseille extends its sincere condolences to his family and loved ones,” concluded the club’s statement.