Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
My husband should be going to Russia to play England in the World Cup but he was shot dead outside our house
The children were in the house, but luckily they didn’t see their father’s body on the floor outside.
“I managed to protect them from that. But I remember those few minutes so vividly.”
She goes on: “My husband had received a threat from a friend. He was demanding money from him.
“He was so worried he told me about it and he went to the police and told them and they told him ‘not to worry’. Not to worry – days later he was dead.
“One of the last things he said to me before he died was ‘make sure you take care of the kids. Stay strong for them’. He knew something was about to happen. I am furious that no one has been charged by the police.
“Amilcar was killed over a year ago and no one has been in court.”
Gixiani says she is struggling financially. I ask her if she had received any help from the Panama FA and his club Arabe Unido.
“Nada, nada, (nothing),” she replies angrily. “I have to go to work every day, five days a week, to put food on the table for my family. It’s not easy. I have to make things stretch.
“Just living in this house brings back
THE Panamanian Premier League is a world away from the English version.
Some teams attract attendances of barely 100 for their matches.
At a recent top-of-the-table game between champions Arabe Unido and San Francisco, there were 300 spectators and it cost just £4.35 to get in.
Pedro Gordon, president of Arabe Unido, terrible memories every day. I’m frightened and I want to move, but I just can’t afford to.
“People living in the neighbourhood are still jealous because I was married to a famous footballer.
“It’s been very difficult. I’ve had very little support from the authorities.
“Amilcar played in Colombia for a while and they have been really good, helping with some money.”
As we sit on the sofa with her children running around her, Gixiani, who works in the local social security department, goes into her bedroom and brings out her wedding album.
said: “It’s such a different world from Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea and the big English teams.
“We do have some sponsorship, but our gates are very low.
“There are not big crowds in Panama for Premier League games.
“It’s the goal of every player to get a move to one of the big teams in Europe.”
“Look at this,” she says. “My wedding day was the happiest day in my life – and the day my husband was killed was the saddest.”
Gixiani declined to be drawn on whether the killing was gang related.
But I spoke to several close friends who said it was.
Alex Vega told me: “He was targeted by a gang. In Nuevo Colon, the New Town boys are the main gang. They sell the drugs. Half of them sell cocaine and the other half sell marijuana. He was killed because a family member took the wrong side in a drugs argument.
“He made the wrong choice and Amilcar paid for that decision with his life.
“I knew Amilcar. He lived very close to me. It was a drive-by shooting. The car drove past once and then came back and he was shot in the head.” Pedro Gordon, president of Arabe Unido, had known Amilcar for 15 years. He said: “The death of Mickey was a real tragedy. It was so shocking. He was a really good friend.
“He would have played against England, no doubt. He was a very good player and mentally very tough – very strong indeed. Panama is a dangerous place and Colon is a dangerous city. And nothing sums that up more than the death of Mickey.”
Amilcar’s grave is in the Parque del Recuero cemetery in the nearby village of New Italy. A black-and-gold football has been placed on the grave. And his children have left a blue balloon with a message which reads simply: “I miss you Daddy.”