Career
He was awarded the title of 2007 African coach of the year. Tella, a former lecturer at the National Institute for Sports in Lagos, had been diagnosed with cancer of the lungs when he led his team to a pre-World Cup eight-nation tournament in South of Korea in June 2007. Tella spent the last two weeks of his life at the Lagos State Teaching Hospital.
He died on 20 October 2007, aged 56.