FIFA legends interact with fans ahead of the World Cup

Former FIFA World Cup winners Andreas Brehme and Iker Casillas, who were also joined by former Russia International Valeri Karpin took their time out to talk to fans about their experiences on the field.

Seated from left: Andreas Brehme, Valeri Karpin and Iker Casillas at the FIFA Legends Fan Interaction at the Moscow State University.

With the biggest sporting event in the world slated to go live on Thursday, the Moscow State University Library hosted a FIFA Legends Fan Interaction event organised by members of the Fan Movement on June 11. This event brought a group of football fans up-close and personal with Former FIFA World Cup winners Andreas Brehme and Iker Casillas. They were also joined by former Russia international Valeri Karpin.

The event, a light-hearted display of curious football stories, and good humour brought back many memories as the stars related some of their best World Cup memories to the crowd.

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Karpin said, “It is very important for young people, for students, to get to know what is happening now but also to know what went on in the past. It’s a nice opportunity for them to speak to football legends and that can inspire young people to seek new adventures.”

Casillas agreed with Karpin and added, “In my opinion it’s a good initiative, bringing players and protagonists from the pitch closer to the fans. I think it’s great to see what’s behind the cameras, what is the game itself.”

Casillas also talked about his famous 2010 World Cup final save of the shot of Arjen Robben.

“I keep seeing those images and I don’t understand how Robben didn’t score that goal. I don’t say that for my sake, he just had everything in his favour to score and didn’t.

“I played with Robben for two seasons, he’s a great friend and a great player, I knew him well. In that play, I go down to the left because I think that he’s going to take it around me as he’s very quick. I try to hold on till the very last minute through instinct and I stuck out my right foot. Normally, nine times out of ten, he scores but that day luck was with we Spanish and I managed to deflect the ball wide,” said the Spaniard.

The glittering World Cup Trophy was also on display at the event. It became the focal point for many a selfie and photo.

The first match of the FIFA World Cup 2018 will be played between host nation Russia and Saudi Arabia at 03:00 PM GMT at the Luzhniki Stadium.