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| " The Black Spider " |
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| 1963 |
Lev Yashin was a goalkeeper ahead of his time. His nickname was "The Black Spider" because of the black uniform he always wore, and often seemed to have 8 arms and legs. He was also the organizer of his teams' defense, always actively adjusting their positions facing their adversaries (in a time where the common team scheme was 3-2-5, the popular "WM").
He played 20 years for one only club (Dinamo Moscow), was selected in the USSR squad for 4 World Cups (1958, 1962, 1966 and 1970 - didn't play any game on this last one), won the Gold Medal in the 1956 Summer Olympics and also the 1960 European Championship, for a total of 74 caps.
It is said that he saved more than 150 penalties throughout his career and, one time while playing Italy, he saved a penalty shot from Sandro Mazzola which lead the italian to say, during the post-game interview that "Lev is a better footballer than I am."
In 1971, a tribute match was held in Moscow to bid a farewell to his career and more than 100,000 people attended, including special fans Eusébio, Pelé and Beckenbauer.
(last reviewed: 2013.January.4th)
