Profiles of the Legends: Lev Ivanovich Yashin, the Black Spider
Profiles of the Legends: Lev Ivanovich Yashin, the Black Spider
by Steve Amoia for Keeper Skool.
Lev Ivanovich Yashin, or in Russian, Лев Ива́нович Я́шин, set the modern standard for goalkeeping. For many fans and historians, he was the best to ever play the position. Despite being a fearless competitor, "The Black Spider" was a gentleman on the pitch. At every World Cup, FIFA honors the best keeper with the Lev Yashin Award to commemorate the leadership, sportsmanship, and talents of this great player.
Mr. Yashin was born in 1929 in Moscow. He died in 1990 after complications from a leg amputation. He played professionally for over 22 seasons, and represented the Soviet Union internationally for almost 15 years. He was a member of the Dinamo Moscow Sports Club; consequently, he played professional hockey and football. Similar to modern era greats such as Paolo Maldini of AC Milan, Ryan Giggs of Manchester United, and Raúl Gonazalez of Real Madrid, respectively, Mr. Yashin played his entire career at one professional club. He was 1.89 meters or almost 6' 3" in height. As a habit, he wore an all-black kit.
Commentary by Alexander Kashintsev, webmaster of Russian National Football Team.
"Yashin always was managing the defensive game of his team, so fierce that even his wife accused him of yelling too much at the pitch; however he hardly ever captained teams - to appoint a goalkeeper as a captain is a relatively new custom.
The great athlete, possessing an extraordinary reactions and courage, Yashin is said to save more than 150 penalties during his career."
Professional Club
- Dinamo Moscow: 1949 to 1971.
Russian National Team
- 78 caps.
- 70 goals conceded.
- Goals against ratio: 0.90.
Career Honors
- Voted Goalkeeper of the 20th Century by IFFHS.
- 1956 Olympic Gold Medal winner at the Melbourne Games.
- 1960 European Nations Cup winner with the Soviet Union. This was the first time the event was held.
- 1963: First and only goalkeeper to win the Ballon d'or (Golden Ball) by France Football Magazine.
- 1964: Silver Medal at the European Nations Cup.
- He competed at three World Cups: 1958, 1962, and 1966. He was the third keeper and an unofficial coach for the 1970 Soviet World Cup team. He had 4 clean sheets in 13 World Cup appearances.
- He won the USSR league title five times.
- 2000: FIFA World Keeper of the Century.
- 2000: Named Golden Player of Russia for the previous 50 years.
Famous Quotes About Saving Penalties
"To have a smoke to calm your nerves, then toss back a strong drink to tone your muscles."
"The joy of seeing Yuri Gagarin flying in space is only superseded by the joy of a good penalty save."
Source: Goalkeeping Museum, Lev Yashin.
Note: Yuri Gagarin, a Soviet cosmonaut, was the first human being to travel into outer space in 1961.
West Germany 2 x USSR 1 : Semi-finals of World Cup 1966 at Goodison Park, Liverpool
Here is a very intriguing video clip to give you a better idea of Mr. Yashin during a specific game. The USSR finished in fourth place, and that represented their best historical performance at the World Cup.
Steve Amoia is the author and editor of World Football Commentaries, and also writes for Soccerlens. He is the author of the World Cup History Test for Brainbench.
John Stevanja
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