happy birthday iker

At a time when players are changing clubs for more money, there are still those who value loyalty. This is what i love about Iker Casillas aside from his legendary prowess of making goal saves during desperate matches when his team mates thought they might have lost it all.

I'm never the sporty kind but football appealed to me at a very young age. I would watch game reruns after finishing school homework (La Liga 1996-97 is the first game i've seen), fascinated by the grit and toughness of a match ~ the triumph, the look of unbreakable concentration to outwit the opponent on one-on-one challenge, the despair, the anguish of loss, all of it. It's in the 2002 league that i've seen jersey #1's first game. Since then, he became my favorite player. I may have several choices for midfielders, defenders, and fowards but Iker remains my top choice for the goalkeeper.

Iker has been in Real Madrid since 9 years old and he wants to stay in Real Madrid until the last day of his professional career. His loyalty with the Los Blancos and the Spanish national team is firmly encrypted in his DNA. It's no surprise that they inaugurated an avenue in honor of him.

The famous Iker  and Arjen Robben one-on-one, FIFA 2010.

Happy birthday Iker!

I'm really going to cry on the day you retire. For now, let's enjoy two to four more years of you leading the whites. I'll see you at Santiago Bernabeu. :)

{images from google, videos via youtube}