Former head coach of the Moscow football club “Spartak” Oleg Romantsev said he was babysitting Dmitry Kokorev who runs hockey “Sochi” so I gladly accepted his offer to go to the Fonbet KHL championship match against Severstal Cherepovets.
On Saturday, Romantsev made a symbolic throw-in before the regular season match between Sochi and Severstal (1:10). The 69-year-old specialist took to the ice wearing a Leopards jersey.
— It was a revelation for many that you were friends of the Kokorev family. How did it happen?
— The first person I met when I came to play in Moscow for Spartak was Alexander Kokorev. Konstantin Beskov put me in his room at the base. We quickly became friends, then started communicating and becoming friends. Our spouses began to communicate over time. We are still family friends. Well, and Dmitri Alexandrovich… He grew up in my arms. I looked after him, I walked with him. So I happily accepted his offer and flew to the match. In Sochi you are always welcomed very warmly. Both in terms of weather and in relation to the guests.
— What kind of footballer was Dmitry’s father?
– He was playing with a knife. Tall, strong, it was almost impossible to win a head fight against him. He played in the center of defense, I played on the left, it was nice to go on the pitch with him.
— What would you wish for the head coach of Sochi, who is at the beginning of an independent career in the KHL club?
— Now I try to watch all the matches involving Sochi. And do you know what I noticed? These guys have great psychology. They are not afraid of anyone. Through this, they create history. They don’t care who they play against – SKA, CSKA, Ak Bars. There is no authority for them. It’s cool. Therefore, I wish Sochi good luck!
— What is your relationship with hockey?
— I tried playing bandy. He didn’t play for Yenisey Krasnoyarsk, but he was friends with many guys on the team. The Lomanov brothers, then their children. I didn’t play with the puck. But we are still on good terms with hockey players – we often meet Vyacheslav Fetisov, Alexander Yakushev, Vladik Tretyak and communicate very warmly, ”Romantsev is quoted on the Sochi website.
Spartak, under the leadership of Romantsev, won the Russian championship eight times and the National Cup three times.
Watch KHL matches on the channels of the Match holding company, as well as on the sites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.
Source : MatchTV
I’m Emma Smith, a dedicated journalist and avid storyteller. I have been writing for news websites for the past 5 years, reporting on hockey news and delivering in-depth analysis of the sport. In my current role as Author at Athletistic, I write about hockey events from around the world to keep followers up-to-date with what’s happening in the sport.
