Stanislav Cherchesov is getting the big graffiti treatment in Russia after coaching the home team to the second round of the World Cup for the first time in 32 years.
Overnight, after Wednesday’s 3-1 win over Egypt in St. Petersburg, his familiar moustachioed features appeared at a city intersection, spray-painted across a wall.
“We just had to do it,” said local artist Artyom Burzh, who said he started the painting at 2 a.m. after watching the match.
“He’s just a beauty,” he said of the burly and balding 54-year-old former Spartak Moscow goalkeeper. “He’s just cosmic,” he added, quoting a line from a song which adorns the mural.
Cherchesov has forced Russians to adjust their opinions of a national team most had expected to fail miserably. But as one passer-by said, that may not last: “Today is a perfect time to paint him,” he said.
“Next week, who knows.”- REUTERS
