Eduard Streltsov Art Print, Twelve Years, Torpedo Moscow, Vintage Black and White Wall Art

Twelve years. He served five. At twenty, Eduard Streltsov was the best forward in the Soviet Union and people were calling him the Russian Pele. He would not join a state club, he would not behave, and he had already turned down invitations that were not really invitations.

In May 1958, weeks before the World Cup, he was arrested and charged with rape after a party. The trial was quick, the evidence has been disputed ever since, and he was sentenced to twelve years in the camps. He served five in Siberia.

He came back heavier and slower. He still won the league twice and was named Soviet footballer of the year at thirty-one.

Stories worth passing on, not just remembering.