5 top footballers and their second most favourite sports
When we watch football, our eyes are glue towards the movements of the players. At that moment, both the fans and the players are in a mode of meditation. At that moment, only football exists -- nothing else matters.
It is these images that get engraved in the minds of the viewers, to the point that we stop believing that they are humans just like the rest of us. As humans, they have a life outside the football pitch where there is a good chance that they watch other sports.
Actually, I am being overly dramatic here. The point is, some footballers like other sports too. Contrary to the popular belief players live, breathe and sleep the game, and also follow other sports.
So what other sport does Diego Maradona or Paolo Maldini like?
#5 Christian Vieri - Cricket
The name Vieri has a special place in the hearts of Inter fans. The Italian raised hell against the opponents with his fiery abilities as a striker. Indeed, in his time at Inter, he scored 137 goals in only 218 games – a very admirable return for any forward.
Being an Italian of French descent from his mother’s side, cricket is the last sport one would attribute to him. However, he is an avid follower of the gentlemen’s game and has stated numerous times that he wanted to be a cricketer initially.
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"I would have loved to have been a cricketer," he told Sky Sports back in the day when he was still an active player for Inter. "I was telling a friend last week, I would stop playing now to play cricket if I could get the same contract," the then 30-year-old declared.
"I was a bit of an all-rounder at school."
This sounds strange to the ones reading it the first time, isn’t it? However, Vieri’s family moved to Australia back in the 70s and that is when the Italian hitman developed a taste for the game that stuck in his mouth forever.