Stiliyan Petrov took to social media yesterday and posted an inspiring video where he took the time out to meet the next generation of Bulgaria’s football stars.
The former Celtic midfielder posted on Instagram the moment he met some of his country’s young footballers and from the post, you can see not just how much it meant to the youngsters, but also to Stan himself.
Petrov had a glittering career at Celtic. Signed by John Barnes, it wasn’t until the Martin O’Neill era where, as a young 21-year-old, he fully flourished at the club.
Winning ten trophies, which included the club’s first treble since 1969, Stan was also part of the side that reached the 2003 UEFA Cup final.
Such was Petrov’s talent, he was one of Martin O’Neill’s first signings at Aston Villa. Sadly, a leukaemia diagnosis prematurely ended his playing career but thankfully, he made a full recovery and now enjoys life in football punditry.
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Petrov is no stranger to supporting young footballers in his home country.
Back in 2015, he was the UEFA Ambassador for the under-17 European Championship Finals that took place in Bulgaria and presented the eventual winners, France with the trophy alongside Michel Platini.
Petrov is highly regarded in Bulgaria as one of the country’s legends of the game and he is even coveted by some of today’s modern players.
Jack Grealish revealed that Petrov was one of his favourite players when he told Aston Villa’s YouTube Channel that he was his boyhood hero growing up.
Petrov truly is an inspiration and it is clear that he is held in high regard just not by Celtic fans.