Iker Casillas

El Clasico, La Liga, Sports

Iker Casillas calls for an El Clasico charity match when football returns.

Real Madrid and Spain legend Iker Casillas has suggested that a ‘vintage’ El Clásico be arranged with former players of the two clubs, as soon as the coronavirus nightmare ends, and funds raised will be donated to charity. Wouldn’t that be beautiful?

“When this nightmare (coronavirus) is over, we should gather the past greats and play a vintage Clasico. Fundraiser for those in need.” He wrote on his Twitter page recently.

The World Cup winning captain who made his debut with Los Blancos in 1999 to become the youngest keeper to have played in the Champions League, and to have won the competition later that season suffered a heart attack during a training session with Porto in 2019 and retired in February this year.

Also Read: Footballing world is joining the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

He played 16 seasons for the Real Madrid first team, making 725 appearances, and won five La Liga titles and three Champions League titles.

I am certain the football world is up for this and we certainly can’t wait for it.

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Ultimate Team Of The Year: Meet UEFA's All-Time XI

UEFA today unveiled their all-time XI as the Team of the Year 2016 vote launches today!
The football governing body also explained why the select footballers made it to the team.
Meet the nominees!
Iker Casillas (Goalkeeper) – Real Madrid/Porto & Spain
Spain’s captain at UEFA EURO 2008 and 2012 also lifted the 2010 FIFA World Cup – three of the six times he made it into Team of the Year. Manuel Neuer and Gianluigi Buffon (three selections each) are his main (albeit distant) rivals for the No 1 shirt.
Carles Puyol (Defender) – Barcelona & Spain
Enjoyed a golden run from 2005 onwards, winning the UEFA Champions League with Barça in 2006, 2009 and 2011, and UEFA EURO 2008 and the 2010 World Cup as cornerstone of his country’s defence.
Philipp Lahm (Defender) – Bayern München & Germany
One of Europe’s most consistent performers of the past decade, Lahm’s run of three successive Team of the Year appearances came to an end in 2015.
Sergio Ramos (Defender)– Real Madrid & Spain
Four selections in a row are a measure of the Real Madrid man’s standing, the defender having earlier been rewarded for his role in helping Spain to UEFA EURO 2008 glory.
Gerard Piqué  (Defender) – Barcelona & Spain
One of four defenders to have been chosen four times along with Alessandro Nesta, Daniel Alves and John Terry, Piqué squeezes into the XI on a tie-breaker by virtue of having been nominated seven times – while his three rivals received only six nominations each.
Xavi Hernández (midfielder)– Barcelona & Spain
A contender in 2005, it was not until his second involvement in 2008 that Xavi made the cut – then there was no dislodging him as unprecedented success with club and country kept him in the side for five years running.
Andrés Iniesta (midfielder) – Barcelona & Spain
Like midfield partner Xavi, once he forced his way into the Team of the Year Iniesta proved impossible to remove until 2013, but returned in splendour in 2015.
Steven Gerrard (midfielder) – Liverpool & England
One of five midfielders to have been selected three times, seven nominations were key to taking the Liverpool talisman into the ultimate XI at the expense of Kaká (five nominations), Ronaldinho (four), Pavel Nedvěd (three) and Zinédine Zidane (three).
Cristiano Ronaldo (forward) – Manchester United/Real Madrid & Portugal
Nominated a record 13 times, the Portuguese phenomenon has been included in the Team of the Year no fewer than ten occasions, three more than any other player. The 2015 team marked his ninth appearance in a row.
Lionel Messi (forward) – Barcelona & Argentina
Like Ronaldo, Messi was initially categorised as a midfielder – collecting the first of ten successive nominations in 2006 – and has missed out on the Team of the Year just once, in 2013, since his 2008 debut.
Thierry Henry (forward) – Arsenal & France
Nominated for the first six editions, Henry’s consistency was such that he got into the final selection no fewer than five times, including the first four – the only player to achieve that.
 
Source

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Entertainment

Iker Casillas hinting at retirement?

Spain’s most capped player, Iker Casillas’ could be hinting at retirement from international football after 16 years with his latest social media post. The 35-year-old posted a video on his Twitter account (@casillasworld) of a Rambo film with the dialogue: ‘I don’t know where but I’m going.’
The former Real Madrid skipper later added, ‘I’m proud to feel the love of the people today and as always, everyone together for the national team.’
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Iker Casillas now the most capped European player of all time.

Casillas earned his 166th international cap in Spain’s goalless draw against Romania on Sunday, tying Latvian midfielder Vitālijs Astafjevs. The former Real Madrid skipper has also equalled the record for most international caps by a European player.

Casillas’ 16-year career span for his  country saw him winning the World Cup in South Africa in 2010. The goalkeeper did not only concede a goal in 710 minutes for Spain he also made a couple of wonderful saves to keep the clean sheet.

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Entertainment

Iker Casillas voted best goalkeeper in Champions League history.

Former Real Madrid captain Iker Casillas has been voted the best goalkeeper in Champions League history. The poll was conducted by the most popular football website in the world, goal.com‎
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More than 40,000 readers of the poll gave him‎ 33% of the votes, Juventus legend Gianluigi Buffon came second in the poll with 19%. Ex-Manchester United goalkeepers Peter Schmeichel and Edwin van der Sar pulled 10% and 9% respectively. Others included‎ Oliver Khan (8%), Petr Cech (7%), Nelson Dida (4%) and Victor Valdes (3%).
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The 34-year-old broke the UCL  competition record for most appearances last night by playing his 152nd game overtaking ex-Spain midfielder Xavi.
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Madrid President, Florentino Perez guilty over Casillas's exit from Madrid

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is ruing veteran goalkeeper, Iker Casillas’s exit from the club in July. Albeit, he admitted that he was not forcibly dismissed from the club, Perez revealed that his farewell was not handled the right way. 
Recall that the Spanish footballer who signed for Porto two months ago alone attended a press conference at the Santiago Bernabeu on July 12 where he read a statement in tears, and then bade farewell to fans at the pitch
“The dismissal of Casillas was not good, but it was because he wanted to. The mistake is mine and so I called him that afternoon, I spoke with him and delayed his departure for the next day to do it the right way.” I was in a difficult emotional position, he did not want to do anything, he asked us for one thing and it went wrong. I consider myself guilty. We did what he asked for and on the next day we did what had to be done. I was wrong,” Perez added.
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Entertainment

"His exit was agreed behind his back." Casillas's agent also puts Madrid on blast.

More invectives are being poured on Real Madrid for the club’s alleged ill-treatment of its veteran (ex)player, Iker Casillas who just made a switch to Porto FC. The Spaniard’s agent Santos Marquez has claimed that Casillas’s exit was planned without his knowledge.
Albeit Madrid affirmed that the decorated goalkeeper opted to leave the Bernabeu, Marquez insisted that he was pushed out of the club and that was evident in the farewell ceremony hastily organized  for the skipper who had spent 25 years at the club. Excerpts from his recent interview.

“His exit had been agreed behind his back. Casillas never decided to jump ship and leave Madrid. He was pushed. Casillas did not ask to leave, he has been annoyed and everything about his exit had been agreed behind his back. He has to go, so he accepts that, but at no point did Casillas want to leave.

“One factor was the whistles he received from the Bernabeu, but another is the support from the club. He has never felt defended. Nobody – including Florentino – from the club said ‘I will sit with Iker Casillas and I will defend him to the death’. That never happened.
“Benitez has played hide-and-seek, he let me down. We were hoping to talk to the coach. It has not been fair to Iker, it hasn’t been the exit he deserves – it’s been a disaster.”

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Xavi slams Madrid for Casillas's poor send-off

Spanish midfielder, Xavi Hernández has slammed Spanish club, Real Madrid for failing to give one of its long-serving players, Iker Casillas a deserving send-off before he switched to Porto FC. 

Unlike the ace goalkeeper, Xavi was treated to a grand farewell by his former club, Barcelona. The 35 year-old conveyed his thoughts in a letter which was published in the newspaper, Vanguardia. Excerpts below

“I met Iker in the U-17 World Cup in Egypt and we got on immediately. Whenever anyone asks me about him, the answer is always the same: “He’s a really great bloke. That’s why it really gets me what is happening. Over the past few years I have seen how he didn’t enjoy it as much as he used to. Sometimes I even saw him bitter and I think that all of us in this country have to stop and reflect on this. It cannot be that sportspeople in Spain can’t get older without people being disrespectful to them, looking for faults at times very nastily.”

“The same thing is happening with Rafa Nadal, the best Spanish sports person of all time. Now Casillas is going to Porto and I am sure that he will get a hero’s welcome. He is appreciated more abroad. Iker deserved to be treated in the same way that he treated everybody. For me, he is the most decisive goalkeeper in all history. What saves. Maybe his footwork wasn’t the best, but I have never seen a more intuitive guy between the sticks.”

“He made history with the national team in that famous penalty shoot-out against Italy. ‘Take it easy, Luis, we’ve got Iker, who is on fire’, I told Aragonés. What I’m most happy about is that we have been able to maintain our friendship despite our different team colours. The way he left Real Madird really upsets me. It saddens me. I wish you all the very best in your time at Porto, my friend.”

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Entertainment, Sports

No one forced Casillas out – Florentino Perez


The president of Real Madrid, Florentino Perez, has dismissed claims that Iker Casillas was forced out of the club.

Perez who has been subjected to boos and criticism from the fans the perceived unfair treatment he meted out to Casillas maintained that San Iker left out of his own will. 
“no one in Real Madrid asked him to leave the club” he said

“a few days ago, he received an offer from Porto which he told us immediately and asked us to take it into consideration and agreement. There has been a lot of pressure on him in the past ten years and although I would have liked him to finish his sporting career in our club, I have to accept his decision“. ‎
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Entertainment, Sports

Sergio Ramos pays tribute to Iker Casillas.

Real Madrid centre-back, Sergio Ramos has paid tribute to colleague, Iker Casillas who joins FC Porto next season. Ramos in a tweet posted yesterday also posted link to the video of some of the great times they shared together. The ace goalkeeper bade the club goodbye amid tears yesterday.‎ 

“10 years together and many, many shared moments. A great Captain, thank you, @CasillasWorld #GraciasIker.”

Ramos wrote.
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