News about Stiliyan Petrov

The news of a player being diagnosed with cancer in the world of professional football, where the spotlight shines brightest on the field, sends shockwaves throughout the entire sporting world. However, in the midst of such bleakness, there are stories that bring hope and inspiration. Any story is a testament to those individuals, from Jonas Gutierrez's brave fight with testicular cancer to Stiliyan Petrov's enthralling recovery from acute leukemia. This feature spotlights footballers who have been through similar challenges inspired by Sebastian Haller's recent struggle with cancer and named the champion of the Ivory Coast at AFCON.

Ivanov, a former striker, retired in 2009 and has mostly worked in teaching since being in charge of the national team in 2022. Stiliyan Petrov, the former national team captain, has led the response, but Ivanov has remained firm: 'I stand behind my words that my goal is to see Bulgaria with Bulgarian players,' says the ex-national team captain.' 'As long as I'm director, a foreign player with a foreign passport and a different skin tone, I won't play.' I don't want players from other countries to replace Bulgarian ones. Some nations may do this, but to me, it is a flawed tactic.'