Wednesday, May 21, 2014

World Cup '74 Portrait #60 (Dimitar Penev: Bulgaria)



graphite & putty eraser, with watercolour pencil/30x21cm

Today’s randomly-chosen subject represents Dimitar Penev, a sticker of whom appeared in both the FKS & Panini collectors’ albums previewing the 1974 World Cup, & who was subsequently selected as a member of the Bulgaria squad for the Finals, where he appeared in all three of his country’s First Round matches (after which they suffered elimination), as, indeed, he had previously done in both the 1966 & 1970 World Cups (where the same unsuccessful fate had befallen Bulgaria: indeed, it was not until the 1994 tournament, when Penev was now their manager, that the Bulgarians won a match at a World Cup & advanced beyond the opening phase, going all the way, in fact, to the semi-finals on that occasion).

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