In a bid to immortalise the greatest footballers of the current generation, the Russian Academy of Arts has put the paintings of superstars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi on display. The collection also has the painting of French legend Eric Cantona on display. “The artwork is a brainchild of Italian Gabrizio Birimmbelli,” according to a video released by the Olympic Channel. Anastasia Sergeeva, who is a part of the museum told the Olympic Channel that, “Birimmbelli is not a professional artist, he is just a big fan of football. So he uses modern technologies like computer graphics to make these pictures.”
Apart from Ronaldo and Messi, Egyptian star Mohamed Salah has also been honoured at the academy. Meanwhile, French midfielder Paul Pogba and Spanish central defender and captain Sergio Ramos have been given the respect of an Army General.
Earlier, after the Egypt team were knocked out from the group stage of the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2018, Mohamed Salah received a surprisingly grand reception from his fans back home after reports that broke out suggested that the Liverpool star’s address was leaked on social media. Later, Cairo police dispersed hundreds of fans who gathered on Thursday evening outside Salah’s house in New Cairo, said Major General Alaa Abdel Zaher, director of Cairo Civil Protection Department.