Hungary’s debut outing at UEFA EURO 2016 against Austria in Bordeaux on Tuesday was an occasion made all the more special by the fact it had been 30 long years since their previous appearance at a major international competition. The Magyars lived up to it too, scoring twice through Adam Szalai and Zoltan Stieber to start their Group F campaign in style.
Suitably dressed for the gala occasion was one of the stars of the evening, their veteran goalkeeper Gabor Kiraly, who was stepped out in his trademark grey, cotton tracksuit bottoms, which have become such a distinctive feature of his lengthy professional career.
Explaining his choice of attire, the evergreen keeper said: “I wear them for comfort. At the end of the day, I’m just a goalkeeper, not a top model.”
On this occasion, Kiraly combined his customary bottoms with a striking fluorescent green jersey, cutting quite a dash on a day on which he made history by becoming the oldest player ever to feature in the European finals. Aged 40 years and 74 days, the Hungarian shot-stopper nudged Lothar Matthaus out of the record books, the former German international having been 39 years and 91 days old on his last appearance in the competition.
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“It was very important for us to start the competition like this,” Kiraly told FIFA.com just after the final whistle, speaking with the same conviction as he had shown during the game. “We scored twice, we didn’t concede and we picked up three points. We really couldn’t have asked for anything more than that. The first match is crucial in any competition and we proved we were up to the job.”
That was no easy task given Hungary’s lengthy absence from international competition and the stature of an Austria side featuring the likes of David Alaba, Marc Janko and Christian Fuchs and lying tenth in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking. With 104 international appearances to his name, Kiraly discussed the key factors in his side’s defeat of the Austrians: “We didn’t focus on our opponents. We just focused on what we had to do, on preparing for the game as well as we could. That’s how it turned out. We played our game and did what we’d worked on, which is why we got the win.”
As positive as Hungary’s start was, they kept their celebrations short, their thoughts already turning to the next game, as their ageless keeper explained: “We’re in a very evenly matched group and there are no favourites in it. The feeling since the draw was made is that anyone can beat anyone in this group, and that’s the way things will be for the rest of the tournament. That’s the mindset we need to have against Iceland and for what comes after. That’s the only way we can make history.”
Ambitious and modest with it, Kiraly chose not to dwell on his achievement in becoming the oldest player ever to grace the tournament, though he was understandably pleased to enter its annals: “It’s great to break a record, but what we’ve done as a team is much more important. My job has always been determined by what my team-mates do, and today we played really well. That makes me happier than anything else.”
Focused on what truly matters, Hungary’s No1 pays little attention to the reactions his match attire attracts. “I decided 20 years ago to start wearing these bottoms and they’ve become part of my style since then. Obviously with this being such a big tournament, there are a lot of people around the world who are getting to see them for the first time. I understand why they might be surprised to see them, but for me it was just another game in them. And I hope I have a lot more here.”
Coming up next for the Hungarians are Iceland in Marseille and Portugal in Lyon, games in which Kiraly will once again pull on his baggy grey sweatpants and tuck them into his socks, while extending his age record and striving to help the Magyars pull off more magical results. Who knows, he may even start a new fashion craze?