A few days before the Champions League final between PSG and Inter on Saturday in Munich, The team Give the floor to a former French international who passed through the Nerazzurri, Sébastien Frey. The goalkeeper trained in Cannes arrived at the age of 18 in the inter -he -in -law in 1998, to rub shoulders “Ronaldo, Roberto Baggio, Youri Djorkaeff, Diego Simeone, Pepe Bergomi, Javier Zanetti, Ivan Zamorrano and a young person called Andrea Pirlo”. He was also marked by the arrival of Nwankwo Kanu.
“It was the time of President Massimo Moratti (from 1995 to 2013)a huge character, a manager close to his players. I remember that he had saved life to (Nwankwo)
Kanu paying him a heart operation in the United States for a problem detected at his signature. His club was also his family. It is still an honor to have lived this era, to be part of this legend. It was a magnificent period but with the regret of not having won more titles ”explains Frey in the columns of The team.
Spotted in Nigeria by Ajax, Kanu won the 1995 Champions League with the Amstellodam training before being recruited by Inter in 1996 against 4 million euros. During the summer, the slender striker (1.97 m) won the gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta but his life then took a terrible turn during his medical visit to Lombardy. A serious problem at the heart was detected and it could have cost him his life on the football fields. “He has been sick for years”regretted one of the cardiologists, Bruno Caru.
Kanu in the arsenal of Titi Henry
After his operation, Nwankwo Kanu made his debut with Inter in April of the following year but never won (1 goal in 20 games), winning the 1998 UEFA Cup while remaining on the bench against Lazio (3-0). It was by signing at Arsenal, in February 1999, that the Super Eagle took off. He had the best season of his career in 1999-2000 by scoring 17 goals, alongside Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Davor Suker. With a second African Golden Ball. He was champion of England in 2002 and 2004 (the invincible season).
Having become a simple replacement for the Gunners, he joined West Brom in 2004 then Portsmouth two years later, still in the Premier League, by offering a FA Cup in Pompey by scoring the only goal of the final against Cardiff City in 2008. Kanu has been retired since 2012 and was operated a second time from the heart, also in the United States. Created in 2000, the Kanu Heart Foundation built five hospitals in Africa in order to help children with a heart disease.
