«Tsimbalar! Tsimbalar!» — many adults and kids chanted at Luzhniki Stadium and at their TV at home the surname of the legendary Red-Whites midfield! The match of 1998 against Real Madrid. Ilia makes his unbelievable style direct free kick – the soft shot from twenty meters brings the ball to the goalnet under the crossbar corner. The goalkeeper of the opponents can’t do anything. Latin letters ILIA TSIMBALAR are on all screens. Spartak midfield evened the score in the UEFA Champions League Group Stage match – 1:1!

«That goal became the visit card of my dad», — Ilia’s son Oleg said about that winning match against the Spaniards.

We cannot see any more the goals by Tsimbalar, but committed fans recall old timely the best moments of Spartak and National Team of Russia midfield performance. They dedicate posters and banners to him in the same way, as when he was a player. And now more than a thousand people gathered in Spartak Indoor Hall. 32 teams took part in the memorial tournament dedicated to this outstanding player.