Leonīds Ostrovskis

The Latvian football legend Leonīds Ostrovskis was born 17 January, 1936 in Latvia. He is the greatest and most accomplished Latvian footballer in history, being the only Latvian who has played in the World Cup. Ostrovskis represented the Soviet Union national team in three World Cup editions (1958, 1962, 1966), earning a total of 9 caps.

Ostrovskis began his career with his hometown club – Daugava Rīga in 1954. The young left-back played two and a half seasons with Daugava in the Soviet First League, earning a good reputation and the interest from the Soviet Top League side – Torpedo Moscow. Ostrovskis joined the ZIL factory team in 1956, making his Soviet Top League debut on 12 May in a draw against Dynamo Kiev.

Two years later, Ostrovskis already was a key player of Torpedo, and he was selected to the Soviet Union’s 1958 World Cup roster. He did not make any appearances in Sweden, as the Soviet team reached the 1/4 Finals stage. Still, the career with Torpedo took a great turn. In 1960, the factory team won the Soviet Top League title, as well as the Soviet Cup, and Ostrovskis played 29 games that season. The following season, Torpedo once again was among the leading Soviet sides, but eventually, they finished second.

In 1962, Ostrovskis was once again selected to the Soviet Union World Cup squad. This time, he finally got a chance to play. The 26-year-old left-back played 4 games as the Soviet team reached the 1/4 Finals once again. This was also Ostrovski’s final year with Torpedo, as he got an offer to join the Dynamo Kiev team. Initially, this caused a suspension since the Torpedo did not want him to leave, but after a while, he was cleared to play.

The 6-year stint in Kiev was the most successful of his career. Ostrovskis won three more Soviet Top League titles (1966, 1967, 1968), as well as two Soviet Cups (1964, 1966), playing alongside such talented players, like Anatoly Byshovets, Evgeny Rudakov and Yozhef Sabo. While playing for Dynamo, the Latvian defender made Soviet Union World Cup squad for the third consecutive time. Ostrovskis played two games at the 1966 World Cup as the Soviet Union finished fourth.

After winning his fourth Soviet Top League title, Ostrovskis retired at the age of 32 due to injuries. The Dynamo had a strong inner competition and ageing left-back decided to retire as a champion. In total, Ostrovskis played 135 games with Dynamo Kiev, scoring one goal.

After retirement, the Latvian settled in Kiev and lived there until his death in 2001. Ostrovskis died at the age of 65.

ACCOLADES

Soviet Top League (1960, 1966, 1967, 1968)
Soviet Top League (1957, 1961, 1965)
Soviet Cup (1960, 1964, 1966)
33 Best Soviet Players of the Year – 2nd Team (1957, 1960, 1961, 1965) 3rd Team (1966)