Newborn named after Russia scorer
20 Jun 2018 / 08:35 H.
Russia's midfielder Aleksandr Golovin (L) and Saudi Arabia's midfielder Abdullah Otayf vie during the Russia 2018 World Cup Group A football match between Russia and Saudi Arabia at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on June 14, 2018. AFP / Alexander NEMENOV
Russia's midfielder Aleksandr Golovin (C) vies with (fromL) Saudi Arabia's midfielder Salman Al-Faraj, Saudi Arabia's midfielder Taisir Al-Jassim and Saudi Arabia's defender Mohammed Al-Breik during the Russia 2018 World Cup Group A football match between Russia and Saudi Arabia at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on June 14, 2018. AFP / Francisco LEONG
Moscow (dpa) - A mother in Russia was so taken by her country's victory in their opening match at the World Cup that she named her newborn son after midfielder Aleksandr Golovin, who scored Russia's fifth goal late on.
"A patient in her 36th week of pregnancy was so nervous during the match as she rooted for the Russian team that she began to give birth," the health minister for the southern Krasnodar region, Yevgeny Filippov, said Tuesday.
"She gave birth in the moment that the match finished. That's why the son is named Aleksandr," Filippov said in comments carried by the Interfax news agency. Hosts Russia hammered Saudi Arabia 5-0 in the World Cup opener last Thursday.