THERE is usually a little discussion among the assembled media folk before an interview subject walks into a room.
What to ask? What issues to pursue? What's going to be "the line"? Stiliyan Petrov's appearance at Celtic Park yesterday was one of those days when none of that seemed necessary. What question could possibly be more relevant than "how are you"?
He's fine. Fine as in a smile constantly played across his lips. Fine as in he's looking to get himself fit enough to play at Parkhead again. Petrov hasn't yet been cured of acute leukaemia and, like all cancers, the disease's cruelty extends to offering its victims periods of respite and false hope. But he's in remission and his treatment is progressing well. Things are going as encouragingly as he could have hoped when the terrible diagnosis was made on March 30 last year, introducing the worst 16 months of his life.
When he pulls on a strip at Parkhead on September 8, it will be at once the same old "Stan" and an entirely different one. There won't be any marauding box-to-box runs in this benefit match – being referred to as #19Legend – in aid of various cancer charities. He's still only 34 but he's been through an ordeal that's given him a battering. "I'll play part of the #19 game, definitely," he said with a grin. "I'm trying to get fit and lose a bit of weight. I'm not going to lie, I trained with some of the young boys at Villa and my body's still aching. I'm trying to do runs, bike rides and some gym work. It's difficult considering what I went through last year but I'll definitely play a bit of the game. I'm good right now."
For a year-and-a-half his life has been about hospital wards, intensive care, chemotherapy sessions, sickness, nausea and the umpteen other ways serious illness scrambles a man's senses. He has come through the most punishing phase of the treatment. "I'm on a maintenance programme, which is a softer treatment and it's tablets at the moment. I'm finished the intensive chemotherapy and I'm in remission, which is really positive. Everything is going to plan so far.
"My life was normal but when it happened I had to change everything. I couldn't go near people because I had no immune system and I was vulnerable to infections. I had to watch my foods, everything and to be cooked the right way. I can't eat certain things and reheated foods. After a year they told me to go back to normal life and I was thinking 'what is normal life? Is it this past year or the life I had before?' There were a lot of questions. I try to watch what I eat and I try to do the right things. It's difficult, it's different, but I'm trying to get back to a normal life."
He knows that he is loved. The fact has been impossible to miss since news of his illness, his treatment and his retirement was announced. The response from his previous club and his current one, Celtic and Aston Villa respectively, was overwhelming. There have been waves of affection, goodwill and support washing over him to accompany the love of his wife and two young sons. Sympathy for any cancer victim is instinctive but the response to Petrov was heightened by the widespread recognition of his warmth and decency.
"Celtic has been incredible," he said. "I've been away from here for nearly six years and I still got letters when I got the news and everyone found out what I was going through. I got phone calls, emails, so many Celtic fans got in touch to wish me luck and to let me know they were lighting candles for me. I know there were games when the fans were chanting my name [in the 19th minute]. I've got a lot of friends up here and they sent me the YouTube links. It was just so emotional for me to watch.
"When I became a footballer I wanted to be remembered at each club as a good professional, as a good footballer but also as a good man. When you have people getting behind you like they did when I fell ill, you think to yourself 'maybe I've done what I set out to do'."
Now he's doing more. Villa gave him a youth coaching role but much of his time is also devoted to charity work. The #19 game at Parkhead on Sunday, September 8, will feature Henrik Larsson, John Hartson, Paul Lambert, Roy Keane, Dimitar Berbatov, Gareth Barry, Brad Friedel, Shay Given and Richard Dunne. Other current and former Celtic players, and other celebrities, will also be involved.
He had helped cancer sufferers even before his own diagnosis. "Until you've gone through it you do not know what it's really like. I want to make a difference, especially in research. Research is the best thing because if you manage to find a cure then everything will be forgotten."
The #19 game is a big, showpiece event. Just as significant is his unseen, private commitment. He gives time to help individual families including those caring for a three-year-old boy being treated in Birmingham Children's Hospital. "You can see when you give these families the opportunity to be closer to their kids that they are more relaxed and it is a way forward. I needed everyone beside me. Now I am trying to help these families have a chance to be beside their kids and support them. I'm providing accommodation for them and supporting them so they can be closer to their kids. It is the most important thing.
"The boy's mother is actually from Glasgow and she's a big Rangers fan. We're having a great time together . . ."
*Tickets for #19 are now on sale priced at £10 for adults and £5 for concessions. They are available to purchase online, by calling 0871 226 1888, or by visiting the Celtic Ticket Office. Net proceeds of the game will be passed to Celtic Charity and will support Petrov's nominated charities plus a range of other projects.
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