“People said I looked like I was gliding when I played; that was thanks to the dance training” - Georgi Kinkladze explains the unusual secret behind his Premier League stardom

Georgi Kinkladze lit up the Premier League in the 1990s.

Becoming a professional footballer requires you to take full advantage of any point of difference you can possibly find – and proficiency in another sport can be a huge asset.

Peter Schmeichel attributes his famous starfish sprawl to his handball background. Petr Cech believes playing as a goalie in ice hockey prepared him well for football. Didier Drogba points to the intelligence and footwork skills he learned playing basketball. Ruud van Nistelrooy and Zlatan Ibrahimovic both learned balance and body control from taekwondo.

For Georgi Kinkladze, it was dance.

“Traditional Georgian dance is very physical"

Georgi Kinkladze was famed for his fine footwork (Image credit: PA)

More specifically, it was the traditional stylings of Georgian folk dancing, which for men can be extremely explosive, fast-paced and involved a lot of spinning and quick, intricate footwork.

That just so happens to be exactly how Manchester City fans would describe Kinkladze’s work on the wing at Maine Road in the 1990s.

Georgi Kinkladze made his Georgia debut as a teenager (Image credit: Alamy)

Kinkladze remains an icon in the blue half of Manchester for his sensational goals and for sticking by the club for two more seasons even after their relegation from the Premier League in his first campaign in 1995/96.

Asked if he believed his childhood dance lessons had an impact on the way he played, Kinklaze told FourFourTwo: “Yes, I believe that they did.

“Traditional Georgian dance is very physical. With this kind of dance, you are on your toes, moving with high energy and with perfect balance.

“Taking dance lessons gave me the core strength to change direction instantly while keeping my upper body still.

“People said I looked like I was gliding when I played; that was thanks to the dance training”

Kinkladze is also grateful to have got the opportunity to play international football for Georgia when he was still just a teenager, believing it put him on the radar for clubs like Boca Juniors and City before his later move to Ajax.

He said: “Back then, the Georgian league wasn't scouted heavily.

“Playing for the national team was my chance to show that I could perform on the big stage. Without those international caps, I might never have left Georgia and moved abroad.”