Russian stunner confirms split from bad-boy footballer she stuck by during jail time
The partner of Russian footballer Aleksandr Kokorin has confirmed the pair have split up, after the former singer had stuck by the star when he was jailed in 2019 for assault on a government official.
“Have Aleksandr and I divorced? We were never officially married. So it’s difficult to call it a divorce,” wrote blonde model Daria Valitova in response to a question on Instagram Stories.
“But in terms of personal relationships, our paths diverged, and this happened quite a long time ago.”
The pair had been in a relationship since 2014 and Valitova gave birth to their son, Michael, in 2017.
The singer had stuck by her man when he was jailed alongside fellow Russian footballer Pavel Mamaev for two assaults carried out in October of 2018 when they had spent a night partying in Moscow.
One assault involved an attack on a Russian government official in a café, during which Kokorin struck him over the head with a chair.
The other incident saw the pair assault the driver of a well-known Russian TV presenter.
Kokorin was handed 18 months in a penal colony while Mamaev was given 17 months, although both were released on parole after serving just under one year.
Valitova had issued a furious defense of her partner at the time of the sentencing, claiming that the authorities were “ruining” his career.
“What the hell is this? His career is over. And how will he see his children? For people, the show was staged for two weeks. The series continues!" Valitova had raged.
“How is it possible to bully such talented people, to ruin them?”
Valitova, 30, appears to have erased all images of herself alongside Kokorin on her Instagram account, where she has 215,000 followers.
Kokorin, 30, was rated among the best Russian footballers of his generation and was at one point linked with a possible move to English Premier League team Arsenal.
He made 48 appearances for his country, including at two editions of the European Champions and the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
However, his career stalled and after the prison scandal he left Zenit St. Petersburg.
He was picked up by Moscow giants Spartak but failed to revive his career, later joining Italian team Fiorentina in January for what has turned out to be another woefully unsuccessful spell.
Kokorin was already being portrayed as one of his country’s footballing ‘bad boys’ even before his run-in with the law.
After Russia’s embarrassing early exit at the 2016 Euros, Kokorin and Mamaev were pictured at a lavish party in a Monte Carlo nightclub.
READ MORE: €250k on champagne in Monte Carlo: Russian players party after Euro 2016 failure (VIDEO)
He had also appeared in images widely circulated on social media in 2014 where he was seen beaming alongside topless alleged escorts while clutching at their waists.
— Будочка (@AngryBudochka) October 22, 2021
In December 2017, Kokorin was embroiled in another scandal when he posted a video of himself firing a pistol while congratulating the bride and groom at a wedding in North Ossetia.
The latest reports on his footballing future indicate that Fiorentina will look to offload Kokorin in the January transfer window, potentially on loan, with a move back to Russia on the cards.
The forward has made just four Serie A appearances for the club this season, all of which came from the bench.
