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Journeyman Dzyuba wins Russian hearts at World Cup
MOSCOW, June 29, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Russia hope hulking Arsenal striker
Artem Dzyuba’s mean streak can lead them past former champions Spain in the
host nation’s first World Cup knockout stage match since Soviet times.
That’s Arsenal Tula — not the glamorous London side.
Russia’s reliance on the boot of a man who plies his trade in a town more
famous for once making imperial guard rifles than its football speaks to the
underdog nature of the men in red.
Coach Stanislav Cherchesov has pieced together a rag-tag team of local
journeymen who bicker often and create the type of drama usually associated
with a team of pampered superstars.
The 1.96-metre (6ft 5ins) Dzyuba — his nose bent out of shape and face
often twisted in a scowl — is the rabble rouser of this overachieving bunch.
“This will only make us meaner,” he said after 10-man Russia lost 3-0 to
Uruguay in their last group match, slightly taking the gloss off their two
resounding victories until then.
The loss meant the host nation finished second in Group A and were paired
with 2010 champions Spain in Sunday’s last 16 showdown at Moscow’s Luzhniki
Stadium, the 80,000-capacity flagship venue of the tournament.
Dzyuba was particularly flustered because he scored two superb goals and
assisted one in Russia’s 5-0 trashing of Saudi Arabia and 3-1 defeat of
Mohamed Salah’s Egypt.
The 29-year-old has been Russia’s one consistently productive forward and
a favourite with the fans for freely speaking his mind.
Dzyuba’s resolve to prove his point no matter the cost shone through when
he offered to pay a 120,000 euro ($140,000) fee for the right to play Zenit
Saint Petersburg — the club that loaned him out to Tula.
He scored a late equaliser that crippled Zenit’s 2018 title aspirations.
Then Dzyuba made the gesture that characterised the Russian domestic
season by running up to Zenit coach Roberto Mancini and pointing triumphantly
to the name on the back of his shirt.
The Italian left Saint Petersburg under a cloud of criticism and has now
taken over the reins of the Italy national team.
He is not the only big name in football likely to remember who Dzyuba is.
Unai Emery replaced Arsene Wenger at the more illustrious Arsenal in May
after previously coaching Neymar’s Paris Saint-Germain and Sevilla.
Emery’s brief spell managing Dzyuba’s first club Spartak Moscow ended
abruptly with a 5-1 loss to crosstown rivals Dynamo in 2012.
A dejected Dzyuba was asked to explain the drubbing. “Ask our
‘trenerishka’,” he replied.
The non-existent Russian word literally means “little coach”. It
figuratively implies someone with the football knowledge of a child.
The embattled Emery was already heading out the door at Spartak and Dzyuba
was derisively called “little player” for attacking his coach. The nickname
is unlikely to stick for much longer.
A career tailspin that saw Dzyuba sent by Spartak to a team in Siberia and
by Zenit to Tula has helped him gain a sense of purpose that is paying off at
the World Cup.
His is big and pacey — and occasionally brutally honest.
“Russian football needs players like him,” said veteran sports reporter
Igor Rabiner. “He is a passionate man.”
BSS/AFP/SG/SSS/1646 hrs