Russia Cherchesov Under Growing Pressure

The popular excuse for Russia’s poor showing in the recent Confederations Cup was the loss of key players to injury ahead of a tournament at which the semi-finals had been decreed the minimum requirement of Stanislav Cherchesov’s team by local officials, media and fans alike.

- Victor Gusev

However, not all of the country’s absentees were unable to play, and a sense of growing unrest is enveloping the 2018 World Cup hosts.

Igor Denisov of Lokomotiv Moscow, who is widely considered to be the country’s top holding midfielder, was not invited to be part of the national setup due to his long-standing conflict with the national coach. While Cherchesov explained the 33-year-old’s omission was down to tactical considerations and peculiarities of team formation, it had not been forgotten that Denisov was put up for sale when he was coached by Cherchesov at Dynamo Moscow in 2015 and forced to train alone after he insulted his boss.

Rumours also abound about a conflict between Cherchesov and the country’s biggest attacking threat, Zenit’s 6ft 5in centre forward Artem Dzyuba. Although he did join the training camp prior to the Confederations Cup, Dzyuba left a few days later with official sources and the player himself citing a knee injury. Yet on his return to Saint Petersburg he was instantly fit enough to take part in training and pre-season games.