Artem Dzyuba is an icon of Russian football, nobody met more often for the national team than the 33-year-old. But now the striker shifts his comeback in the Sbornaja at his own request. Because of the “difficult situation” in Ukraine, as the national coach says. That’s surprising.
55 Games has so far denied Artem Dzyuba for the Russian national team, 30 goals has achieved the striker for Sbornaja. No player met more often for Russia, Dzyuba is one of the most popular footballers of Russia. Now the former captain of the national team is apparently not playing right now for Russia. “On Sunday we talked to Artem, he has assured us that he absolutely wants to play for the national team,” said National Trainer Valery Karpin on the Association Website.
“Due to the difficult situation in Ukraine, where he has many relatives, he apologized and asked to invite him to this meeting for family reasons.” Dzyuba was chosen to Russia’s footballer of the year for the second time, in 2018, he led the national team at the home World Cup with three hits in five games surprisingly to the quarter-finals. Dzyuba spent his complete professional career in the Russian league, with Zenit St. Petersburg he became three times Russian master. In the ongoing season of the Premier League Dzyuba met ten times so far, his club stands at the top of the table.
Actually, Carpin, who had taken over the national team after the European Championship last summer, gathered his team this week for important dates: On March 24, Russia should have played in the playoffs for the World Cup in Qatar against Poland, the winner of the duel would have On the 29th of March against Sweden or Scotland was played by one of the last tickets for Qatar.
“Why is you sitting like the stupid?”
But it came quite different: because of the Russian attack on Ukraine, all three possible opponents had announced in the playoffs, not to compete against the Russian team. A little later, the FIFA decided to exclude the Russians from their competitions. Karpin, who had not nominated Dzyuba since his office, called his team now for a training camp together, the team should deny a game against their own U21. Dzyuba will now be missing. The “difficult situation” in Ukraine now demanded several thousand human lives, a settlement of combat actions is not tangible despite several rounds of negotiations between Russian and Ukrainian side.
Shortly after the outbreak of the war, Dzyuba was as one of the gallions figures of Russian football sharp in the critique of his Ukrainian colleague Andriy Yarmolenko. The former professional of Borussia Dortmund had “a question to the Russian international: guys, why are you sitting like the stupid and says nothing?” Yarmolenko was born as the son of Ukrainian parents in Russian St. Petersburg and know many Russian national players personally, as he said in a video message. “You all told me that it should not be that your president does not behave correctly. So guys, you have an influence on the people, shows them, I realize you. It’s time to make your elbows show – in true life. “
“I’m proud to be Russian”
Dzyuba explained shortly thereafter in a long instagram post, so far he had held out with statements, “not because I’m scared, but because I am not an expert for politics and never busy with it and also do not intend to do this”. Of course, war “scary. But what shocks me is the human aggression and hatred, which will grow bigger every day.” At the same time, Dzyuba criticized those from his perspective of treatment: “Why always call all that teams and politics are not allowed to be mixed – but as soon as it is about Russia, forget this principle completely?”, Wrote the 33-year-old: “I am proud To be Russian. And I do not understand why athletes have to suffer now. “
Also to the colleagues, “who sit on their butt in Villas in England and say common things: we do not let us insult, we understand that all! Peace and goodness for all!” Yarmolenko, who had prompted the Russian professionals to act, plays for the London Club West Ham United in the Premier League.
The war will end, “but the human relationships will remain. And it will be impossible to rewind. Do not forget,” Reminded Dzyuba in his contribution. At the end of 2020, he was temporarily excluded from the national team to protect him from negative publicity after a private, intimate video has appeared on the Internet. To the decisive games around the European Championship, he had returned again, at the final round his hits against Denmark could not prevent the preliminary round. © n-TV