"Artyom plays with desire and passion": a veteran of the Serbia and Montenegro national team about Dziuba's double and Cherchesov's work

- UEFA bans spectators from participating in international matches due to the COVID-19 situation.

How do you like the atmosphere of the game at the empty Dynamo stadium?

- It's hard to play without fans.

The match was more like a friendly or a training match.

I know from myself that it is not at all easy to tune in such a situation to 100%.

But the games of the national team are held infrequently, and everyone understands the price for them.

- Many in Russia were afraid of the Serbia national team, which includes players from leading European clubs.

Why were Lyubisha Tumbakovich's charges defeated?

- Serbia had a good first half.

After the break, the lack of playing practice let down.

The fact is that the majority of footballers have dropped out of the competitive rhythm.

Therefore, many were not physically ready to play with such a strong and well-prepared team like Russia.

The RPL competition started earlier than the leading European championships.

It was clear that everyone had already managed to get in optimal shape.

With the rivalry of teams of approximately equal class, it is the functional and playfulness that comes to the fore at a given moment.

This state is achieved only through official matches and nothing else.

- Did Tumbakovic use all the opportunities to change the course of the game?

How do you generally assess the work of the Serbian mentor?

- I know this coach very well, because for five years I played under his leadership at Partizan.

He enjoys playing beautiful and progressive football with a lot of ball control.

But Tumbakovich needs to be given time.

I am confident that Serbia will show beautiful and effective football in the future.

I don't even doubt it.

- Djordje Despotovich, who has been playing in the Russian championship for a long time, did not get a chance to play against the players he knew well.

Was Tumbakovic fair to leave Rubin striker on the bench?

- I have no right to discuss the work of the coaching staff.

They are constantly in the team, and, as they say, they know better.

For my part, I am ready to agree with you: Despotovich could well have played the second half.

- And yet, why did the Serbs make several gross mistakes in defense?

Strahinya Pavlovich broke the rules on Zelimkhan Bakaev in the case of a penalty kick, and Nikola Maksimovich simply presented the ball to Artem Dziub before the third goal of the Russians.

There were plenty of other oversights.

- Mistakes occur when the players are not physically prepared enough and cannot maintain concentration for the entire 90 minutes.

Lap Maksimovich does not mean that he is an unqualified defender.

Otherwise, he would not have been invited to Napoli.

But without practice it is difficult to go out and demonstrate smart football.

As the game showed, Russians do not forgive mistakes.

- And what about Cherchesov?

Has the Russian national team become stronger or weaker in comparison with the World Cup?

- I think Cherchesov works great with the team.

It is important that the management trusts him.

You have no shyness, one mentor has the ability to build and update a team over the course of several years.

So the Russian team has continuity.

There is a huge number of quality football players in Russia.

But there is something, in my humble opinion, she still lacks in order to achieve even better results.

- What?

- Top-class player.

Perhaps the star of the European level will be destined to become Alexey Miranchuk from Atalanta and Fedor Chalov from CSKA.

Their makings are visible to the naked eye.

Very good guys.

We will follow them.

In general, I think that Russian football would benefit from as much representation as possible, not just in the leading leagues of the continent, but in the top clubs.

There the performers would have progressed even more and, thus, would have raised the overall level of the national team.

- Much is expected from Zelimkhan Bakayev.

Is he able to shine in Europe?

- It's too early to talk about this, but Bakaev is a good footballer.

I love to look at people like him - sharp, fast, explosive.

- Thanks to his double, Dziuba rose to second place in the list of the best scorers of the Russian national team in history.

He now has 26 goals, like Vladimir Beschastnykh.

Only Alexander Kerzhakov has more - 30. How would you rate the game of the captain of the Russians?

- You know, this is a fantastic scorer and a real center forward.

Now he is without a doubt the best player in the Russian national team.

Dziuba plays with great enthusiasm, desire, passion.

It's nice to see him on the pitch.

I want him to become the top scorer in the history of the country.

Records exist to be broken.

- Yuri Zhirkov is also approaching a kind of achievement.

On Thursday, he 

Sergei Ignashevich

- It is quite indicative that Zhirkov in his years plays for the main team of the country.

In my opinion, it is obvious that Cherchesov took the right position: the best should play, no matter how old they are - 37 or 18.

When a football player is not looked at in his passport, he feels trust and is ready to show his best game that he can.

In general, Cherchesov's position can serve as an example for many coaches.