Debut in the FNL at 15 and interest from Manchester United: how Sergey Pinyaev becomes a star of Russian football

Internships in England and incredible goals

The name of Sergei Pinyaev became known to the general public several years ago. Videos with a cut of the game actions of the pupil of "Chertanovo" collected thousands of views, and he himself broke all performance records in children's competitions, simultaneously scoring incredibly beautiful balls. For example, at the age of 13, the midfielder in a match with his peers from CSKA scored a hit with a rabona, and in another meeting he easily beat seven opponents on the way to the goal.

For short stature and amazing technique, the young talent was even compared to Lionel Messi. The play of the talented young man was also appreciated at Manchester United. In 2017, 2018 and 2019, the Russian underwent an internship at an English club and showed himself as brightly as possible. So, in a friendly game with Bari, he scored five goals.

Not surprisingly, fans were waiting with great interest for Pinyaev's debut in adult football. At Chertanovo, Sergey was announced for the season in February 2019. At that time he was only 14. But the club was in no hurry to let the young teenager out on the field.

In September 2019, the prodigy made his debut in the Youth Football League (UFL) and helped Chertanovo win the final victory. The player took part in nine matches of the tournament, in which he scored one goal and gave two assists.

Apparently, Pinyaev's successful game in March (he scored Zenit SSHOR and gave an assist in the match with Rubin) convinced the coaches that the young footballer was quite strong enough to try himself at the adult level.

And in the very first round of the new season, the midfielder finally made his debut in the FNL. In many ways, this became possible thanks to the departure of eight Chertanovo players together with head coach Igor Osinkin to Krylya Sovetov.

In this situation, the new coach of "Chertanovo" Denis Pervushin had no choice but to trust the younger players. As part of the capital's team in the FNL, a number of 18-19-year-old performers played.

Pinyaev also got his chance. The debut fell on the match against Spartak-2. Sergey came on as a substitute in the 63rd minute, when his team was behind with a score of 0: 1, and immediately demonstrated his strong qualities to the fans.

Appearing on the field, he left the opponent's tackle in the center of the field and passed the pass to his partner, while he himself ran to open up to the sideline. Having received a reverse pass, Pinyaev easily beat Daniil Petrunin, burst into someone else's penalty area and rolled the ball between two opponents under the blow of Yuri Zavezion. All that remained was to deliver an accurate blow to the empty goal.

So Pinyaev in the first match of the FNL was marked with an assist only 30 seconds after entering the field. Along the way, at the age of 15 years, 8 months and 30 days, he became the youngest debut in the history of the league.

As a result, "Chertanovo" was defeated (1: 2), but Pinyaev himself got into the symbolic team of the first round of the FNL. After the match, Pervushin, commenting on the bright debut of his ward, said that he was part of the team's squad.

"Yes it is. 12th, 13th, 15th player is not so important. Pinyaev is really a footballer of our nearest reserve, which we will often use, ”the specialist said.

Second Assist and Debut Ball

And the words of the coach did not differ from the deeds. In the match of the 2nd round against Tomyu, Pinyaev got a little more playing time and came on as a substitute in the 58th minute. By this time, "Chertanovo" was leading in the score (1: 0), and the opponent remained in the minority.

The 15-year-old midfielder, who has returned to the left flank, is remembered for three episodes. His first useful action was a good discount on Nikita Suleimanov after a corner kick. However, a partner from the penalty shot above the gate.

Closer to the final whistle, Pinyaev performed an excellent solo pass. Sergei received the ball in his half of the field, beat the defender and, moving to the center, ran about 20 meters with the ball, after which he gave the perfect pass to his partner, but he did not score again.

However, in the fifth added minute, another raid by the youngest FNL player was crowned with success. This time he took advantage of a successful rebound from an opponent and easily beat two defenders on the left flank. Entering the penalty area, the Chertanovo player passed the empty net to Alexander Konev and became the author of the second assists in two FNL matches.

It is curious that the Chertanovo announcer, announcing the name of the goal author, did not forget to name the author of the exact pass. In general, the fans of the "devils" treat Pinyaev with great sympathy and applause every action he takes. He himself, despite the successful start of an adult career, behaves as modestly as possible.

“It's good that I managed to give two assists, but I wouldn't be upset if I didn't do it today - the main thing is that the team won. Individual achievements fade into the background if the team does not win, ”the footballer said after the match against Tomyu.

The first goal was not long in coming. In the third round away match against Irtysh, Pinyaev struck someone else's goal and became the youngest goal scorer in FNL history. Sergey managed to excel at the age of 15 years 9 months and 10 days.

This time, the midfielder entered the field immediately after the break, and the opponent by that time was in the minority. And in the 64th minute, the footballer scored his first goal at the senior level. Having received a pass near the left corner of someone else's penalty area, he removed the shell under his right foot, easily walked away from the defender and accurately shot into the far corner.

Moreover, at the end of the meeting, Pinyaev could twice become the author of an assist, but his partners could not take advantage of his accurate passes. So, Sergei brought the goalkeeper Maxim Savelyev one-on-one with a thin cutting pass, but he did not get into the near corner. 

And in the 75th minute, the young footballer received his debut yellow card in the FNL - for disrupting a promising attack of the Irtysh. 

Eight good dribbles and problems in defense

An analysis of the detailed statistical calculation of Pinyaev's game allows us to better understand what kind of football player he is. Sergey's main strength is his technique. He works great with the ball at speed and easily beats opponents one on one. This is facilitated by his short height - 167 cm. The Russian really resembles Messi and Andrei Arshavin with a low center of gravity.

On average, Chertanovo midfielder dribbles 11 times per match. This is one of the best indicators of the tournament. On average, five attempts end successfully for Pinyaev.

True, it should be noted that Sergei appears on the field towards the end of matches, when most defenders are getting tired. A fresh and quick opponent simply leaves them no chance and calmly beats even two people, as it was in the fight against Tom. And in two meetings by the time he entered the field, the opponent remained in the minority.

The statistics of the passes performed by the midfielder are also impressive. 69% are accurate. At the same time, Pinyaev is not limited to passes back and across the field, which one would expect from such a young player, but boldly exacerbates the situation. He has an average of 2.3 key passes per match, and 3.1 into the box.

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Publication by Sergey Pinyaev (@ spinyaev09) Jan 11, 2020 9:55 am PST

But in order to score the debut goal, it took the 15-year-old performer only one hit. He never hit another's goal in the FNL again. This can be explained by the youth's football altruism. In situations where he himself could strike, Sergei preferred to continue the attack through a partner. This happened, for example, in the episode with Konev's goal in the match against Tomyu.

Pinyaev's weak point is his work on the defensive, which is not surprising, given his age and modest anthropometric data. According to media reports, as a child, the midfielder was even expelled from the Lokomotiv school for his small stature.

However, it cannot be said that a young man finds himself on the lawn after every single combat with older players. The player of "Chertanovo" very competently covers the ball with his body and does not allow his opponents to tackle.

And Pinyaev's martial arts statistics based on the results of three matches cannot be called a failure. He won 13 out of 32 micro-duels, and in attack - 8 out of 20. But the number of interceptions (0.78 per game on average) and rebounds (3.1) is still quite modest.

Nevertheless, the Transfermarkt portal already estimates the 15-year-old footballer at € 200 thousand, making him one of the ten most expensive footballers in the world born in 2004.

Semin's delight and Safonov's skepticism 

The debut of the Chertanovo pupil in the FNL made an impression on the experts. For example, the director of the club, Nikolai Larin, said that Manchester United were satisfied with Pinyaev's game.

“We must do everything gradually and in no case go too far. If he plays brightly in every match, he will win a place in the starting lineup. In any case, it will happen sometime! The match was attended by the breeder of Manchester United, the club received an SMS: “Great debut, congratulations,” Larina TASS quotes.

Famous coaches also attended the game against Spartak-2: Yuri Semin, Boris Ignatiev, Omari Tetradze and Marko Nikolic. According to Larin, they were impressed by the actions of the 15-year-old football player.

“Before that they did not know about Seryozha, now, at last, they saw that there are promising guys in Russia, the most important thing is to make him really reveal himself. Everyone is very happy with the debut, but we will not sing praises. However, it was better than good - a great debut. This suggests that there are still players in the academy - we will rely on them, ”Larin added.

And Semin later confirmed that the game of 15-year-old Pinyaev amazed him.  

“I liked all of Pinyaev's actions. Absolutely everyone. He played for half an hour, but during that time he impressed me. Once he was noticed at Manchester United, he deserves it, "RB-Sport quotes the ex-mentor of Lokomotiv.

FNL President Igor Efremov spoke a little more carefully. He stressed that the debut of the Chertanovo footballer, indeed, turned out to be bright, but urged not to overdo it with praise. And the famous agent Alexei Safonov wrote on Twitter that Pinyaev "will not play at the top level."