Unjustified spending: why Dzyuba, Ozdoev and Cheryshev are not interested in RPL clubs

This summer, a curious situation has developed in Russian football.

Two rounds of the new RPL season have already passed, however, several players remain in the status of free agents at once, a year ago they not only played important roles in their former teams, but were also considered the cornerstones of the Russian national team.

Artyom Dzyuba and Magomed Ozdoev still cannot decide on their future, Pavel Mamaev and Yuri Gazinsky were left without a club, Yuri Zhirkov is thinking about ending his career, high demand is not observed in relation to Denis Cheryshev and Alan Dzagoev.

Of course, each case is individual.

According to rumors, Dzyuba seriously intends to go to Europe, therefore, if he considers proposals from RPL teams, then not in the first place.

His former teammate Ozdoev also announced his desire to try his hand abroad.

Cheryshev, on the other hand, spent his entire career in Spain and would probably like to stay in the Pyrenees, but the increased trauma made his signing extremely unprofitable.

Over the past three seasons, the former Valencia midfielder has appeared on the field in 73 matches and played a total of 3129 minutes.

For comparison, his ex-partner Carlos Soler almost had one competitive year (2948) to achieve a similar indicator.

And it would be fine if it was only in a lost competition - then a pupil of Real Madrid could simply move to a team with a lower class and continue to play in the Example.

But during this period, he received four injuries and twice had coronavirus, missing a total of 184 days.

Therefore, Cheryshev has to think about returning to his homeland.

Some time ago, this was practically not mentioned, but in April, his father Dmitry said that his son was seriously considering the possibility of moving to a Russian club.

But from that moment on, things never moved forward.

The fact of negotiations with Spartak and Dynamo was not confirmed, but Torpedo made it clear that the midfielder would not be paid a high salary.

And this is a little surprising, because a couple of years ago it was reported that there was a high demand for Cheryshev in the RPL.

According to the Spanish media, in 2020 he refused Krasnodar and an unnamed team from Moscow, although they offered more than favorable conditions.

With the rest of the players, everything is somewhat more complicated.

Gazinsky, Dzagoev, Zhirkov and Mamaev are unlikely to count on moving abroad, and for a number of reasons.

All four do not show a sparkling game, and lately they have missed a lot due to certain circumstances.

The first two were tormented by injuries, the third can no longer consistently demonstrate a high level at 38, and the fourth in the last year was more involved in solving legal problems with his ex-wife than football.

For Rostov, Pavel played only six matches, and after moving to Khimki, he only appeared on the field once - he came out at the start in a meeting with Dynamo, but was already replaced during the break.

True, this did not save from a major defeat (0:3).

If you look at all of the above players, they have one thing in common - with the exception of 29-year-old Ozdoev, everyone has exchanged their fourth decade and are at the final stage of their careers.

Yes, each of them has tremendous experience, and some are still able not only to be useful, but also to “make a difference” in the Premier League, which has recently lost many star legionnaires.

But despite this, the clubs are not in a hurry to offer them favorable conditions and get quality performers at their disposal, but rely on their own young athletes.

Perhaps a little less skillful, but also less highly paid.

In early July, there were rumors about negotiations between CSKA and Gazinsky.

It was even reported that the player passed a medical examination, but since then no new information has been received.

Dzagoev was allegedly interested in Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, but only contacts with the leadership of Alania playing in the FNL were confirmed.

True, this was also discussed back in June, after which silence hung in the information field.

Ozdoev, on the other hand, attracted the attention of only Torpedo and Ural, outsiders of the championship, hardly corresponding to the status of the four-time champion of Russia, who lost the competition only to the star Wendel.

As for Dziuba, recently the Azerbaijani "Karabakh" and "Neftchi" were named among the applicants for him, and "Sochi" was ready to host him in the RPL.

According to the Metaratings portal, the forward was not satisfied with a salary of €1 million a year.

And it's no wonder

The reluctance of clubs to acquire expensive and older players can be explained by several factors.

Firstly, the situation in the world has seriously hit the wallets of the RPL clubs, which are not ready to meet the financial needs of star athletes.

The same Dziuba and Ozdoev are unlikely to agree to a serious reduction in wages for the sake of playing in the league, the winners of which they have repeatedly become.

Yes, for some, winning gold outside of Zenit and proving that the northern capital mistakenly decided not to renew contracts with them could be a serious motivation, but is it really that important for them?

For both, the next contract will most likely be one of the last before retiring, so it seems logical to either conclude it on extremely favorable terms, or take advantage of the chance and try yourself in another place.

Secondly, management may consider it more logical not to invite experienced players to the team, but to rely on their own pupils or players who already have existing agreements.

For example, the same Ozdoev could strengthen the support zone of the conditional Spartak or CSKA.

But the first have Nail Umyarov and Daniil Denisov, and even recently bought out Christopher Martins Pereira.

And the second - Maxim Mukhin, Ivan Oblyakov and Konstantin Kuchaev.

Of course, Magomed could compete with each of the above performers, but does it make sense to acquire him in the long run?

Thirdly, the suspension from European competitions could well have made adjustments to the work of the selection departments.

Now Russian teams play in only two competitions, and in order to succeed there, it is not necessary to have two full-fledged teams.

The format of the Premier League has not changed, therefore the number of matches has remained the same, and the reform of the Russian Cup, although approved, is unlikely to force the participants to arrange a mass purchase of players.

On the contrary, the current situation is literally pushing clubs to give preference to the players they already have, especially when it comes to young players.

In fact, the struggle is either for gold medals or for maintaining a residence permit in the elite division, which can dispose strong teams to such decisions.

Most of them have too strong a selection of performers to fly into the FNL, but not high enough to compete with Zenit.

And this unties their hands, allowing them to calmly build a new team and prepare for other, more important seasons.

Therefore, the same "Spartak" can give carte blanche to a very young but promising coach Guillermo Abascal, and he, in turn, continue to trust Umyarov, Denisov and Khlusevich, despite the abundance of mistakes on their part.

Krasnodar also took the course for rejuvenation,

having in the application only two athletes over 30 years old.

CSKA and Lokomotiv manage practically without veterans, however, both have very qualified legionnaires.

As well as the same red and white.

Therefore, there is reason to believe that it will be quite difficult for the stars of the past to find a team that will satisfy both their sports and financial requirements.

If the options for leaving for Europe do not work out, then they will have to noticeably moderate their appetites and lower their salary requirements.

After all, the top clubs may well not meet them, and the middle peasants and outsiders do not have the same opportunities.