Over the past 24 hours, the press has been widely discussing the possible return of Artyom Dziuba to the RPL.
More than two months ago, the striker terminated the contract with Adana Demirspor and since then has been in the status of a free agent, but in the near future he can join the ranks of the Moscow Torpedo.
According to media reports, the parties are actively negotiating, and the player himself is preparing to go to the training camp with the team.
And although, in general, the potential arrival of Dziuba in Torpedo should be assessed positively, this option can hardly be called ideal.
Moreover, he is extremely risky, and an unsuccessful performance for the “auto factory” can not only put an end to his career in Russia, but also shake his legacy.
return of the star
If we talk about the pluses, then one of the main ones is that Russian fans will once again be able to watch one of the brightest, most popular and at the same time skilled strikers in the country.
Dzyuba can be treated differently, but its level should not be questioned.
Over the past years, he has remained the leader of both Zenit and the Russian national team, which is confirmed by statistics.
Over the previous five seasons, he scored the most goals and assisted others, as a result of which he took first place in the goal + assist system (107) by a huge margin.
The second, as expected, was his ex-partner in the St. Petersburg team Serdar Azmun (90), and Fedor Smolov (61) closed the top three.
Yes, some are trying to explain Dzyuba's productivity solely by the presence of high-class teammates.
Zenit really had the most powerful selection of performers in the league, which greatly facilitated the work of the striker.
Often, the same Azmun and the star Brazilians - Malcolm, Wendel, Claudinho and Douglas Santos helped him to differ.
However, these arguments break down on Artyom's statistics in the Russian national team, where he was no longer surrounded by such top players.
Nevertheless, he still scored the most (16 goals in 27 matches), and in terms of the number of assists (eight) he was second only to Alexander Golovin (11).
And although recently his performance has not been so impressive, and during his stay in Turkey he limited himself to only one accurate blow, Dzyuba is unlikely to have lost all his skill.
By the standards of the RPL, he was and remains a high-class striker, capable of becoming a problem for the defense of any enemy and along the way helping Torpedo escape from relegation to the FNL.
Response to critics
For the benefit of Muscovites and the player himself, the wave on which Dzyuba's arrival will take place can also go.
Recently, many critical arrows have been fired at the athlete.
Some openly declared his incompetence and strongly advised him to end his career and “not be dishonored”, others ridiculed him for allegedly unsuccessful and humiliating attempts to get into RPL clubs.
But if most other athletes would break it psychologically, then Artyom can motivate to the limit.
During his career, Dzyuba has repeatedly found himself in difficult situations, but at these moments he showed his best football.
Indicative in this regard is 2018, which he entered without having a place at the base either in Zenit or in the Russian national team.
As a result, due to a conflict with Roberto Mancini, he was forced to go on loan to Tula Arsenal, where he scored six goals in ten matches and earned an invitation from Stanislav Cherchesov.
And already in the summer he became a real hero of the home world championship, although he was initially considered Smolov's understudy.
You can also remember how great he looked in confrontations with his native Spartak, whose fans did not miss the slightest opportunity to insult him both during the meeting and before it began.
Standing apart is his goal against Krasnodar in the 14th round of the 2020/21 season.
A day before the start of the most important match, an intimate video with the participation of the athlete was published on the network, in connection with which a wave of criticism again fell upon him.
Many would have understood if Artyom had not appeared on the field at all and preferred to “wait out the storm”, but he not only came out at the start, but also brought victory to the blue-white-blue.
Rivalry with Kerzhakov
Of course, the opportunity to see the charged and sporty evil Dziuba again is already more than a worthy reason to wait for the signing of a contract with Torpedo.
But no less intriguing could be his reunion with Valery Karpin in the Russian team.
After all, this is the perfect moment to put an end to the protracted conflict and allow Artem to climb to the top of the list of top scorers in the history of the country.
There is no doubt that it is important for Dzyuba to surpass the record of Alexander Kerzhakov and become the sole leader in the number of goals for the national team.
After the 2022 World Cup qualifier with Slovenia, he spoke openly about his intention to overtake the Zenit legend and called it his chance to "make history".
But it would be extremely reckless to hope for a call in the status of a free agent, and Artyom himself would hardly have accepted such a handout.
Therefore, he needs not only to acquire a club residence permit, but also to demonstrate his usual level again.
Now the national team is suspended from international competitions and is forced to be content with participation in friendly matches.
Consequently, responsibility for the result does not weigh on her, and the coach is free to experiment with the composition.
And although now Karpin is actively engaged in the rejuvenation of the team, he may well make an exception and, as a gesture of goodwill, send an invitation to the attacker.
Target for critics
Dividends from Dziuba's transition to Torpedo are understandable.
However, it also comes with a lot of risk.
And one of the main reasons lies precisely in the high expectations from his game.
Although many fans and experts have already put an end to him, they will still demand the same productivity from him as during his stay at Zenit.
However, it will be extremely difficult for him to remain as productive in the Moscow team.
Torpedo does not have the strongest selection of performers, and the lack of high-quality assistants can become critical for such a dependent striker as Dziuba.
No matter how great a footballer Artyom is, he is not capable of developing and completing attacks alone.
And without support, it will not be so easy for him to prove himself.
Yes, the lack of stellar partners could be partially compensated for by a well-organized team game, but black and white cannot boast of this.
Andrey Talalaev headed them only in October and obviously did not have time to bring all the ideas to life in a month.
Perhaps he will be able to make significant progress during the winter training camp, but this may not be enough to level the difference in class with opponents.
In terms of the cost of the composition, Torpedo occupies the penultimate line in the RPL, ahead of only Fakel.
Debunking the "myth"
And although Dzyuba's possible failure can be easily explained by a number of logical reasons, his detractors are unlikely to hear them.
They use Artyom's failure at Torpedo as proof that the hype around him was unfounded, and he achieved all his achievements solely thanks to top partners.
Moreover, in the eyes of many fans and experts, he will be strengthened in the status of one of the most overrated football players in the history of the country.
Thus, in the "Torpedo" Dziuba will have practically no time for buildup and the right to make a mistake.
He will need to immediately prove that at the age of 34 he still remains a top football player at the RPL level and is able to bring great benefits even in a team that is far from being the strongest.
Otherwise, in the summer he may again become a free agent and experience even greater difficulties in negotiations with clubs.
And then he will have to think about either ending his career, or moving to a much less competitive league.
Although this is not included in his plans.