The call up of eight Spartak players, the absence of Dzyuba and Chalov, problems with motivation: what worries the fans of the Russian national team

Why were there eight Spartak players in the application?

When announcing the composition of the national team, fans and experts traditionally pay close attention to the fact which of the clubs received the greatest representation. And although the trend with the dominance of Spartak Moscow in this aspect was outlined at the end of last year, in 2023 it reached a new level. If six players of the red and white were called up to prepare for the meetings with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, this time their number increased to eight - more than a quarter of the total application. In addition to Alexander Sobolev, Georgy Djikia, Alexander Selikhov, Daniil Khlusevich and Ruslan Litvinov, who already have experience of playing for the country, three more got a chance to prove themselves. We are talking about Anton Zinkovsky, Daniil Denisov and Danil Prutsev, who, along with Ilya Pomazun, entered the list of potential debutants. And there could have been more of them, if Nikita Chernov and Mikhail Ignatov had not been unhooked at the last moment.

On the one hand, such trust in the Spartacists can be called logical. The team is second in the RPL table and continues to fight in the Cup, and the Russians regularly receive playing time under the guidance of Guillermo Abascal. At the same time, only Zinkovsky this season has not yet reached the mark of a thousand minutes played in all competitions, while the same Denisov has already spent more than 2 thousand on the field and is second only to stars - Quincy Promes and Roman Zobnin.

However, this is not always enough to get on the roster of the national team. Therefore, the question arises why Valery Karpin made such a bet on the players of Spartak. Is this due solely to their current state or the fact that the current game of the Muscovites causes positive impressions in the head coach? Or his desire to return to the practice of building a squad based on blocks from different clubs. At one time, this practice was actively used by many of his colleagues, who often formed entire lines of representatives of one team. Or maybe the coach just wants to check whether specific performers are able to look as organic in the national team.

In any case, accusing Karpin of bias is hardly worth it. After all, there are plenty of logical reasons for summoning a large delegation from the camp of ten-time national champions. It is not easy to find competitors that are noticeably superior to them. Plus, in June, the national team can take part in the first championship of the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA), and before that it is highly desirable to check the nearest reserve. After all, this is the goal that the specialist seems to pursue.

Why aren't many stars included in the list?

Karpin's intention to see as many new performers as possible in action is indicated not only by the challenge of four debutants, but also by the presence in the register of Alexander Soldatenkov, Alexander Silyanov and Konstantin Tyukavin, who can hardly be attributed to the leading players in the country. At the same time, there were not several star players in the squad at once, either personifying the national team earlier, or demonstrating a high level right now. These include both the same Zobnin - a key figure in the midfield of Spartak, and Daniil Utkin - an integral part of the midfield of Rostov and one of the best assistants of the RPL. Moreover, if the second was invited to the autumn goods, the first did not even get into the extended list.

This also includes Fyodor Chalov and Vladimir Pisarsky (formerly Sychevy), who are in excellent shape. The CSKA forward ranks fourth in the race of scorers of the RPL, and in the spring he has already managed to score a goal in the Premier League and two in the Cup. The Krylia Sovetov striker was no less productive (0 + 3). But the focus of attention was expected to be the absence of Artem Dzyuba in the application. In the spring, he made a bright debut in the RPL for Lokomotiv and scored a hat-trick in the confrontation with Rostov headed by Karpin, but the coach was not impressed.

Of course, the reason for the decision may well be Dzyuba's inconsistency with Karpin's game model and the notorious bet on youth. However, this may not stop there. It should not be ruled out that personal relationships may be to blame. Probably, the opinion of the coach was influenced by the recent interview of the athlete, in which he spoke extremely negatively about the performance of the national team in the autumn control meetings and criticized his compatriots for lack of motivation. And this could well not please Valery Georgievich. As well as Artem's excessive focus on conquering the record of Alexander Kerzhakov.

Will Karpin solve the problem with motivation?

Nevertheless, although Dzyuba's statements were harsh in places, in general, he clearly formulated the problem. The performance of the Russian national team in the autumn of 2022 rightly caused a storm of indignation and made many doubt Karpin's words about the need for friendly matches. His charges were criticized for their lack of zeal, which was fully confirmed by the results. In three games, the team scored only two goals, both of which came in the meeting with Kyrgyzstan (2: 1), while the remaining two ended with the same score - 0: 0.

So far, it seems that Karpin himself does not quite agree with such assessments. After all, after the matches with Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, he never spoke about the lack of motivation or charge to fight on the part of his players. On the contrary, after both games, he noted that he was satisfied with the attitude of the players to the matter, and stressed that the goal of winning "blood from the nose" was not set for the athletes. It is noteworthy that this is what Dzyuba did not like.

However, it raises questions whether this will be enough in the rivalry with the powerful team of Iran, which took part in the World Cup in Qatar at the end of last year. There she finished third in Group B, behind only the United States and England, which later reached the quarterfinals of the World Cup. At the same time, the Persian Leopards fought to the last for a place in the playoffs.

What impact will the return of Golovin and Miranchuk have on the national team?

Perhaps Karpin hopes that the impetus for the team's game will be given by the return to its camp of two star midfielders, who are now defending the colors of Monaco and Torino. Like Zobnin, Alexander Golovin and Alexei Miranchuk have not played for the national team since the end of the qualifying tournament for the 2022 World Cup, for which there were logical reasons. The coaching staff did not want to complicate the lives of athletes with long journeys and therefore did not even include them in the extended list for previous meetings.

The question is why Karpin decided to turn to their services again now. Perhaps this is due to the level of the opponent, which certainly can not be called passing, or with the potential participation in the CAFA championship, which requires the proper level of preparation and chemistry. Or maybe reluctantly again to be under a barrage of criticism due to the lack of results. Of course, the presence of Golovin and Miranchuk does not guarantee a victory, but it significantly increases the chances of it. Another failure can have an extremely negative impact not only on the atmosphere around the team, but on the attitude to the specialist himself.

At the same time, it is extremely curious whether the challenge of Golovin and Miranchuk implies their participation in both matches or everything will be limited to the performance against Iran. Still, in a meeting with a much less powerful Iraq, Karpin can try to do without his stars, leaving practice to reservists and debutants.