Alexander Kerzhakov, the top scorer and now coach of the Russian national football team, explained why he left the country last fall.
“This was just an opportunity to leave, and we realized that due to the current situation we want to go somewhere warm and just be there, not in Russia. It was very difficult for me and my wife. I am afraid. I tried to explain something to myself, but I can’t find the answers, ”said Kerzhakov, in an interview with journalist and insider Nobel Arustamian.
Kerzhakov said that he did not flee and did not “reject” the country, but decided to leave to stay out of Russia.
“Do not flee, do not refuse, do not emigrate – just leave within a certain time and stay in a remote place. Because every day you see and read them all, you understand and realize the magnitude of everything that is going on. It was very difficult for me. And my wife was having a hard time. And we went, – said the former striker.
“It’s very difficult to talk in a way that doesn’t affect anything. That’s the problem with the answer I’m going to give you now. And this is unfortunately one of the biggest problems in Russia. I am scared. Never in my life could I believe this was possible. After almost every interview – you can google it or watch it – when they ask me what your real desire is, all I ask is that there is no war. in the world in general. Because I don’t understand how this is possible. So what is happening now can happen in such a modern and progressive society. I can not understand. Unfortunately it’s not working for me. I probably tried to explain something to myself somehow, but I can’t find the answers.
On February 12, 2023, Kerzhakov accepted a job offer and became head of Karmiotissa, who until April 1, played six matches under his leadership, had one win and a draw and four losses with a goal difference of 6-11. On the first day of April, the Russian expert resigned and left the team.
“In the future I will be more careful about offers. Because it was necessary to find out what kind of club, what kind of owner, what attitude is there and why the managers change often there. It was the first time in my professional career that I quit myself. You have to digest everything but I’m sure I will miss football soon. ”said the coach in the same interview with Arustamian.
In his professional career as a football player, Kerzhakov moved to his hometown of St. He played for St. Petersburg Zenit, Spanish Sevilla, Moscow Dynamo and Swiss Zurich.
As part of Zenit, he won the Russian Premier League three times, once won the Cup and twice won the Russian Super Cup. He won the UEFA Cup, Spanish Cup and European Super Cup once with Sevilla, and won the Swiss Cup with Zurich.
Kerzhakov, who played 90 games for the country’s national team, shares the title of the national team’s top scorer with Artem Dziuba with 30 goals.
He completed coaching courses throughout his football career in 2006 and after completing his performances as of 2017, he started to work as a coordinator in Zenit infrastructure teams and entered the Coaches High School.
He worked as the head coach of the Russian youth team (U-17) in 2018 and 2019, inheriting the bottom of the First Division table “Tom” in September 2020. Kerzhakov managed to raise the Tomsk team to only 18th place, and they remained in the FNL thanks to the decision of the FTC, which sent Peschanokopskaya Chaika to third place due to a fixed match.
In the 2021/22 season, Kerzhakov worked with Nizhny Novgorod, who entered the RPL and took 11th place in the standings with the team, after which his contract with him was not renewed. And then there was a departure from Russia and Karmiotissa.
Now the specialist is waiting for a new job offer and is ready to consider various options.