Irina Akinfeeva, the mother of Igor Akinfeev, the goalkeeper and captain of CSKA Moscow, opens up about the surge of emotions she felt when coach Valery Gazzaev began steering her son toward the army club’s first team in 2002. She shared these memories in a conversation for the documentary series, Sports Express, titled “Akinfeev. Season 20.”
“Naturally, I was frightened. I didn’t grasp what was unfolding. I asked: ‘Vova, where are you headed? What is the plan? What comes next?’ He began to lay it out: there will be a difficult road, then the breakthrough to the main squad. Even then, it didn’t fully register with me,” she recalled, reflecting on the early days of Igor’s journey.
Igor Akinfeev made his senior debut on March 29, 2003, for CSKA in the RFPL Cup’s Round of 16 against Zenit St. Petersburg in Petrovsky. He appeared for Zenit in the second half after replacing Dmitry Kramarenko. His league debut followed on March 31, 2003, in a match versus Krylia Sovetov, where he saved a late penalty, signaling the start of a storied domestic career.
Over the years, Akinfeev helped CSKA Moscow secure six Russian championships and seven national cups. He was part of the squad that won the UEFA Cup in the 2004/05 season, marking a high point in club competition. With the Russian national team, he earned a bronze medal at the 2008 European Championship held in Austria and Switzerland. In 2018, he helped Russia reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup hosted on home soil, a moment that resonated deeply with fans across the country.
In the current Russian Premier League standings, CSKA sits among the upper-echelon clubs, holding 28 points after 18 rounds. The team is set to face Orenburg in the opening fixture after the league resumes in March, continuing a campaign that has kept Igor Akinfeev at the center of both club and national team discussions. The dialogue around Akinfeev’s form and impact has persisted through the years, including commentary from peers and pundits who weigh his performances against the evolving landscape of Russian football.
Historically, analysts have considered Akinfeev’s career through the lens of resilience and consistency, often revisiting how he handles pressure, reactions to criticism, and the role leadership plays within a top-tier squad. This ongoing narrative mirrors the broader conversation about goalkeeping excellence in Russian football and the ambitions of a club like CSKA Moscow to compete at the highest levels on both the domestic and European stages.