Athletistic/Football. Former head coach of the Russian national team Oleg Romantsev explained why he did not invite Zenit midfielder Andrei Arshavin to the national team for the 2002 World Cup. This World Cup s took place in Japan and South Korea.
“More than twenty years have passed, and it is unlikely that I will be able to restore everything in detail. I only remember that the position in which Arshavin could have been most useful was then firmly occupied by Mostovoy, whom we lost in such a way unexpectedly just before departure. at the 2002 World Cup. Moreover, Andrei was then a very young footballer and was just taking his first steps at a high level, and during the test match with the Belarusian national team he did not didn’t look good.
At that time, Arshavin did not convince me. Later, I did not regret it, since the failure in Japan had nothing to do with his absence from the national team. I hope that Andrei then took everything with understanding. And the fact that over time he became one of the leaders of the national team, shone at Euro 2008, then within Arsenal, did not surprise me at all. He was a midfielder of rare playing intelligence and a master of the episode. Arshavin knew how to surprise both the stands and his opponents,” Romantsev said, as quoted by Sport-Express.
The Russian national team at the 2002 World Cup took only third place in group H. The Russians first beat Tunisia (2:0), then lost to Japan (0:1), and in the decisive group match they lost to Belgium (2:0). :3). As a result, Oleg Romantsev’s team with 3 points in 3 matches could not reach the World Cup playoffs.
Source: Sport
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