Restless Spirit

Guus Hiddink is expected in the Russian national team

The national football team once again gathered at the Bor sanatorium to train lightly before a friendly match with the Spanish team, which will take place on May 27. I gathered reluctantly: while colleagues from other Russian clubs, who were lucky enough not to receive a call to the national team, are enjoying their holidays, there is no particular desire to play football, even with the Spaniards.

Together with the players in the Bor sanatorium, the current and future head coaches of the Russian national team Alexander Borodyuk and Guus Hiddink were invisibly present. The first one locked himself in his room on the second floor and, so as not to meet anyone, did not even go to dinner. The second was constantly remembered in vain. Almost every football player sooner or later had to answer the question of what he expected from the Dutch coach, and the spirit of Guus Hiddink literally hovered around the five-star mansion of the beginning of the last century. Surely he visited the lobby and got acquainted with the prices for the works of local artists presented here (from 300 to 1200 dollars), looked to the left along the corridor where the medical office and the administrator’s office are located, proceeded to the right of the hall into the restaurant, and then through the room with played slot machines up to the second floor, where the two-room coach suite at number 77 is located, and probably visited the billiards room and, possibly, the room where journalists are fed sandwiches. Guus Hiddink was remembered everywhere. Directly or indirectly, through the World Cup, where the Dutchman will represent the national team of the distant country of Australia, or looking at the nearby river, along which, as old-timers recall and the photo chronicles hanging in the hall tell, Boris Yeltsin walked with his friend Helmut Kohl.

“To me it’s either Hiddink or Lawyer. “I still confuse them,” said Sergei Ovchinnikov, the goalkeeper of the national team and Dynamo, sitting comfortably in a chair surrounded by reporters. It looked like he was ready for Igor Akinfeev to be number one in the team. “He is young, he needs to gain experience and confidence. What’s the point of betting on a veteran goalkeeper for a friendly game?” - Ovchinnikov asked journalists. The journalists agreed. With the same calmness, Ovchinnikov spoke about the confiscation of his real estate in Portugal. He did not pay some taxes there, and a two-story mansion near Lisbon was taken away from him to pay off the debt. “They took it away, they took it away,” the goalkeeper was philosophical and patriotic. — In Russia they wouldn’t be able to. We have a lot of leverage here to protect ourselves from that.”

Dmitry Kirichenko also tried not to worry too much about Hiddink. “I’ve only seen him on TV a couple of times, what can I expect from him? - asked the Moscow forward. “And then, if you play and score at the club, any coach will take you to the national team.” In turn, Lokomotiv midfielder Diniyar Bilyaletdinov, furtively popping one grape after another into his mouth, said that he is now playing in the inside position and seems to be doing well. The question of whether he knows whether Hiddink is using insiders has puzzled Bilyaletdinov. Later, all the players decided to watch the Australian team at the World Cup and find out their alignment. As for the game with the Spaniards, the captain of the Russian national team, Alexei Smertin, promised to wear down the opponent properly: “They are playing in the first match of the championship against the Ukrainian national team. And we are all rooting for the Ukrainians, we need to help them.”

Only Evgeniy Aldonin was rarely asked about Hiddink, the national team and other extraneous things. On June 1, the CSKA midfielder married singer Yulia Nachalova, and this event worried the public the most. “Let’s still talk about football,” pleaded Evgeniy Aldonin. “Come on,” they answered him. “For example, Valery Gazzaev... Lets you go on your honeymoon?”

Andrey VDOVIN