While everyone's eyes are focused on the before and after of this World Cup opener, Russian coach Cherchesov is hidden in the shade. If there is no going to the Russian front to visit the camp, very few people really can notice this old mustache.
At yesterday's press conference, The mustache made a good mockery of the reporters. When asked by British journalist James Dodd, he quipped whether his name was James Bond (007). When asked by reporters if fans should imitate his beard in order to support the Russian national team, Chelchesov responded: "I don't know what you're talking about. Everyone who comes to the stadium to watch the ball has a mustache. ”
Asked what he wanted to say to the fans, Chelchesov told foreign reporters: "It's hard to walk around Russia's labyrinthine city. It takes a long time to start driving from the time you step on the accelerator. ”
Translated in a more literary way, this sentence can also be expressed in the following form:
"The search for the Russian soul is a labyrinth, and you're hard to find a way. It takes a long time for us to get started, but once we start, we are brave enough to move forward. But no one does things just because of words, so we have to prove it with our actions. ”
Perhaps Russians are born with a gift for literature. For Cherchesov, whose appearance is no longer impressive, it is still not a problem to say such famous sayings and aphorisms as above. But in his time as a player, he could not be called "unassuming".
In the 1990s, Cherchesov was famous for his decoy top and black pants in his goal socks, and was once considered a "hipster" among the players. But on the pitch, Chelchesov's highlight moments were not many. After Spartak's victory over Real Madrid in 1991, he travelled to East German side Dynamo Dresden in 1993, when he did not speak a word of German.
In the competition with east German legendary goalkeeper René Müller, Chelchesov was a loser at first. However, Müller left Dresden in mid-1993, which turned the peak of Chelchesov's career around.
What follows is good memories. In 1993/94, Chelchesov had his best season in Dresden, with the team ranking highest in the Bundesliga and reaching the semi-finals of the German Cup, falling at the feet of Bremen. And that season was probably Chelchesov's brightest season.
In an interview at the age of 50, Chelchesov recalled the past. He said that on 2 September 1994, Dresden lost 2-0 to Borussia Möncheng, where he gave a big gift to striker Dahlin. But since that time, Dahlin and he have become acquainted and are good friends who see each other from time to time to this day. "So in hindsight it looks like I meant it, even though I didn't know it myself." Cherchesov, the mustache, said with a bad smile.
Time flies, and today Chelchesov has become a qualified manager. Although he had only brought Legia Warsaw to the league title before that, the team had only lost four games and conceded only 28 goals that season. Just before he took office, no one dared to believe that the Russian Football Association had chosen him, because his overseas experience was too conspicuous to please Putin.
But Cherchesov still stepped forward and almost solved the problem for the chaotic host. In the case of the aging of the defensive line, he changed the tactical system of the Russian national team for many years, leading the team to play three defenders. In a sense, inspired by CSKA Young Marshal Goncharenko, the Belarusian experiment was even crazier in the capital's first magnate.
In Chelchesov's lineup, everything is not so extreme. The rise of Kudryasov, Vasin and Gigia has made it possible to change Russia's tactics; the former is a veteran of the downstream team for many years, and the latter two are the rising stars of the giants. Vasin, in particular, is the "pro-son" of Goncharenko, and the success or failure of the three defenders is almost all in his own right.
But earlier this year, both Vassin and Gigia had problems with their cruciate ligaments. Vasin was injured during winter training; Gigia was even worse, having been kicked by a player from Shanghai SIPG and broke the upper edge of his knee. Faced with horrific injuries, Chelchesov said at a press conference in March this year: "That's the way it is, we lose a key player every month. But the most important thing is to stop complaining and prepare for the next game. ”
Vassin, who missed the World Cup due to injury
Cherchesov's optimistic personality did not avoid exacerbation of injuries. At the end of March, Russia lost its top star Kokolin; in the final round of the Premier League, Glushakkov retired from the game due to injury; in the warm-up match, Rausch and Neustedt were forced to withdraw, forcing Cherchesov to call back the 38-year-old Ignashevic – of course, the idea of a three-back was also in vain.
In the face of the pressure of the host, the vast majority of people may have collapsed. Only by knowing so much can you feel how remarkable Cherchesov was at that pre-match press conference.
Even when most people were not hopeful, Cherchesov was the one with a positive spirit. Perhaps only such a person can help the weakest host to break through the group pass, after all, he is an old fritter who laughs at life and has long understood that all the miracles in the world have a reasonable price.
This article represents the views of the author only and does not represent the position of PP Sports.