The key facts

  • Sergei Stepashin called his remark an 'impression': Sobolev and Glushenkov may have been deliberately left out to keep them fresh for Zenit
  • The national team squad for the November friendlies became known on 6 November
  • On 12 November Russia will play Uzbekistan in Tashkent, and on 17 November — Venezuela in Krasnodar

Stepashin's theory and the November match schedule

A member of the board of directors of Dynamo Sergei Stepashin suggested, that Zenit forwards Alexander Sobolev and Maxim Glushenkov were left out of the Russia squad for the November matches because it was decided to keep them fresh for the club. He voiced his opinion in a comment that Komsomolskaya Pravda quotes (the newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda), and Gazeta.Ru also writes, citing him.

What is known about the decision

“This is the decision of our national team coach Valery Karpin. Sobolev and Glushenkov — the best players from Zenit St. Petersburg — are not there either. Although I find this very strange. I have the impression that they were deliberately kept fresh for Zenit and not called up to the national team. But that is my version,” Komsomolskaya Pravda quotes Stepashin as saying. The final squad for the November friendlies became known on 6 November. As part of the training camp, the team will face Uzbekistan in Tashkent on 12 November, and will play Venezuela in Krasnodar on 17 November.

Context

Stepashin stressed that his words are merely a personal theory, not a confirmed fact: the publication gives no official explanation for the players' absence from the squad. Gazeta.Ru also recalls the national team's recent results: on 29 September Russia beat Iran (2:0), on 3 October they defeated Namibia 6:0, and on 6 October they drew with Nigeria — 3:3. Earlier, on 4 November, details emerged of Valery Karpin's conflict with Glushenkov — the outlet links this topic to the discussion of the squad, but no direct cause-and-effect relationship is established in the publications.