Until the collapse of the Soviet Union, fielded one of the strongest and most respected national teams in the world. In four of the seven world championships held between 1958 and 1990, the Red Army reached the final. Without the team of the Soviet Union, the finals and four European Championships did not take place, one of which was crowned with success - the national team of Yugoslavia was defeated. The Russian national teams, since 1992, have been trying to repeat this success at major tournaments. They managed to participate in only two of the four European Championships, and each time the movement to victory stopped at the group stages. Be sure to read the article 10 of the Sexiest Men in the Sports World.
Each new Championship can be the beginning of the long-awaited return of its former greatness. And, on the eve of the World Cup, it's time to remember 10 most outstanding and skilled footballers of Russia and the Soviet Union... It is worth noting that football is among the top 10 most popular sports.
10. Roman Pavlyuchenko (2003-2013, 51 matches in the national team, 21 goals)
Tottenham fans have mixed feelings about the center-forward's performance at the club level, but in international championship matches, this Russian footballer has always acted useful and efficiently. The 32-year-old made a big splash at the 2008 UEFA European Championship when he scored both goals against England in the qualifying match. Pavlyuchenko, who distinguished himself three more times during the championship and became the third in the team in terms of performance, helped the Russians to reach the semifinals.
Such a successful performance forced the management of the English club to pay a fabulous sum of 14 million euros for a contract with him. Unable to fully reveal himself in Tottenham, the center-forward returned to his homeland in 2012 and continued his career at Lokomotiv. You may be interested in the article 10 most expensive transfers in the history of football.
9.Igor Akinfeev (2004-present, 66 matches with the national team)
With Akinfeev at the gate, CSKA wins Russian championships with enviable frequency. The goalkeeper raised the Premier League Cup five times over his head and the Russian Cup six more times. The highlight of his career was the victory in the UEFA Cup final over Portuguese Sporting CP in 2005 - Akinfeev at that time was only 19 years old.
He made his international debut in 2004 at the age of 18, making him the third youngest player in the Russian national team. A year later, football critics called him the most gifted and talented goalkeeper in the history of Russian football, and only injuries prevented him from achieving outstanding results in the colors of the national team.
8. Valery Karpin (1992-2003, 72 matches in the national team, 17 goals)
The 45-year-old footballer will forever remain in the memory of Russian fans, if only because he owns the first goal after the collapse of the Soviet Union. This legendary goal was scored in August 1992 against the Mexican national team. The energetic midfielder represented Russia in three major tournaments, which, however, did not bring big victories.
At the club level, Karpin won two titles as part of Spartak and tried his hand at the Spanish Premier League. Upon returning to Russia, he announced his retirement, but still tried on the Spartak form again and played for the Russian club for two years.
7. Eduard Streltsov (1955-1968, 38 matches for the national team, 25 goals)
It is quite true that Streltsov's career was controversial. In 1958, he was accused of rape, and agreed to admit his guilt only on condition of securing his place in the national team for the upcoming World Cup. At first, the case took a completely different turn, and the press argued that the football player had nothing to do with everything that was happening, and the real culprit had already confessed to the crime.
But after Streltsov, unexpectedly for everyone, he publicly confessed, and he was sentenced to 12 years in a forced labor camp. He was severely beaten in the camp and it took months to recover. He was released 5 years later, thanks to his past sporting achievements. Streltsov acted extremely productively on the field, and this allowed him to become the fourth top scorer of the Soviet Union... Twice he was awarded the title "Player of the Year"thanks in part to an efficient game for the national team at the 1956 Olympics, from where the team took away the gold medals.
6.Albert Shesternev (1961-1971, 90 matches in the national team)
Many football fans and critics consider Shesternev to be one of the best defenders ever to appear in the colors of the Soviet national team. And even despite the fact that, as a captain, for ten years he never led the team to victory at the international level, those who watched his game with their own eyes called him a real football genius.
Shesternev could not leave football after retirement, and in 1970, at the age of 30, he tried himself as a head coach. And just two years later, he managed to lead the club to the first championship title in 19 years.
5.Igor Netto (1952-1965, 54 caps with the national team, 4 goals)
It is believed that a football player will do absolutely everything for the sake of scoring a goal, even going beyond the professional framework. Net has become a shining example of the absolute opposite. In 1962, in the World Cup match against Uruguay, the Soviet national team scored a controversial goal - the ball went through the side net. And instead of being delighted with the referee's decision, Netto went to the referee and persuaded him to change the decision.
The midfielder did not go down in the history of Soviet football as one of the best scorers, but, nevertheless, he always remained a prominent figure on the field. He helped win the national team Olympic gold medals in 1956, and four years later the European Cup.
4.Andrey Arshavin (2002-2012, 75 matches in the national team, 17 goals)
Arshavin did not live up to the expectations of the club's management and may not have been able to work out the 15 million euros paid for his transfer from Zenith to Arsenal, but his actions in the English Premier League deserve the most flattering praise. The 32-year-old striker made a huge impression in one match against Liverpool in April 2009 - he managed to save the club from defeat, replacing the infamous 4-0 score on the scoreboard with an absolutely incredible 4-4.
At the same time, repeating the record for the number of goals in one match, set back in 1946. Like Pavlyuchenko, Arshavin first loudly declared himself at Euro 2008. Having missed the start of the championship due to disqualification, he returned to the starting lineup and helped the team to reach the quarterfinals.
3. Rinat Dasaev (1979-1990, 91 matches in the national team)
When they talk about the best goalkeeper in the entire history of Soviet and Russian football, Dasaev is given an honorable second place - right after the legendary Lev Yashin. Moscow Spartak, for which he played for a long time, owes two championship titles to its goalkeeper. At the 1988 European Championship, when the national team was not among the favorites, and for obvious reasons could have been eliminated already at the first stage, Dasaev was confident in the strength of his team and brought it to the final with individual skill.
True, the Soviet Union did not become the winner that year - Dasaev was able to stop Van Basten's accurate blow from an acute angle, but this fight was the only one that the great goalkeeper lost.
2.Valentin Ivanov (1955-1965, 60 matches in the national team, 26 goals)
All over the world, football players who have become the best scorers at both the World Championships and the European Championships can be counted on the fingers of one hand. This is a real feat, which was quite capable of Valentin Ivanov. His goal was victorious in the final of Euro 1960, and in 1962 in the final of the World Championship four goals were victorious at once.
Ivanov managed to lead to trophies and his club, the Moscow Torpedo. After completing his career, he became an international judge and remained on the football field until his death.
1. Lev Yashin (1954-1970, 78 matches in the national team)
So indelible was the impression of Yashin's game that the World Championship award given to the best goalkeeper bears his name... He was inducted into the FIFA All-Star Team and the FIFA Dream Team.
His most significant award is the 1963 Ballon d'Or, and to this day he remains the only goalkeeper to receive it. The goalkeeper helped his club, Dynamo Moscow, win five USSR Football Championships. Yashin became the idol of many generations and the ideal of a football player.
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