Zhirkov – “I Want To Play Football Not Sit On The Bench”

Yuri Zhirkov has not had the happiest of times since he arrived at Chelsea back in 2009, highlighted by the fact that he has made just 29 appearances in the Premier League in his two years at the club. His nightmare could be over though, as he is apparently in talks with Anzhi Makhachkala back in his home country of Russia.

Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas is desperately looking to offload a couple of players before the season starts, so he can add some new faces to his 25-man squad, and Zhirkov is thought to be one of those players.

The Russian International will be 28 later this month, and he has already stated that he wants to play regular first team football, something that he has not managed in his time with Chelsea. In a recent interview He said, “Unfortunately at Chelsea I haven’t had enough match practice in the last season. I want to play football and not sit on the bench.”

Anzhi Makhachkala are owned by Suleyman Kerimov, himself a billionaire like Roman Abramovich, and it looks as though a deal is close to
completion, but other Russian clubs like Zenit St Petersburg and Rubin Kazan have also expressed an interest in signing Zhirkov.

Chelsea will be looking to recoup most of the money they paid for Zhirkov, and £13million has already been mentioned, but whether Chelsea will get that amount remains to be seen.

 

4 Comments
  1. plus32 says

    one of the worst decisions evr made….y not sell that selfish old malouda he doent score n wen he does it nevr is a game wining goal…rarely tries to assist unless here is no other option thn passin the ball….when he scores its 1/20 chances or so,wastes so many chances n doesnt let sm1 els score…zhirkov is perfect leftbak aswel as a better LM he ws jst nvr givn chanc to express himself…kept on bench evn when malouda was playin nowher near gud…im startin to hate the management….poor boy..all the very best if he leaves..god bless u..ruined hs career wit chelsea…now i understan why no youngsters like joining us…true blue bt startin to hate my own club…

  2. plus32 says

    one of the worst decisions evr made….y not sell that selfish old malouda he doent score n wen he does it nevr is a game wining goal…rarely tries to assist unless there is no other option thn passin the ball….when he scores its 1/20 chances or so,wastes so many chances n doesnt let sm1 els score…zhirkov is perfect leftbak aswel as a better LM he ws jst nvr givn chanc to express himself…kept on bench evn when malouda was playin nowher near gud…im startin to hate the management….poor boy..all the very best if he leaves..god bless u..ruined hs career wit chelsea…now i understan why no youngsters like joining us…true blue bt startin to hate my own club…

  3. Ben says

    He was never to going to get a lot of games with us as understudy to Ashley Cole, and with Malouda and Kalou ahead of him on the left in the 4-3-3 formation we have been playing it doesn’t come as a surprise. If he hadn’t been injured I think he would have gone sooner.

  4. Gary says

    Zhirkov’s possible departure raises questions about who to keep and who to release. Key to this decision is Chelsea’s youth verses experience debate. Some people have suggested that it’s time to trust our existing crop of young players. I think McEachran, Sturridge and Van Aanholt are the only youngsters that are ready for regular first team involvement. But even they need to be brought in cautiously. It will be a mistake to rely on the slow and experienced players just as it will be to rely on the agile and inexperienced ones. Chelsea must bring in a few young players who are ready-made, as they did with Ramires and David Luiz. Modric is such a player, but one or two more are needed. Real wingers are missing, and Chelsea’s right back position (Bosingwa/Ferriera) remains our weakest area. I agree that a complete team overhaul is unnecessary, but I think the ones I have labelled are important if Chelsea hope to deal with the likes of Man Utd and Barcelona.

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