Russian football turns its gaze to Euro-2008

With less than three weeks to go before Russia play their first match in Euro-2008 against Spain, the 25 players chosen by Guus Hiddink have met up in Moscow to begin their preparations for the tournament, which will take place in Austria and Switzerland.

However, coach Guus Hiddink has revealed that one player turned down the opportunity to play for his country.

The Dutchman said he’d wanted to added Igor Denisov to his squad, but the Zenit midfielder, who scored his club’s first goal in the UEFA Cup final with Rangers, turned down the opportunity.

A number of players arrived in particularly high spirits, with Zenit having won the UEFA Cup, and CSKA triumphant in Saturday's Russian Cup final.

“Zenit played really well, and their performance has lifted the players, as it shows that Russian clubs can compete at the highest possible level,” said Renat Yanbaev, Lokomotiv Moscow and Russia midfielder.

But that will soon be forgotten with attention now turning away from club football to the national team.

Hiddink's main criticism this season has been reserved for his strikers’ performances. With the exception of Pavel Pogrebnyak and the suspended Andrey Arshavin, no one has been banging in the goals in the Russian Premier League this season.

“I can't really explain why the goals haven't gone in. Pavluchenko's been injured. I've had fitness problems as well. I'm sure that will change in Austria," said Roman Adamov, FC Moscow and Russia striker.

Russia have three warm-up games before the finals get underway, with the first match against Kazakhstan on the May 23 in Moscow.

Two days later, they leave for a training camp in Germany, where there will be further games against Serbia and Lithuania.

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