Alan Dzagoev

{Profile Posted 17/06/2012}





Date of Birth: - 17th June 1990.



Nationality: - Russian.



Height: - 5ft 9inches.



Position: - Striker, although can player as an Attacking Midfielder.



Club History: - Krylia Sovetov-SOK

- CSKA Moscow





Linked With: - Arsenal (who have sent out scouts to watch him numerous times)

- Chelsea (who have showed interest over for around a year)



{I expect CSKA to offer Dzagoev a new contract soon, as his current deal expires in November which will see him depart the Russian side. If he rejects the contract renewal, I would expect the Premier League is a very real possibility for Dzagoev.}





Estimated Market Value: - In this world, there is no such thing as 'free', but in simple terms then Dzagoev will be available from November on a free-agent.















Club Career



Krylia Sovetov-SOK:

From the age of 16, Dzagoev had a short spell with the Russian second-division Krylia Sovetov from January 2006 until December 2007.



29th April 2006 - Dzagoev made his professional debut on in a 1-2 home defeat against Tyumen.



Throughout his time with the second-division Russian side, Dzagoev appeared in 37 matches and scored 6 goals for the team, which is a pretty impressive tally for a 16/17 year old.













CSKA:



Dzagoev signed for CSKA Moscow before the start of Russian Premier League 2008/2009 season.



September 2008 - Dzagoev's first appearance was as a substitute in a match against Luch. A couple of weeks later, he appeared in the starting lineup in the home match against Khimki and managed to score a goal and two assists.



In the quater-final of the 2008 Russian Cup game against bitter rivals Spartak Moscow, Dzagoev made 3 assists, helping CSKA to secure a 5-1 victory, and because of this sparkling performance was then promoted to the first-team as a regular starter.



Dzagoev was also the man of the match when he scored 2 goals in a 3-1 away victory against UEFA Cup winners Zenit St. Petersburg towards the end of the season.



In the final game of the season, Dzagoev started in the the 2008 Russian Cup final (a game in which CSKA won).



At the end of the Russian Premier League 2008, Dzagoev was chosen as Best Young Player of the Year by Russian Football Union.



4th November 2009 - (at the start of the 2009/2010 season) In one of his first Champions League appearances, Dzagoev scored an impressive goal during the match against Manchester United, which finished 3-3.



2nd December 2010 - Dzagoev provided an assist and later added a cool finish as CSKA defeated Lausanne Sports 5-1 in their penultimate group game, securing first place in Group F of the Europa League.



15th December 2010 - In the final group game against Sparta Prague, Dzagoev scored the opening goal as CSKA dropped their first points of their European campaign, succumbing to a 1-1 draw.



24th September 2011 - Dzagoev scored the winning goal of a 3-1 Premier League victory over Volga Nizhny Novgorod.



Three days later Dzagoev scored a 45th minute goal against Internazionale.



21st February 2012 - Dzagoev also provided the cross from which CSKA debutant Pontus Wernbloom netted the equalizer in their 1-1 draw against Real Madrid in the their first leg Round of 16 clash.



Dzagoev finished the 2011/2012 season with 48 appearances 6 goals and 12 assists.



















International career:

After a string of impressive performances at club level, Dzagoev was called up to Russia squad for 2010 World Cup qualification match against Germany scheduled for the 11th October 2008.



Dzagoev made his debut as a half-time substitute in this game, at age of 18 years and 116 days, thus becoming the youngest outfield player ever to compete for Russia, and second youngest overall. Dzagoev nearly earned the team a crucial away draw but was denied by the woodwork, but still managed to impress during this game.



8th October 2010 - Dzagoev scored his first international goal in a 3-2 away victory over the Republic of Ireland in the qualifying round of Euro 2012.



25th May 2012 - Dzagoev was confirmed for the finalized Euro 2012 squad.



8th June 2012 - Dzagoev scored two goals in Russia's opening game of the Euro 2012 tournament against the Czech Republic in a 4-1 victory.



Dzagoev then added his third goal of the tournament in his side's second game against Poland, earning a 1-1 draw for his side. However in the next game Russia were eliminated from the competition after a shock defeat by Greece.

















Club Statistics:

CSKA (as of 17/06/2012): - 153 appearances, 37 goals.



















General Comments:



It's been a fair few days since I've posted a profile, and if I'm honest I have just been extremely busy with other things, so I hope this profile is worth the wait. This profile has been requested a fair few times since the start of the Euro's so I wanted to do it whilst it's still relevent (even though Russia were eliminated last night).



Dzagoez looks to be a fairly impressive player, and I must say I have enjoyed watching the young lad play during Euro 2012, as he seems to put himself about and just get himself into goal-scoring opportunities. You can really tell the difference between the Dzagoev playing for CSKA, and the Dzagoev playing for Russia which for me, is a bit of an issue. As most of you know, there is another player who also suffers a bit of 'club syndrome' as I like to call it, and that'd be Lukas Podolski. But the thing is, the reason for 'club syndrome' in my opinion is because of the surrounding players. With Dzagoev in mind, you would expect him to be fairly prolific because of the likes of Kensuike Honda, who is one hell of a player but the thing is, Dzagoev and Honda just cannot do it on their own. Game after game I have seen these 2 players just dominate for CSKA, but the surrounding players of these two just provide them with minimal service and it is clear to see that Dzagoev can do so much more.



Now if you compare this to Dzagoev playing for Russia, where he does have the players all around him, he scored 3 goals in 3 games at the age of 22 and to me, he played very impressively. For CSKA he seems to get himself into goal-scoring positions, but then isn't supplied with the final pass to finish it - whereas in Euro 2012 with Russia, he was.



Now, I'm making Dzagoev sound like an ideal player who does nothing wrong, but that is not what I'm trying to put across. Dzagoev is a good player yes, and he does have potential (most certainly) but there are elements he needs to work on. Tackling and Strength for me are two key issues for him I believe, as he just needs to track-back more for his team at a club level AND International, rather than just International. If he can work his butt off for the team and track-back, get an interception and stop a pass or two then it'd really take his game up a notch. I'd also say that his attitude seems a little...immature. I've seen him a fair few games where frustration just seems to get the better of him, and he seems to get himself into these little 'moods' where he just keeps his head down and almost gives up, which is obviously something that needs a lot of work to rectify if he is to move to a league like the Premier League.



In my humble opinion, if Dzagoev works on the things that I've listed, he could very easily cut it in the Premier League and improve any team that he would join. In my humble opinion though, if Dzagoev is to fulfill his potential he needs regular first-team football. Now, at the end of this year, I cannot imagine him getting first-team football at Arsenal or Chelsea. If Chelsea were to offload Torres and no other Striker is bought, then there would be potential for him to just slot in the side as I feel he'd be excellent with the likes of Mata, Hazard and Lampard around him, as he would be fed a hell of a lot of opportunities and I'm pretty sure he'd take the chances given to him (well, most of them). With Arsenal, the same applies to them really. If RVP is sold, and another Striker is not brought in, then Dzagoev could also slot right in and really help improve the Gunners, as with Arteta, the Ox etc around him, he'd also take most chances. Now, I'm not saying that he would be the ideal replacement for RVP (IF he leaves, I'm not saying he will), but he certainly has the potential to be a very very good player and could be an ideal player for Arsenal to buy in order to bring him through.



At the moment, I believe Arsenal have shown the most interest in Dzagoev and they have a very realistic chance of signing him, however there are several factors that need to be taken into consideration before stating where Dzagoev will end up etc. I'd say that it is an option that Dzagoev could leave this summer so CSKA can get some cash for the player, although most clubs will have no issues with waiting until he is available on a free, so more information will come to light as time passes.







Thanks all,





Ed022.-}