The Russia international made the move after a five-year stint with CSKA. He joined them in 2004 from Spartak Tambov. He made his debut for Tambov in 2001 and scored 26 goals in 74 games for the Russian third division outfit.
But it was at CSKA where he cemented his place as a wide man with a deft left foot, lightning pace and exceptional dribbling ability - scoring 15 goals in 139 appearances for the club.
He can play left-back but is comfortable in any position on that wing and it was as a more attacking midfielder that he won the UEFA Cup in 2005 after scoring during a 3-1 win over Sporting Lisbon in the final.
Zhirkov made his Russia debut in 2005 against Italy and has since made 31 appearances for his country - the majority of which have come under Chelsea's former interim boss Guus Hiddink.
He was named in the Euro 2008 'Team of the Tournament' after an impressive contribution throughout the competition as a wing-back when Russia were the surprise package in making the semi-finals. They lost to eventual winners Spain.
Zhirkov won the Russian Premier League twice with CSKA in 2005 and 2006 and has three Russian Cups to his name, in 2005, 2006 and 2008.
No comments:
Post a Comment