Aleksandr Kerzhakov

Football player infobox
playername = Aleksandr Kerzhakov


fullname = Aleksandr Anatolyevich Kerzhakov
height = height|m=1.75
nickname = Kerzhi or Tzar
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1982|11|27
cityofbirth = Kingisepp
countryofbirth = USSR
currentclub = Dinamo Moscow
clubnumber = 5
position = Striker
years = 2001–2006
2006–2008
2008–
clubs = FC Zenit Saint Petersburg
Sevilla
Dinamo Moscow
caps(goals) = 159 (64)
026 0(8)
0021 0(5)
nationalyears = 2002–
nationalteam = Russia
nationalcaps(goals) = 044 (13)
pcupdate = October 4, 2008
ntupdate = 7 February , 2008

Aleksandr Kerzhakov ( _ru. Александр Анатольевич Кержаков; born November 27, 1982 in Kingisepp) is a Russian international football striker currently playing for Russian Premier League club FC Dynamo Moscow.

Club career

Zenit

Aleksandr Kerzhakov graduated from Smena football school in Saint Petersburg, Russia in 1999. He spent the 2000 season at amateur club FC Svetogorets Svetogorsk helping them win the Northwest regional league by scoring 18 goals.

In 2001 Kerzhakov transferred to FC Zenit Saint Petersburg, debuting in March and scoring his first goal in June against Spartak Moscow. In his first season, Kerzhakov was the second choice striker behind Alexander Panov. However later in 2001, he helped Zenit finish third in the Russian Premier League and runners up in 2003. In 2002, Kerzhakov quickly developed a striking parternship with Andrei Arshavin which earned them both call ups to the Russian national team.

In 2003, Czech manager Vlastimil Petržela, promoted Kerzhakov as first choice striker which allowed him to become the top scorer of the Russian Premier League in 2004. While under Petržela, Kerzhakov was given a starting position in all four group games of the 2004-05 UEFA Cup and went on to score a hat trick in a 5-1 victory over AEK Athens. The following season, Kerzhakov was in the starting line up once again in Zenit's second straight UEFA Cup campaign. He helped Zenit qualify for the round of 32 by overcoming Vitória, Beşiktaş, Bolton, and scoring a double against Sevilla. In the knockout stages, Kezhakov scored against Rosenborg and Olympique de Marseille as Zenit reached the quarterfinals to face Sevilla. Kerzhakov gave his best performance by scoring a goal in the away leg but could not save Zenit as they lost out 5-2 on aggregate.

During the summer of 2006, Dick Advocaat was appointed manager and relegated Kerzhakov to the bench. As a result, Kerzhakov prepared to leave Zenit.

evilla

On December 28, 2006 Kerzhakov transferred to Sevilla FC, signing a five and a half year contract worth €5 million, as part of the deal of the partnership of the clubs. [cite web|url=http://www.uefa.com/competitions/uefacup/news/kind=1/newsid=493534.html|title=Sevilla move for Kerzhakov|date=2006-12-28|accessdate=2008-03-02|publisher=UEFA.com] Under then manager Juande Ramos, Kerzhakov was second choice striker behind Luís Fabiano and Frédéric Kanouté. He played his first match on January 14, 2007 and scored his first goal on January 28, 2007 in a 4-2 victory against Levante UD. He scored the winning goal against Tottenham in a 4-3 victory in the UEFA Cup quarterfinals on April 5, 2007. Kerzhakov later contributed to Sevilla's victorious run in the 2006-07 UEFA Cup season.

After Juande Ramos resigned at Sevilla to manage Tottenham Hotspur in October 2007, Kerzhakov's playing time decreased under caretaker manager Manuel Jiménez. He made only four appearances, being the fifth striker behind Luís Fabiano, Frédéric Kanouté, Javier Chevantón, and Arouna Koné. It was speculated that Kerzhakov would quit Sevilla following interest from Tottenham, Manchester United, and Paris Saint-Germain FC. However, according to Russian newspaper Sport-Express, on January 30, 2008, Kerzhakov stated he will stay at Sevilla to help in the La Liga and UEFA Champions League campaigns. [cite web
url = http://english.sport-express.ru/news/13_1707/
title = Kerzhakov Stays in Sevilla
accessdate = 2008-02-06
date = 30 January 2008
work = Sport Express Daily
publisher = http://english.sport-express.ru/ ]

Dinamo Moscow

In February 2008 it was announced that Kerzhakov has signed a three-year contract with Russian side Dinamo Moscow. [cite web|url=http://www.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/news/kind=1/newsid=663861.html|title=Dinamo bring Sevilla's Kerzhakov home|date=2008-02-25|accessdate=2008-03-02|publisher=UEFA.com] Kerzhakov quickly established himself as a first choice striker with Tsvetan Genkov and Cícero. He scored his first goal for Dinamo with a powerfull strike from outside of the penalty area against FC Moscow.

International career

Aleksandr Kerzhakov began playing for Russian national U21 team in 2001. He made his senior debut for Russia in a friendly against Estonia on March 27, 2002.

Kerzhakov was selected by Oleg Romantsev for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. He was on the bench for Russia's first two games against Tunisia and Japan, but substituted Valery Karpin against Belgium.

Kerzhakov went on to score his first goal for Russia in a friendly 1-1 draw against Sweden on August 21, 2002.

Under Valery Gazzaev's successor, Georgi Yartsev, Kerzhakov was called up for the Euro 2004 qualifiers and scored two goals. In the final tournament, Kerzhakov was one of four strikers in the squad along with Dmitri Bulykin, Dmitri Kirichenko, and Dmitri Sychev. He was on the bench for Russia's games against Spain and Greece, but four days later played a full game against Portugal.

After Euro 2004, Kerzhakov was in Russian squad for the 2006 World Cup qualifiers. Yartsev promoted Kerzhakov to the starting line up along with Dmitri Sychev. With Yartsev's successor Yuri Semin, Kerzhakov's starting position was further strengthened after Bulykin and Kirichenko were dropped from the squad and the recall of Andrei Arshavin.

Under Guus Hiddink, Kerzhakov was the first choice striker ahead of Dmitri Sychev and Andrei Arshavin. However, he was later dropped after limited appearances for Zenit in late 2006. Upon moving to Spain, Hiddink overlooked Kerzhakov for a friendly against the Netherlands in February, 2007, but recalled him in March against Estonia following impressive performances for Sevilla. Kerzhakov went on to score both goals in the 2-0 victory over Estonia. On June 2, 2007, Kerzhakov notched a hat-trick as Russia routed Andorra 4-0. He contributed further to Russia's Euro 2008 campaign by scoring a goal in a 3-0 victory over FYR Macedonia on September 8, 2007.

On 14 May 2008 Kerzhakov was not included in Hiddink's provisional 25 man squad for Euro 2008. There was speculation that Kerzhakov was to replace the injured Pavel Pogrebnyak but was eventually left out of the squad. [cite web|url=http://www.wldcup.com/news/2008/05/20080530_48824_soccer_news.html|title=Kerzhakov, Bulykin ready to replace Pogrebnyak for Russia|date=2008-05-30|accessdate=2008-09-23|publisher=wldcup.com]

Personal life

Aleksandr is married and has a young daughter. His younger brother, Mikhail, is the third goalkeeper for FC Zenit Saint Petersburg.

In 2002, Kerzhakov authored his autobiography titled "Before and after 16". ( _ru. "До 16 и старше")

Club statistics

:"The following table is up to date as of September 16, 2007. Russian Premier League Seasons denoted by year aligned with UEFA Competition — i.e. 2001 Season is written as 2001/02."

Honours

* 2001 - Russian Premier League, 3rd place
* 2003 - Russian Premier League, runner-up
* 2003 - Russian Premier League Cup, winner
* 2004 - Russian Premier League, top scorer (18 goals)
* 2007 - UEFA Cup, winner
* 2007 - La Liga, 3rd place
* 2007 - Copa del Rey, winner
* 2002 - "First five" prize as Russian Premier League's best young player (awarded by Russian Football Union)
* 2002, 2003 - "Strelets" prize as Russia's best striker
* 2003 - Named Best Striker according to Sport-Express
* 2004 - Gentleman of the year (awarded by Komsomolskaya Pravda)
* 2005 - Voted Player of the Year by the club managers of the Russian Premier League

References

External links

* [http://www.fc-zenit.ru/eng/person.phtml?id=6 Club bio]
* [http://kerzh.ru/ Fan Club ]
* [http://kerzhakov.blogspot.com/ Blog: "Kerzhakov in La Liga"]
* [http://www.ceo.spb.ru/rus/sport/kerzhakov.a/index.shtml Career history] ru icon
* [http://sport.ard.de/wm2006/confedcup/news200506/08/bg_russland_050608.jhtml?bild=15&mid=4285 Image]
* [http://www.kerzhakov.net/ Personal website] ru icon
* [http://www.legioner.kulichki.com/index.php?id=11&lang=en&player=114 Career, statistic, goals]