Former Lokomotiv football player Sennikov: “In the spring we didn’t see the Dziuba who was in the fall”

Former Lokomotiv footballer Dmitry Sennikov believes that forward Artem Dzyuba rightly dropped out of the main lineup of the Moscow team.

On Tuesday, Dzyuba’s representative Leonid Goldman said in an interview with Match TV that Lokomotiv had “already written off the striker.” He also noted that the words and actions of the head coach of the railway workers, Mikhail Galaktionov, are at odds with the case – the specialist tells Dzyuba that there are no complaints about the forward, and then at press conferences he explains the striker’s absence on the field as a result of poor form.

— Since Dzyuba does not enter the field, he cannot fulfill the conditions for extending the contract. But we must take into account that he was given a chance. In the first round after the break, he entered the main lineup. He couldn’t prove himself against his opponents, so Galaktionov began to play with Suleymanov or without any strikers with Glushenkov. The speed of movement and the physical condition of the players were more important then.

But it is wrong to write off Dzyuba. Even if his form is not optimal, he could help the team in some matches. He is an ambitious player. Perhaps a conflict arose between him and the coach. But Galaktionov acted objectively, based on the matches that I saw. Those who were better at the moment played. Artem did not go through all pre-season training. To compete with young people, you need to be in great shape. We did not see the Dziuba who was in the fall. Although he didn’t score much then, he played well.

It seems to me that Lokomotiv will be looking for a new striker. The club needs someone like Daka or Golenkov. Dzyuba may continue to play in the RPL, but he is unlikely to remain at Lokomotiv. He has character. He needs to get into a team where they will play through him,” Sennikov told the Championship.

This season, 35-year-old Dzyuba played 26 matches in all tournaments, scored four goals and made four assists.

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