Zenit St. Petersburg coach Luciano Spalletti would be a worthy successor to Dick Advocaat as coach of the Russian national team, Zenit and Russia midfielder Roman Shirokov told RIA Novosti on Monday.
Advocaat said Monday he would step down after Euro 2012 following two years in charge, in comments reported by Russian daily Sport-Express on Monday.
“Spalletti once said that he’s not against working with a national team. Let’s suppose they’re having talks, then I’d personally be completely in favor if Luciano came to the Russian national side,” Shirokov said.
Under-21 team coach Nikolai Pisarev has been linked to the job in the Russian press. Pisarev is talented but unproven, Shirokov said.
“If Nikolai Nikolaevich [Pisarev] comes in, I won’t object. He gets results, although on a different level. But there’s still a certain risk, he hasn’t worked with top-level clubs and national sides, but sometime you have to start. Why not now?”
Earlier, CSKA Moscow and Russia defenders Vasily Berezutsky and Sergei Ignashevich supported the next coach being a Russian, although Ignashevich said he could support a foreign coach who has worked in Russia, such as Spalletti.
Russia midfielder Alan Dzagoev called for his former CSKA coach Valery Gazzaev to be appointed, citing his experience in the Russian Premier League.
Reports in the Russian media have claimed that Advocaat may be seeking a return to club coaching.
Before taking the Russia job, he was coach of Zenit St. Petersburg, where he won the 2007 Russian championship and beat Rangers to win the UEFA Cup in 2008.
Euro 2012 runs from June 8 through July 1. Russia will face the Czech Republic, Poland and Greece in the group stage.
