Can the Anzhi Turmoil Lead to a Greater Good?

In the past 24 hours, Anzhi have been thrown into turmoil. For one reason or another, Suleiman Kerimov has decided to severely cut spending from around $150m+ to between $50m-$70m. There is widespread speculation as to the catalyst to have caused Kerimov to make such a major decision; Kerimov’s health has been noted, with reports suggesting that after the 1-0 defeat to Rostov at the weekend, his health took a turn for the worse. However, Hiddink’s departure a couple of weeks ago suggests there could be a deeper issue. A lack of squad harmony lead by Igor Denisov’s arrival with reported bust ups in training with Lassana Diarra and Samuel Eto’o. Hiddink may have seen that the club was on a collision course and concluded that he no longer wanted to be a part of it.

But what does this mean for the future of Anzhi?

The club confirmed that there will be a different strategy used at the club. Instead of buying already established players for exorbitant amounts of money, which Anzhi admitted in their statement had not worked, the club will focus on developing youth players with investment used to develop academies and young, Russian talent. This is in an attempt to be able to strictly comply with UEFA’s FFP regulations, something that is very difficult to do in Russia due to television money being a pittance. This approach is to be used in the hope that in the future, the squad will be more integrated with a healthy balance of Russian talent and foreign imports. Of course, whether these grand plans work as they should is highly debatable due to the length of time needed to implement a conveyor belt of players coming through the academy. Kerimov’s first plan for European dominance ended in abject failure, for him, failure can simply not happen again.

This can only be a good thing for the future of Russian football in general and means that Kerimov’s money will be better spent and stop lining the pockets of already very rich footballers. This is also something I would have liked Dmitry Rybolovlev to have done rather than lavish money on other footballers in Monaco, he could have made a difference in the future of Russian football. That is something Kerimov should be applauded for, even if it did take two years of high spending and no return before he realised it. If Anzhi are able to produce players who can walk into the Russian national team as well as deliver success at the club level, then Kerimov’s new strategy should be wholly encouraged.

It is suggested that most of the stars that people will be familiar with at Anzhi will be sold, perhaps with the exception of Eto’o who has a close relationship with Kerimov. Aleksandr Kokorin, Chris Samba and Igor Denisov could all be shipped out during the current transfer window having only just arrived. Kokorin hasn’t even taken to the pitch in an Anzhi shirt since his €19m move from Dinamo, who have been linked with buying the player back just over a month after he left.

Gadzhi Gadzhiev is the man who is going to lead Anzhi through this time of upheaval, replacing the much maligned Rene Meulensteen just 16 days after his appointment, leaving with a pitiful record of one draw and one defeat. The decision to sign Gadzhiev, who will make his fifth appearance as manager, is a smart move. Gadzhiev is someone with a wealth of experience in football as a whole, let alone Anzhi, and he, crucially, doesn’t command as big a pay cheque as Hiddink required.

Hiddink’s departure came as a huge surprise given that he had only signed a contract extension just a month before his resignation. However, this news came as an even bigger shock, one which no one could have imagined. Clubs have been known to cut their budgets in recent times but it is unheard of for a club like Anzhi to go from nothing to Samuel Eto’o and attempt to go backwards again in such a short period of time. The club is to undergo a huge shift in strategy from immediate domestic and European success to long term sustainability. However, only time will tell if Anzhi can be successful in its aims.