After reported interest from abroad for Rubin’s young defender Elmir Nabiullin earlier this week, rumours have now surfaced surrounding another Rubin player, this time midfielder Magomed Ozdoev, with Liverpool, Lyon and Schalke the clubs named to be interested in the 23 year old Russian international.
His agent Thomas Zorn told Russian website euro-football.ru – “It is true that European clubs are interested in Magomed. At the moment, the most interest comes from the German Bundesliga, but English clubs have also watched him. Magomed is the type of player who can adapt to any league, he would suit German football perfectly”.
Ozdoev joined Rubin in summer 2014 on an initial season loan, linking up with his former youth coach and Rubin’s manager at the time, Rinat Bilyaletdinov. Have been outcast of the first team frame at Lokomotiv Moscow it was a prime chance for him to re-establish himself, having shown great promise as a teenager.
Ozdoev would go on to have a great season, named as Rubin’s player of the year as their young team outperformed expectations and finished 5th in the league. Ozdoev, mainly operating as a box-to-box midfielder, finished the season with six goals, all of them making Rubin’s top 10 for their goal of the season competition, as he pulled off precise shots from distance as well as mazy, slaloming runs, most notably his excellent solo goal against Dinamo Moscow.
Ozdoev is equally capable of operating in holding, central or attacking midfield, and his work rate makes him a valuable player in the team, easily covering the most distance of any Rubin so far this season, averaging just over 11km a game. Rubin’s general tactic means that although he lines up as a holding midfielder, he and his midfield partner tend to take turns being more adventurous, and he can pop up all over the field. His close control and eye for a pass make him a threat going forward, and in cases of injury or suspension, he is 2nd choice as the player to operate behind the striker, but his work rate and occasional aggression, as well as surprising speed, mean he can recover quickly and defend well.
Whether he would leave the RPL is a tough question, not many Russians do, but if an offer came in at the reported £6m asking price, especially from a side like Liverpool, Rubin and more importantly, Ozdoev, would no doubt find that tough to turn down.
Author: Toke Møller Theilade
Brøndby supporter, groundhopper and more importantly Editor-in-Chief at Russianfootballnews.com. As a hopeless romantic, I still believe Fyodor Smolov and Viktoria Lopyreva has a future together.
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