Aleksandr Anatolyevich Kerzhakov ( ; born 27 November 1982) is a Russian professional
football manager
''Football Manager'', also known as ''Worldwide Soccer Manager'' in North America from 2004 to 2008, is a series of football management simulation video games developed by British developer Sports Interactive and published by Sega. The game beg ...
and former
player
Player may refer to:
Role or adjective
* Player (game), a participant in a game or sport
** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games
** Athlete, a player in sports
** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who i ...
who played as a
striker.
He used to be the most prolific goalscorer in the history of Russian football from 2013 to 2025, with the number of goals scored in competitive games standing at 233. He is described as a forward who likes to "drop deep to link with the midfield, expecting players to break beyond him" for whom he creates space.
A full international since 2002, Kerzhakov earned 90
caps
Caps are flat headgear.
Caps or CAPS may also refer to:
Science and technology Computing
* CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters
* Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...
for Russia and played at two
World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...
s and two
European Championship
A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs.
In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...
s. In 2014, he surpassed the record held by
Vladimir Beschastnykh
Vladimir Yevgenyevich Beschastnykh ( rus, Влади́мир Евге́ньевич Бесча́стных, p=vlɐˈdʲimʲɪr jɪvˈɡʲenʲjɪvʲɪdʑ bʲɪˈɕːasnɨx; born 1 April 1974) is a Russian football manager and a former player who ...
for most goals for the Russian national team.
Club career
Zenit
Born in
Kingisepp
Kingisepp ( or ), formerly Yamburg (), Yam (), and Yama (; Votic language, Votic: Jaama), is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative center of Kingiseppsky District of Leningrad Oblast, Russia, located along the ...
,
Leningrad Oblast
Leningrad Oblast (, ; ; ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast). The oblast has an area of and a population of 2,000,997 (2021 Russian census, 2021 Census); up from 1,716,868 recorded in the 2010 Russian census ...
, 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
Football Club Zenit (, ), also known as Zenit Saint Petersburg or simply Zenit, is a Russian professional association football, football club based in Saint Petersburg. Founded in 1925 (or in 1914, according to some Russian sources), the club p ...
, debuting in March and scoring his first goal in June against
Spartak Moscow. In his first season, Kerzhakov was the second choice striker behind
Hennadiy Popovych. However, later in 2001, he helped Zenit finish third in the
Russian Premier League
The Russian Premier League (RPL; , ''Rossiyskaya premyer-liga''; РПЛ), also written as Russian Premier Liga, is a professional association football league in Russia and the highest level of the Russian football league system. It was establis ...
and runners-up in 2003. In 2002, Kerzhakov developed a striking partnership with
Andrey Arshavin
Andrey Sergeyevich Arshavin (, ; born 29 May 1981) is a Russian former professional footballer who played as a winger (association football), winger or midfielder. Since 2019, Arshavin has held administrative posts at Zenit. In 2022 he became De ...
which earned them both call-ups to the
Russian national team. That year Kerzhakov represented Russia at the
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea/Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...
.
In 2003, Czech manager
Vlastimil Petržela used Kerzhakov as a first choice striker and he became the top scorer of the Russian Premier League
the following season. While under Petržela, Kerzhakov started in all four group games of the
2004–05 UEFA Cup
The 2004–05 UEFA Cup was the 34th edition of the UEFA Cup. The format of the competition had changed from previous seasons, replacing that from the previous one after the abolition of the Cup Winners' Cup in 1999; an extra qualifying round was ...
and went on to score a hat trick in a 5–1 victory over
AEK Athens
A.E.K. (; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople'') is a major Greek multi-sport club based in Nea Filadelfeia, Attica. The club is more commonly known in European competitions as A.E.K. Athens.
Establishe ...
. The following season, he was in the starting line up once again in Zenit's second straight
UEFA Cup
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star.
Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
campaign. Zenit qualified for the round of 32 by overcoming
Vitória,
Beşiktaş
Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2 and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and ...
,
Bolton
Bolton ( , locally ) is a town in Greater Manchester in England. In the foothills of the West Pennine Moors, Bolton is between Manchester, Blackburn, Wigan, Bury, Greater Manchester, Bury and Salford. It is surrounded by several towns and vill ...
, and
Sevilla
Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula.
Seville ...
. In the knockout stages, Kerzhakov scored against
Rosenborg and
Olympique de Marseille
Olympique de Marseille (, ; , ), also known simply as Marseille, or by the abbreviation OM (, ), is a French professional Association football, football club based in Marseille which competes in Ligue 1, the French football league system, top f ...
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 his team as they lost out 5–2 on aggregate.
Sevilla
With decreased playing timed following the appointment of
Dick Advocaat
Dirk Nicolaas "Dick" Advocaat (; born 27 September 1947) is a Dutch former association football, football player and coach. He is currently the manager of the Curaçao national football team.
Advocaat was successful as a football player and as a ...
at Zenit, Kerzhakov transferred to Sevilla in December 2006, signing a five-and-a-half-year contract worth €5 million, as part of the deal of the partnership of the clubs.
Under then manager
Juande Ramos
Juan de la Cruz "Juande" Ramos Cano (born 25 September 1954) is a former Spanish footballer and manager.
After playing and managing at an amateur level, Ramos led Rayo Vallecano to promotion to La Liga, followed by reaching the quarter-finals ...
, Kerzhakov featured alongside
Luís Fabiano
Luís Fabiano Clemente (born 8 November 1980), commonly known as Luís Fabiano, is a retired Brazilian professional footballer who played as a striker most notably for Sevilla, São Paulo, and the Brazil national team. He is a prolific goals ...
and
Frédéric Kanouté. He played his first match on 14 January 2007 and scored his first goal on 28 January 2007 in a 4–2 victory against
Levante UD
Levante Unión Deportiva, S.A.D. () is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football club in Valencia, in the Valencian Community, namesake autonomous community.
Founded on 6 September 1909, the club will compete in La Liga for the 2025– ...
. He scored the winning goal against Tottenham in a 4–3 victory in the UEFA Cup quarter-finals on 5 April 2007. Kerzhakov later contributed to Sevilla's victorious run in the 2006–07 UEFA Cup season.
After Juande Ramos moved to
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...
in October 2007, Kerzhakov's playing time decreased under caretaker manager
Manuel Jiménez. Being selected behind
Luís Fabiano
Luís Fabiano Clemente (born 8 November 1980), commonly known as Luís Fabiano, is a retired Brazilian professional footballer who played as a striker most notably for Sevilla, São Paulo, and the Brazil national team. He is a prolific goals ...
,
Frédéric Kanouté,
Javier Chevantón, and
Arouna Koné, it was speculated that Kerzhakov would quit Sevilla following interest from Tottenham,
Manchester United
Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...
, and
Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain () or simply PSG, is a French professional Association football, football club based in Paris. They compete in Ligue 1, the French football league system, top d ...
.
According to Russian newspaper ''
Sport-Express
''Sport-Express'' () is a Russian daily sports newspaper founded by Vladimir Kuchmiy. Printed in 31 cities of Russia, Latvia, Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and the United States, it is the biggest-selling sports newspaper in Russia, with the dail ...
'', on 30 January 2008, Kerzhakov stated he would stay at Sevilla to help in the
La Liga
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...
and
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
campaigns.
Dynamo Moscow
In February 2008, after being left out of Sevilla's Champions League tie against
Fenerbahçe, Kerzhakov signed a three-year contract with Russian side
Dinamo Moscow. Kerzhakov established himself as a first choice striker with
Tsvetan Genkov and
Cícero, scoring his first goal against
FC Moscow. He finished the
2008 season as the top scorer in the squad with seven goals, helping the club finish in third place and earn a play off spot in the qualifiers for the UEFA Champions League.
During the 2009 season, Kerzhakov maintained his spot as a first choice striker ahead of
Aleksandr Kokorin and
Fyodor Smolov
Fyodor Mikhaylovich Smolov ( rus, Фёдор Миха́йлович Смо́лов, p=ˈfʲɵdər mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ ˈsmoləf, links=yes; born 9 February 1990) is a Russian professional footballer who plays as a striker.
Club career
Smolo ...
but Dynamo finished eighth and lost to Celtic and CSKA Sophia in an attempt to qualify for the
Champions League and
inaugural Europa League.
Return to Zenit
In January 2010, Kerzhakov rescinded the last year of his contract with Dynamo and returned to his first professional club
Zenit St. Petersburg. Under incoming manager Luciano Spalletti, Kerzhakov became the first choice striker in a 4-2-3-1 formation and managed twenty six appearances. He scored his first goal against CSKA Moscow in April 2010 and followed up with two hat tricks against
R.S.C. Anderlecht in the
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...
and
Saturn Moscow
FC Saturn Ramenskoye () is a Russian professional football club, based in the town of Ramenskoye in Moscow Oblast. It is also sometimes referred to as FC Saturn Moscow Region ().
History
The club was founded in 1946. Although the club is based ...
in the
domestic league.
The following season began with a disappointing loss to FC Twente in the round of 16 of the Europa League. However, Kerzhakov went on to score 23 goals in 32 appearances in the Russian Premier League, finishing as the second highest goal scorer behind CSKA Moscow's
Seydou Doumbia
Seydou Doumbia (; born 31 December 1987) is an Ivorian former professional footballer who played as a forward.
After beginning his career in the Ivory Coast and Japan, he arrived in Europe in 2008 to play for Swiss club Young Boys, where he wa ...
. Zenit finished first in the regular season and then won the
championship group in the spring of 2012 to claim their second league title in two years.
During the 2012–13 season, Kerzhakov was a first choice striker in Spalletti's 4-2-3-1 formation, netting 11 goals in the league, including braces against
Amkar Perm
FC Amkar Perm ( ) is a professional football club. Originally founded in 1994, it is based in the city of Perm. It was a participant in second-tier football from 1995 and in the Russian Premier League from 2004 to 2018, after which it was dissol ...
,
Mordovia Saransk, and
Spartak Vladikavkaz. He participated in the UEFA Champions League, scoring his only goal outside the Russian Premier League against Anderlecht. After Zenit failed to make the knockout stage, Kerzhakov played in the UEFA Europa League but failed to score as his club lost to
F.C. Basel in the round of 16. With Spalletti purchasing
Salomón Rondón midway through the 2013–14 season, Kerzhakov's playing time decreased amid reports of a strained relationship with the Italian manager.
After the arrival of
Andre Villas-Boas in March 2014, Kerzhakov in five of the last nine matches of the season as Zenit finished in second place behind CSKA Moscow. The following season, Zenit won the league with Kerzhakov playing in 14 matches and scoring three goals. He also played in the club's Champions League campaign, coming on as a substitute in three of the group stage matches. Kerzhakov started the
2014–15 season with a brace in an 8–1 victory over Torpedo Moscow as Zenit won the first eight matches in the league. Villas-Boas used Kerzhakov as a substitute with speculations of a rift between the two. Villas Boas excluded Kerzhakov from the squad during the
2015–16 season, with the striker making no appearances in the league or European tournaments before being loaned out to
FC Zurich
FC may refer to:
Businesses, organisations, and schools
* Fergusson College, a science and arts college in Pune, India
* Finncomm Airlines (IATA code)
* FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC
* Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Pakis ...
.
Zurich
At Zurich, Sami Hyypiä used Kerzhakov as a striker in a 4-2-3-1 formation. He would go on to score five goals in seventeen appearances in a campaign that ended in the club's relegation from the Swiss Super League.
Final season at Zenit
Kerzhakov returned to Zenit for the
2016–17 season under
Mircea Lucescu
Mircea Lucescu (; born 29 July 1945) is a Romanian professional Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former player, currently the head coach of the Romania national football team, Romania national team. He i ...
. Lucescu used Kerzhakov as a substitute striker, only starting him in the first match of the season. Kerzhakov officially retired on 13 July 2017 and was appointed the coordinator of Zenit's youth and academy teams.
International career
Early international career
Kerzhakov began playing for the
Russian U21 team in 2001. He made his senior debut for
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
in a friendly against
Estonia
Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...
on 27 March 2002. Two months later,
Oleg Romantsev
Oleg Ivanovich Romantsev (; born 4 January 1954) is a Soviet Union, Soviet/Russian former international Association football, footballer and Coach (sport), coach who is currently an advisor for FC Pari Nizhny Novgorod. Romantsev was acclaimed fo ...
selected Kerzhakov for the
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea/Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...
as one of four strikers alongside
Vladimir Beschastnykh
Vladimir Yevgenyevich Beschastnykh ( rus, Влади́мир Евге́ньевич Бесча́стных, p=vlɐˈdʲimʲɪr jɪvˈɡʲenʲjɪvʲɪdʑ bʲɪˈɕːasnɨx; born 1 April 1974) is a Russian football manager and a former player who ...
,
Ruslan Pimenov, and
Dmitri Sychev
Dmitri Yevgenyevich Sychev ( rus, Дми́трий Евге́ньевич Сычёв, Dmitriy Yevgen’yevich Sychyov, ˈdmʲitrʲɪj jɪvˈɡʲenʲjɪvʲɪtɕ sɨˈtɕɵf, Ru-Dmitri Yevgenyevich Sychev.ogg; born 26 October 1983) is a Russian p ...
. He was on the bench for Russia's first two games against
Tunisia
Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...
and
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
but came on for
Valery Karpin
Valery Georgiyevich Karpin (; born 2 February 1969) is a Russian football manager and former player who manages the Russian national team and Russian Premier League club Dynamo Moscow. As a player, he was a midfielder and spent most of his car ...
against
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
in the 82nd minute and provided an assist for Sychev in an eventual 3–2 defeat.
After Romanstev's sacking, new manager
Valery Gazzaev made Kerzhakov a regular call up in the squad. Just prior to the start of the
UEFA Euro 2004 qualifiers, Kerzhakov scored his first goal for Russia in a friendly 1–1 draw against
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
on 21 August 2002. In 2003, he won the
Cyprus International Football Tournament
The Cyprus International Football Tournament was an annual winter association football friendly competition for national teams that takes place in Cyprus. It was traditionally held in February as a friendly tournament since at least 1997, and last ...
, playing in the final match.
After making eight appearances in the qualification tournament, he was selected by
Georgi Yartsev for the
final tournament
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
as one of four strikers in the squad behind with
Dmitri Bulykin,
Dmitri Kirichenko, and
Dmitri Sychev
Dmitri Yevgenyevich Sychev ( rus, Дми́трий Евге́ньевич Сычёв, Dmitriy Yevgen’yevich Sychyov, ˈdmʲitrʲɪj jɪvˈɡʲenʲjɪvʲɪtɕ sɨˈtɕɵf, Ru-Dmitri Yevgenyevich Sychev.ogg; born 26 October 1983) is a Russian p ...
. He was on the bench for the games against
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
and
Greece
Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
, but played a full game against
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
, as Russia was eliminated from the group stage.
2004–2010
Following Euro 2004, Kerzhakov featured regularly under Yartsev during the
2006 World Cup qualifiers and scored a goal against
Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein (, ; ; ), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein ( ), is a Landlocked country#Doubly landlocked, doubly landlocked Swiss Standard German, German-speaking microstate in the Central European Alps, between Austria in the east ...
in March 2005. Yartsev's successor
Yuri Semin, continued to select Kerzhakov as he went on to score three goals including a double against Liechtenstein as Russia failed to qualify for
final tournament
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
.
Under
Guus Hiddink
Guus Hiddink (; born 8 November 1946) is a Dutch former football manager and professional player. He enjoyed a long career playing as a midfielder in his native Netherlands. Retired as player in 1982, Hiddink went into management, leading both c ...
, Kerzhakov continued his role as the first choice striker but was dropped after limited appearances for
Zenit in late 2006. Upon moving to Sevilla, Hiddink overlooked Kerzhakov for a friendly against the
Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
in February 2007. Being recalled for a
UEFA Euro 2008
The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2008 or simply Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial association football, football tournament contested by the member nations of UEFA ( ...
qualifier against
Estonia
Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...
and scored both goals in a 2–0 victory. In June 2007, Kerzhakov scored a hat-trick in a 4–0 victory over
Andorra
Andorra, officially the Principality of Andorra, is a Sovereignty, sovereign landlocked country on the Iberian Peninsula, in the eastern Pyrenees in Southwestern Europe, Andorra–France border, bordered by France to the north and Spain to A ...
. He made a further contribution to Russia's
Euro 2008 qualification campaign by scoring a goal in a 3–0 victory over
North Macedonia
North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the n ...
in September 2007. Despite being the top scorer for Russia with five goals, Kerzhakov failed to make Hiddink's 23-man squad for
the tournament finals.
After an 18-month exclusion, Kerzhakov was recalled in May 2009 for the
2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifier against
Finland
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
in Helsinki. He started the game and scored two goals as Russia defeated Finland 3–0 and went on to play for the remainder of the campaign. During the playoff against
Slovenia
Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...
, Kerzhakov was on the bench for first leg but came on at half-time for
Roman Pavlyuchenko
Roman Anatolyevich Pavlyuchenko (; born 15 December 1981) is a Russian football coach and a former player who played as a Forward (association football)#Striker, striker. He works as a forwards coach with FC Rodina-2 Moscow, Rodina-2 Moscow.
H ...
in the second leg. In the 66th minute, he received a straight red card from
Terje Hauge
Terje Hauge (born 5 October 1965 in Bergen, Norway) is a former Norwegian football referee from the club Olsvik IL.
Career
Since he made his debut in 1990, Hauge has refereed 232 matches in the Tippeligaen. He has been an authorised FIFA ref ...
for a deliberate kick at Slovenian goalkeeper
Samir Handanović
Samir Handanović (born 14 July 1984) is a Slovenian former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. Since August 2024, he is the head coach of Inter Milan's Inter Milan Youth Se ...
. Slovenia emerged victorious with a 1–0 win and eliminated Russia after an aggregate 2–2 draw on away goals.
2010–2016: Record goalscorer and last appearances
Kerzhakov's red card against Slovenia resulted in a suspension for two qualifiers of the
Euro 2012
The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 ...
campaign. Upon being recalled by
Dick Advocaat
Dirk Nicolaas "Dick" Advocaat (; born 27 September 1947) is a Dutch former association football, football player and coach. He is currently the manager of the Curaçao national football team.
Advocaat was successful as a football player and as a ...
, Kerzhakov scored in the victories over Ireland and Macedonia. He did not score again for the rest of the qualification campaign but managed to make three additional appearances as Russia topped
Group B
Group B was a set of regulations for Grand tourer, grand touring (GT) cars used in sports car racing and rallying introduced in 1982 by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). Although permitted to enter a GT class of the World S ...
to qualify directly for the final tournament. Advocaat included him in the
final tournament
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
squad, but he scored no goals as Russia failed to progress from their group.
After Euro 2012, former
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
manager
Fabio Capello
Fabio Capello (; born 18 June 1946) is an Italian former professional association football, football manager (association football), manager and player.
As a player, Capello represented SPAL, AS Roma, Roma, AC Milan and Juventus FC, Juventus. H ...
utilized Kerzhakov as the first choice striker after dropping Andrei Arshavin, Roman Pavlyuchenko, and
Pavel Pogrebnyak
Pavel Viktorovich Pogrebnyak ( ; born 8 November 1983) is a Russian former professional footballer who played as a striker.
Born in Moscow, Pogrebnyak began his career at Spartak Moscow, making his professional debut in 2002. Over the next th ...
. Kerzhakov appeared in all ten of Russia's
qualification matches and finished as the team's top goalscorer with five goals, including the winning goal in a 1–0 defeat of
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
.
Making Capello's squad for the
2014 FIFA World Cup
The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for list of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil fr ...
, Kerzhakov appeared as a 71st-minute substitute for
Yuri Zhirkov and scored the team's equalising goal three minutes later in the opening match of the tournament, a 1–1 draw with
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
. The goal was his 26th for Russia, equaling
Vladimir Beschastnykh
Vladimir Yevgenyevich Beschastnykh ( rus, Влади́мир Евге́ньевич Бесча́стных, p=vlɐˈdʲimʲɪr jɪvˈɡʲenʲjɪvʲɪdʑ bʲɪˈɕːasnɨx; born 1 April 1974) is a Russian football manager and a former player who ...
's record for the national team. Kerzhakov came on as a late substitute for
Aleksandr Samedov in Russia's 0–1 defeat to Belgium. He started in the final group match against Algeria before being substituted for
Maksim Kanunnikov in a 1–1 draw as Russia were eliminated in the first round.
On 3 September 2014, he became the top scorer for the Russian national team after netting two goals in a 4–0 friendly win over
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...
.
Kerzhakov continued to appear in Capello's squads for the UEFA Euro 2016 qualification campaign. He was on the bench against Sweden and Austria while being substituted at half-time against Liechtenstein and Moldova. Kerzhakov went on to appear as a second-half substitute in the 0–1 home defeat to Austria in what was Capello's last match at Russia coach. Capello's successor, Leonid Slutsky, omitted Kerzhakov from the remaining qualification matches as well as the final tournament. He made his final appearance for the national team in a friendly against Lithuania on 26 March 2016.
Coaching career
On 15 March 2018, the
Russian Football Union
The Russian Football Union (, ''Rossiyskiy Futbolnyy Soyuz'' or RFS) is the official governing body of association football in the Russian Federation. With headquarters in Moscow, it organizes Russian amateur and professional football, includi ...
announced signing a contract with Kerzhakov to manage the
Russia national under-17 football team until the end of 2019. The team became
Russia national under-18 football team in September 2018 as the players aged and then
Russia national under-19 football team. On 24 September 2020, he was hired as manager by the
FNL club
FC Tom Tomsk
FC Tom Tomsk () was a Russian professional football club, based in the Siberian city of Tomsk. The team played in Trud Stadium (Tomsk) before being dissolved in 2022.
History
The team was previously named ''Burevestnik'' (1957), ''Tomich'' (19 ...
. He left Tom at the end of the 2020–21 season. On 17 June 2021, he signed with
FC Nizhny Novgorod, which was recently promoted into the
Russian Premier League
The Russian Premier League (RPL; , ''Rossiyskaya premyer-liga''; РПЛ), also written as Russian Premier Liga, is a professional association football league in Russia and the highest level of the Russian football league system. It was establis ...
. The club avoided relegation at the end of the 2021–22 season, and on 16 June 2022 Kerzhakov left Nizhny Novgorod. He moved to with his family to
Dubai
Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...
but did not have a job there.
On 8 February 2023, Kerzhakov was hired as a manager by Cypriot club
Karmiotissa. He left Karmiotissa after one victory in six games under his management on 1 April 2023, moving back to Dubai.
In May 2024, he became the manager of
Kairat, a club in the
Kazakhstan Premier League
The Kazakhstan Professional Football League (, ''Qazaqstan Premier Ligasy''), commonly referred to as the Kazakh Premier League or simply the Premier League, is a professional association football league in Kazakhstan and the highest level of the ...
. On 3 September that year, his contract was terminated by mutual agreement, and Kerzhakov left the club. Under his leadership, Kairat played 12 matches. In these games, the team won six times, drew three times, and lost three times.
Personal life
His younger brother,
Mikhail, is a professional footballer who also plays for Zenit Saint Petersburg as a goalkeeper. In 2002, Kerzhakov authored his autobiography titled ''Up to 16 and older''. ()
In April 2023, Kerzhakov said that he opposed the
invasion of Ukraine, and has left Russia since then.
Career statistics
Club
International
:''Scores and results list Russia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Kerzhakov goal''.
Managerial statistics
''As of 3 October 2024''
Honours
Zenit Saint Petersburg
*
Russian Premier League
The Russian Premier League (RPL; , ''Rossiyskaya premyer-liga''; РПЛ), also written as Russian Premier Liga, is a professional association football league in Russia and the highest level of the Russian football league system. It was establis ...
:
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
,
2011–12,
2014–15
*
Russian Cup:
2009–10
*
Russian Premier League Cup:
2003
2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater.
In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War.
Demographic ...
*
Russian Super Cup:
2016
2016 was designated as:
* International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly.
* International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
Sevilla
*
UEFA Cup
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star.
Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
:
2006–07
*
Copa del Rey
The , commonly known as , or (in English) the Spanish Cup or King's Cup, and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–1936) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–1976), is an annual knockout football competition in Spanis ...
:
2006–07
*
Supercopa de España
The Supercopa de España, also known as the Spanish Super Cup, is a super cup tournament in Football in Spain, Spanish football. Founded in 1982 Supercopa de España, 1982 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2 ...
:
2007
2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year.
Events
January
* January 1
**Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...
FC Zürich
*
Swiss Cup
The Swiss Cup (; ; ; ) is a football cup competition that has been organised annually since 1925–26 season by the Swiss Football Association.
The Swiss Cup final is usually the most important game of the year with a high attendance. The co ...
:
2015–16
Individual
*
Russian Premier League
The Russian Premier League (RPL; , ''Rossiyskaya premyer-liga''; РПЛ), also written as Russian Premier Liga, is a professional association football league in Russia and the highest level of the Russian football league system. It was establis ...
top scorer:
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...
Charity
In 2017, he became an ambassador of social
Football for Friendship
Football for Friendship () is an annual International Children's Social Programme implemented by the Russian oil conglomerate Gazprom. The programme, along with spinoffs, came to an end in the Western world after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The ...
international children's forum.
In 2018, he took part in the Football for Friendship programme where he presented the cup to the winners of the final match of the programme's championship.
Political views
Kerzhakov opposed the
Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
and connected leaving Russia in 2022 with the opposition to the invasion.
References
External links
Zenit ProfileFan Club Blog: "Kerzhakov in La Liga"Career history
Personal website
Career, statistic, goals
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kerzhakov, Aleksandr
1982 births
People from Kingisepp
Footballers from Saint Petersburg
Living people
Russian men's footballers
Russia men's youth international footballers
Russia men's under-21 international footballers
Russia men's international footballers
Men's association football forwards
FC Zenit Saint Petersburg players
Sevilla FC players
FC Dynamo Moscow players
FC Zürich players
Russian Premier League players
La Liga players
Swiss Super League players
2002 FIFA World Cup players
UEFA Euro 2004 players
UEFA Euro 2012 players
2014 FIFA World Cup players
UEFA Europa League–winning players
Russian expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's footballers in Spain
Russian expatriate sportspeople in Spain
Expatriate men's footballers in Switzerland
Russian expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland
Russian football managers
FC Tom Tomsk managers
FC Pari Nizhny Novgorod managers
Karmiotissa FC managers
FK Spartak Subotica managers
FC Kairat managers
Russian First League managers
Russian Premier League managers
Cypriot First Division managers
Serbian SuperLiga managers
Kazakhstan Premier League managers
Russian expatriate football managers
Expatriate football managers in Cyprus
Russian expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus
21st-century Russian sportsmen