Euro 2020 – who is Russia’s captain, Artem Dzyuba?

Artem Dzyuba
(Image credit: PA)

Artem Dzyuba will be the Russia captain at Euro 2020, which begins in Rome on June 11.

The Zenit St Petersburg striker has 29 goals in 50 caps for his country since making his debut against in a friendly against Greece in November 2011.

He was one of the stars of their surprise run to the World Cup quarter-finals on home soil, scoring against Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Spain.

Dzyuba’s international career has blossomed since then, with Stanislav Cherchesov naming him as the squad’s new captain when Igor Akinfeev retired after the tournament.

The tall and powerful target man scored nine goals in 10 games as Russia qualified for the Euros, including four in a 9-0 thrashing of San Marino.

He also got a brace in a 4-0 win over Scotland at the Luzhniki Stadium, which helped secure second place in their group behind Belgium.

In November, Dzyuba was dropped from the Russia squad after a video of him masturbating went viral, but he was recalled for the start of the World Cup qualifiers earlier this year.

The 32-year-old retains the captaincy and showed his worth to the team with goals against Malta and Slovenia.

His form at club level has been excellent too, with 20 goals in 27 games, the best return of his career, as Zenit won the Russian Premier League title, finishing eight points ahead of Spartak Moscow.

Dzyuba is one of six Zenit players to make Russia’s provisional 29-man squad for the Euros, alongside the former Chelsea man Yuri Zhirkov, who turns 38 this year.

Russia have been drawn in Group B alongside Belgium, Denmark and Finland, and will fancy their chances of making it through.

FourFourTwo Staff

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