Again, not a single Rubin player in the Russian national team: is Karpin's choice fair?

At the end of May and beginning of June, the Russian national team will play three friendly matches

The RPL season is gradually nearing its end. Teams have one round left this weekend to determine their final standings. Then, the players will have a short vacation before the summer training camps. Not all of them, of course. Some players will head to their national teams: some will go to the World Cup in North America, while others will take part in friendly matches.

The Russian national team has three friendly matches scheduled for late May and early June — against Egypt (May 28 in Cairo), Burkina Faso (June 5 in Volgograd), and Trinidad and Tobago (June 9 in Kaliningrad). Ahead of the camp, Valery Karpin published an extended roster. There are several interesting names on the list. For example, Atlanta United midfielder Alexey Miranchuk is expected. Monaco's Alexander Golovin should also join the Russian national team.

Karpin called up Amir Ibragimov from Manchester United to the Russian National Team. Why?

But the most intriguing name is 18-year-old Amir Ibragimov, representing Manchester United. For the native of the Republic of Dagestan, this call-up is a debut in his career. However, Western media report that Ibragimov has not yet given Karpin any response — neither positive nor negative. Previously, the midfielder emphasized in several interviews that he was seriously considering his choice of sporting citizenship. Amir Ibragimov has two options — either the Russian national team or the English national team. He has lived in Great Britain since the age of 11. Initially, he trained at the Sheffield United academy but later moved to Manchester United. Currently, the midfielder represents the “Red Devils” U18 team, but Ibragimov regularly trains with the first team.

— I think Karpin wants to see Amir Ibragimov out of curiosity. There's a lot of enthusiastic talk about him in the press, predicting a great future for him. So the national team coaching staff wants to assess his potential. I heard that Ibragimov hasn't fully decided on his choice of sporting citizenship yet. But if he plays for the Russian national team now, nothing terrible will happen for him. The matches are not under FIFA's auspices and are not considered official, — said well-known Russian agent Alexei Safonov in a conversation with a Realnoe Vremya correspondent.

Former Rubin head coach Rinat Bilyaletdinov views Amir Ibragimov's call-up to the Russian national team without excessive emotion. The midfielder hasn't played a single match at the adult level to fully judge his skill level.

— First, you need to see this guy in action. We like to label players prematurely, to exalt someone. We over-praise them, and then face unmet expectations. Ibragimov still needs to prove his worth with his performances to be talked about as the future of Russian football. That's probably why Karpin and his coaching staff want to see Ibragimov, — said Bilyaletdinov.

No Rubin players on Karpin's list. Doesn't Staver deserve a call-up?

Traditionally, the extended Russian national team roster is full of various RPL players. In the absence of official international matches, Valery Karpin's choices are usually flexible. The coach tries to give chances to players from many teams in the Russian championship. Nevertheless, yesterday's list did not include a single representative from Rubin.

Yet, goalkeeper Evgeny Staver certainly deserved a call-up to the national team. In 29 RPL matches this season, the Kazan goalkeeper has kept 14 clean sheets, conceding an average of 0.97 goals per game. Staver is the fifth most reliable goalkeeper in the league. Only Vladislav Torop from CSKA (0.91), Stanislav Agkatsev from Krasnodar (0.79), Denis Adamov from Zenit (0.56), and Maxim Borisko from Baltika (0.48) have lower goals-against averages.

Why did Karpin ignore Staver when compiling the national team roster? Realnoe Vremya experts explain it simply — too much competition among goalkeepers. In recent years, the RPL has been rich in strong domestic goalkeepers.

— Evgeny Staver is indeed having a remarkable season. But look how many strong Russian goalkeepers there are in the league now. The national team called up Agkatsev, Adamov, Mitryushkin, Maksimenko — and that's a good choice by the coaching staff. And if Zhenya continues to perform consistently at a high level, he will definitely attract attention, — said agent Alexei Safonov.

— The Russian goalkeeper school has always been at a high level. The fact that we have such competition among goalkeepers in the RPL is only pleasing. And Zhenya Staver will definitely get his chance, — added Rinat Bilyaletdinov.

Lobov, Nizhegorodov, Rozhkov — also reached the national team level this season

Besides Evgeny Staver, several outfield players from Rubin have also blossomed this spring. Defenders Nikita Lobov and Konstantin Nizhegorodov, who have become regular starters under Frank Artiga, look excellent. Left wing-back Ilya Rozhkov is improving by leaps and bounds each season; at 21, he is already attracting the attention of top RPL clubs. Daniil Kuznetsov still has great potential for growth, and Rubin expects a lot from Enri Mukba and Nikita Vasiliev.

Thus, if the Kazan club improves its performance and results in the near future, and the core of the team is formed by Russian players, Rubin fans will see many more familiar names on the extended national team roster.

— Without diminishing the merits of Rubin's players, the guys Valery Karpin called up to the national team now are still stronger. Rubin needs to improve its results, and the Russian players need to progress to deservedly cement their places in the national team! — Rinat Bilyaletdinov concluded on this issue in a conversation with a Realnoe Vremya correspondent.