MOSCOW, September 2. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated Russia’s head coach Stanislav Cherchesov on his 55th birthday in a telegram published on the Kremlin’s website.
"You have devoted yourself to football - the number one sport, have shown yourself as a talented player, a reliable goalkeeper of the national team," the message says. "And of course, you are known and valued as a wonderful coach and mentor. You have done a lot to prepare our team for its worthy performance at the World Cup in our home country, have created a comfortable psychological climate for the footballers, inspired them to achieve results, to play a beautiful, winning game."
"There are important starts and challenges ahead," Putin stated. "I am sure that under your guidance, the Russian team will continue to develop, to achieve success and make millions of loyal fans happy. I wish you good health, prosperity and luck."
This summer, Russia hosted its first-ever FIFA World Cup, which kicked off in Moscow with a remarkable opening show at Luzhniki Stadium on the evening of June 14 and ended with a spectacular final match, played also at the Luzhniki Stadium, where France confidently defeated Croatia 4-2 to win the much-coveted World Cup Trophy.
The Russian national football team managed to make it to the quarterfinals stage of this world championship, where Croatia edged them out in a 4-3 penalty shootout win on July 7 at the Fisht Arena in Sochi.
On the results of the tournament, Russia’s Head Coach Stanislav Cherchesov has been included in the short-list of nominees for the FIFA Best Coach of the Year award. The ceremony will take place on September 24.
Cherchesov participated in two European championships (1992, 1996) and two World Cups (1994, 2002) as a goalkeeper for the CIS, and later Russian, national teams.