Roman Pavlyuchenko: Advocaat has favorites, atmosphere in locker room has changed under him

Tottenham forward Roman Pavluchenko has stated that Dick Advocaat’s appointment as head coach of the Russian national team had changed the relations between the players and also said the Dutchman trainer has favourites.

«I would like Hiddink to stay. But that’s their job, coaches come and go. There are very few ‘perpetual’ ones like Alex Ferguson. Even at Spartak Moscow it was hard for me to part with each head coach who left the team... However, there was one man at Spartak whose departure I was greeting. He now works in Azerbaijan, wish him good luck [Alexander Starkov – Sports.ru].»

«The defeats by Iran and Belgium, the draws with Armenia and Qatar... Do you think there is some kind of an unpleasant tendency in the national team recently?»

«You should ask the head coach. Basically, our squad remained the same, but under Advocaat the relations within the team have changed a lot. They are not so warm as they used to be under Guus, when it was a usual thing to cheer each other up, help each other. Now we don’t have it in the national team. I think, the coach should see it and try to avoid it.»

«Aren’t you afraid that after statements like these your positions in the national team may change?»

«Why should I fear? I’m just worried! I’d like us to have a good locker room, where the players would stand by each other through thick and thin. Back then, when someone failed to make it into the starting eleven or even in the squad for a game, he was still with the team, he was excited about it’s performance. Remember, how all of our guys jumped up from the bench when Torbinsky scored the third goal against the Netherlands [in Euro 2008 semifinal – Sports.ru]? Now we don’t have it any more.»

«Is head coach the only one to blame?»

«The thing is that for Guus we were all equal. Dick, however, has his favorites. I’ve been talking to him about it, trying to explain that you can’t divide players into, let’s say, the main ones and the others. What’s with those double standards?! To say the truth, recently I have been coming for the national team’s games without any particular desire. Sometimes there is a thought: should I really go there? Does the team need me? But in spite of everything, I always want to play for my country. Maybe, when we qualify for the Euro 2012, it will all come to normal somehow,» said Pavlyuchenko in an interview with Argumenty i Fakty newspaper.