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Russia's New Year toast has Dutch flavour
By Gennady Fyodorov
MOSCOW, (Reuters) - Russians like their heroes homegrown but this New
Year's Eve soccer fans will be toasting two middle-aged Dutchmen.
Guus Hiddink led Russia to the Euro 2008 finals while fellow Dutchman
Dick Advocaat steered Zenit St Petersburg to the national title for the
first time in nearly a quarter of a century.
He is the first foreign manager to win such an honour in Russia.
The two men's impact on the game in Russia, however, goes well beyond
the playing field.
Hiddink, 61, the first foreigner to coach Russia's national team, not
only has transformed an often underachieving side into a formidable force,
he has brought a European flavour inside the old Iron Curtain.
The charming Dutchman also became an instant media darling,
adored for his openness and straight-forward approach as well as his sense
of humour.
"It was like a breath of fresh air," said Igor Rabiner, leading
soccer columnist at the newspaper Sport-Express.
"And we all needed that after a long procession of sterile personalities
who were in charge of the national team for the past decade," he
said in reference to former Russian managers.
"In some ways, Hiddink has revolutionised Russian football,"
said Grant Kasyan, sports editor of the business daily Kommersant, echoing
that thought.
Hiddink has even set a fashion trend in Russia.
FAVOURITE DRINK
After he guided Russia into Euro 2008 against seemingly improbable odds,
many fans began celebrating the historic achievement not with the customary
shots of vodka but with Hiddink's favourite drink, a cup of Italian cappuccino.
Unlike Hiddink, Advocaat, who replaced wildly popular Czech Vlastimil
Petrzela midway through the 2006 season, struggled at first to win the
support of Zenit fans.
But that all changed this year when he took them to their first league
crown since 1984, going one better than his predecessor, who led Zenit
to the runners-up spot in his first season in St Petersburg in 2003.
Petrzela was almost a cult figure in St Petersburg, loved by the Zenit
media and fans for an attractive if not adventurous brand of football
as well as his sharp tongue.
Advocaat said all he wanted was to build a winning team.
"I've never cared much for having a popularity contest. It just doesn't
interest me," he told Reuters in an interview shortly after replacing
Petrzela.
"I just want to achieve results and win trophies. That would be the
best legacy I could have of myself here."
Gradually, he was able to turn things around, instilling
order and discipline into Zenit's often impetuous game.
After a fourth-place finish in 2006, Zenit finally made the breakthrough
this year, disproving the famous Petrzela saying that they would never
win the title competing against the powerful Moscow clubs.
Ironically, this year it was clubs from the capital that often had to
complain about refereeing and other outside factors helping Zenit, backed
by the seemingly limitless resources of Russian energy giant Gazprom.
LITTLE GENERAL
Advocaat, dubbed the Little General by the Dutch media, remained unperturbed.
"I always let my results do the talking for me," he said in
response to complaints by some of his fellow coaches.
The Dutchman, by his own admission, has also finally warmed to Russia's
second capital. The new love-affair with the city as well as the title-clinching
finish have led Advocaat to extend his Zenit contract.
The 60-year-old, who had previously agreed to coach Australia's national
team, last month changed his mind and decided to stay in St Petersburg
for another year.
"The lure of playing in the Champions League was just too big to
resist. Of course, money was also a factor," said Advocaat, who will
reportedly earn over $4.5 million next year.
The successes of both Hiddink and Advocaat have raised the profile of
Dutch coaches to a new height in Russia.
Local papers were full of stories linking several of their countrymen,
including former Netherlands manager Louis van
Gaal, with a number of top Russian clubs.
Former Dutch captain Ruud Gullit, who now coaches Los Angeles Galaxy,
has also expressed interest in coaching in Russia at some point in his
career.
"Why not? The Russian league is getting better and better and it
seems money is not a problem here," Gullit, 45, told Reuters in an
interview earlier this month.
"Besides, I really like Moscow," said the former Chelsea, Newcastle
United and Feyenoord manager, who had visited the Russian capital twice
in a three-week period.
Guardian
Unlimited, Dec 21 2007
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