Dzagoev and Kerzhakov can make Capellos Russia truly Fab

Alan Dzagoev caused a stir at Euro 2012 and is set to play a big part in Fabio Capello's Russia
Fabio Capello has inherited a talented bunch of players as he begins his tenure as Russia boss - so talented in fact that he was happy to do away with the iconic figure of Andrei Arshavin. Jonathan Wilson explains all
As statements go, dropping the captain and one-time golden boy is as big as they come. Fabio Capello had promised to give Andrei Arshavin a second chance after he had been made the scapegoat for Russia's first-round exit at the European Championship. He included him in his 37-man provisional squad for the World Cup qualifiers against Northern Ireland and Israel, but then left him out of the final 24.
Except, of course, that with Capello it almost certainly isn't a statement. When Steve McClaren dropped David Beckham from his first England squad it was at the very least a symbolic sacrifice, a way of saying that a new age had begun. It may even have been a message from McClaren telling his squad that he was tough enough to make the big calls. It was a decision, it seemed, made less for football reasons than for reasons of image, something emphasised a few months later when McClaren had to ask Beckham back.
Whatever other criticism have been made of Capello, nobody ever accused him of being over-concerned with his public image. He has omitted Arshavin for football reasons, something the forward seems remarkably sanguine about.
"It's logical, really. The agreement is that when I don't play well for my club, I shouldn't expect a place in the national squad," he told Sport Express.
"The fact I've been omitted did not come as a shock."
Capello knows his task is to get Russia to their first World Cup finals since 2002, and that will not be easy in a group that also features Portugal (in a developing market Russia are 2.942/1 to win the group; Portugal 1.491/2).
Arshavin came off the bench for the final half-hour in Capello's only game in charge so far, a 1-1 friendly draw against Ivory Coast. He seemed impressed by the new coach's decisiveness.
"With Capello I like that he doesn't listen to anyone and relies only on his own opinion,"
Arshavin said.
"He's also changed Russia's style. As you see, we don't trace out squares any more, we play a bit differently."
The system in that game seemed uncharacteristically fluent for Capello, with Igor Denisov sitting in front of the back four, Roman Pavlyuchenko up front with Alan Dzagoev sat just off him and a highly fluid midfield. Pavlyuchenko, though, has also been culled from Capello's squad, as has Pavel Pogrebnyak, which presumably means Aleksandr Kerzhakov, so widely mocked after an awful Euros, regaining the main striking position.
The Euros, though, were an aberration. Kerzhakov has been superb since rejoining Zenit in 2010, operating at times almost as a false nine, dropping off the front line to link with midfield. A partnership with Dzagoev, a similarly protean player, has the potential to be devastating. His shooting was wayward in Poland, but that is uncharacteristic: he scored 23 goals as Zenit won the league title last season and has already his six goals in four league matches this.
With Yuri Zhirkov injured, Aleksei Berezutski looks likely to continue at left-back, which loses Russia attacking thrust from deep on that flank, but gains them height, but it's the make-up of the midfield that will be fascinating. Denisov, who has developed into a dynamic holder in the four years since he snubbed a call-up to the Euro 2008 squad, is a certainty, but it's much harder to be sure of the identities of the other three, or even whether Dzagoev will play centrally or to the left. It would be a major surprise if Roman Shirokov were omitted which then means it's probably two from Vladimir Bystrov, Viktor Faizulin and Denis Glushakov, unless Capello decides he needs the experience and reliability of Konstantin Zyryanov.
Northern Ireland have developed a reputation for doughtiness but this year they've conceded 12 goals in three games. Russia are inconsistent but if they do click they can be superb, as they were, for instance, in the first hour away to the Republic of Ireland in Euro 2012 qualifying, or against the Czech Republic at times in the finals. With Jonny Evans still injured and Kerzhakov back in form, the temptation is to go for Russia to win by a good margin - they can be backed around evens on the Asian Handicap or at 4.3100/30 to by three in a developing Winning Margin market.