“Erokhin is a foreign player in Zenit’s candidacy.” How to explain Semak’s sudden statement?
Polina Kuimova September 22, 2023, 20:45 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
We understand the regulations and explain what the Zenit coach meant.
Zenit midfielder Alexander Erokhin was included in the application for the second team, and this was immediately explained in the club: the press service called the moment technical, and Alexander Medvedev said that “it is a purely design question.” Next, Sergei Semak commented on the situation, who also spoke about the technical issue, but added a nuance.
Sergey Semak
Zenit coach
“In our application for the season, he is considered a foreign player. In this way we free up space. It is a bit strange situation that a footballer who plays for the Russian national team is considered a foreign player in the general application. Therefore, we simply made room in case we needed to introduce one of the foreigners.”
Legionary? A Russian who played for the Russian national team?
It sounds strange, but now we explain everything to you.
Let’s start with the fact that the players in the season application are divided into local club players, local association players and foreign players. Let’s look at the regulations:
A local club player is a football player with Russian citizenship who, between the ages of 14 and 21, was constantly or intermittently enrolled for at least 36 months in a given club or its sports school; a local association player is a football player with Russian citizenship who, from the age of 14 to 21, was registered continuously or intermittently for at least 36 months in a Russian club (or clubs, or their sports schools); legionnaire – the status of a football player who does not have the right to play in sports teams of the Russian Federation in accordance with the rules Regulations for the application of the FIFA Statutes.
Lawyer Mikhail Prokopets explained to the Championship that Erokhin is not a local association player: “At the age of 17 he went to play in Moldova, where he spent three and a half years. A youth player is one who spent at least three years in Russia between the ages of 14 and 21; Erokhin is not three years old. From the age of 14 he played only two years in Russia.”
Forward. There are two application sheets: Form No. 3A and Form No. 3B.
Number 3A is the main list (for the RPL), it consists of 25 places, 12 of which are for local players: four places for local club players, eight for local association players. Another 13 places are for everyone else, including foreign players.
Extract from the RPL regulations for the 2023/2024 season:
12.8. To participate in the Championship, the Club may register at any time:
– according to form No. 3A, no more than 25 (twenty-five) football players, including no more than 13 (thirteen) legionaries, of which no more than 8 legionnaires and no less than 12 (twelve) can be on the field at the same time in a Championship match for Homegrown Soccer Players of a Club, of which at least 4 (four) Soccer Players must be Homegrown Players of the Club and at least 8 (eight) Homegrown Association Players. If the application form does not contain the number of Homegrown Soccer Players specified in this paragraph, the quota of declared Soccer Players will be reduced accordingly.
– according to form No. 3B, no more than 30 (thirty) footballers born no earlier than January 1, 2002. The total number of goalkeepers registered according to lists No. 3A and No. 3B must not be less than 2 (two) . The total number of Legionaries declared simultaneously according to lists No. 3A and No. 3B must not exceed 13 (thirteen).
“Since Erokhin is neither a local football player nor a local football player, his application automatically goes to the list of 13,” explained the RPL. – That is, he potentially occupies a vacant legionary place. Because FC Zenit had almost completed the main application form (according to list No. 3 A), the club re-registered Erokhin according to the second team list.”
Here is a paradox: Erokhin takes the place of a legionnaire, although he is not one. And Semak’s words are explained exactly this way.
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