Moscow State Academy of Physical Culture (MGAFK).
From the age of four he was engaged in the football club CSKA. The first coach is Desiderius Kovacs.
At the age of 16, Igor became a football player for the double of PFC CSKA, the youth and youth teams of Russia, and a year later he made his debut in the main team of the army. In the Premier League, he played his first match on May 31, 2003 on the road against Wings of the Soviets. The army team won - 2:0, and he himself saved a penalty in the last minutes of the meeting. According to the results of that season, during which Igor played 13 matches in the Russian Championship, CSKA Moscow became the owner of the gold medals of the championship.
In 2004, Akinfeev made his debut in the Russian national team, becoming one of the youngest goalkeepers in the history of the national team.
In 2005, Akinfeev, as part of the army club, won the national championship, and also became the owner of the UEFA Cup and the Russian Cup.
On May 6, 2007, in a match with Rostov, Akinfeev was seriously injured - a torn anterior cruciate ligament - and dropped out almost until the end of the season.
In the 2008 season, Igor managed to regain the first number in the Russian national team, and was also appointed captain of the army. As part of the Russian national team, he won bronze medals at the 2008 European Championship. In the same year, Igor became the youngest goalkeeper in Russia, who played 100 clean sheets, and at Euro 2008 he turned out to be the best goalkeeper in terms of the number of reflected blows.
The following years brought Igor Akinfeev new high-profile titles in the PFC CSKA. In 2009, he once again became the owner of the Russian Cup and Super Cup, and in 2011 he won another Russian Cup.
In August 2011, Igor again suffered damage to the anterior cruciate ligament. In the spring of 2012, he again took a place at the gates of PFC CSKA and returned to the national team.
In 2013, Akinfeev, as part of the army team, won all three Russian football trophies, was recognized as the best football player of the year according to the RFU, and for the seventh time in his career received the Lev Yashin Goalkeeper of the Year prize, presented by Ogonyok magazine.
The 2013/14 season brought the army team another title of national champions - the fifth in Igor's career. In the summer of 2014, Akinfeev, as part of the army team, won the country's Super Cup for the sixth time.
Igor Akinfeev - five-time champion of Russia (2003, 2005, 2006, 2013, 2014); six-time winner of the Russian Cup (2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013); six-time winner of the Russian Super Cup (2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2013, 2014). UEFA Cup Winner (2005).
Igor Akinfeev is the owner of a huge number of records among goalkeepers.
On August 13, 2014, he became CSKA's record holder for the number of matches played in the Russian Football Championship. In the match against Grozny "Terek" he entered the field for the 283rd time in a T-shirt of the army club. According to this indicator, he was ahead of Sergei Semak, who accounted for 282 games.
November 29, 2014 Igor Akinfeev set a new record for the number of "dry" matches in the championship of Russia, having played "to zero" the 130th game.
December 10, 2014 Akinfeev surpassed the record of the legendary striker "red-blue" Vladimir Fedotov in the total number of games for the army team. In the match of the final round of the Champions League group stage against Bayern Munich, he entered the field for the 427th time as part of CSKA.
November 14, 2015 Igor Akinfeev set a record for the number of "dry" matches in his career. He kept his goal intact in the 233rd match of his career. The former record belonged to the ex-goalkeeper of the USSR national team and Spartak Moscow Rinat Dasaev - 232 "dry" matches.
On March 6, 2016, Igor Akinfeev, who started the CSKA in the Moscow derby with Spartak, broke the record for the number of games played in the Russian Football Championship among goalkeepers. For Akinfeev, this game was the 329th in the championships of Russia, the 29-year-old goalkeeper of the army surpassed the previous achievement, which belonged to the goalkeeper of the St. Petersburg “Zenith” Vyacheslav Malafeev (328 meetings).
Russian footballer, goalkeeper of CSKA and the Russian national team. Honored Master of Sports of Russia
Childhood of Igor Akinfeev
The permanent goalkeeper of the Russian national team Igor Akinfeev was born on April 8, 1986 in the Moscow region in a simple Soviet family. His father worked as a truck driver, and his mother worked as a kindergarten teacher.
Igor dreamed of getting into big football since childhood. His father sent him to football school at the age of four and a half. At first, the coach doubted whether it was worth taking the baby to the team, but Igor's father insisted on watching his son.
Two weeks later, the first coach of the young football player, Desiderius Kovacs, advised him to enroll in the army youth sports school, where the rest of the guys in the section were two years older than him. Already at the second training session, the position of the goalkeeper was determined for Igor, and the football coach predicted a great goalkeeper's future for him.
A small child not only withstood everyday training, but also studied well. According to the stories of his mother, Irina Vladimirovna, until the fifth grade he was "good", there were no problems with discipline, and his prescriptions were worn to the exhibition.
In 1996, the boy went to Europe for his first international competition. He impressed the head of the local football federation with his game. Milyan Milyanich, the Yugoslav coach, personally praised Akinfeev and saw in him the makings of a successor to Lev Yashin, the legendary Soviet footballer.
Surprisingly, in physical education, the young athlete always had deuces. The fact is that from an early age he protected himself from possible injuries: he did not pull himself up, did not do push-ups and did not participate in competitions, stating: “And if I hurt myself, who will play in CSKA?” Akinfeev is guided by this principle to this day: “I have never ridden either mopeds or motorcycles, which, perhaps, will seem strange to someone. And this is not fear, as many will think, but a barrier between me and unwanted injury.
Professional sports
Akinfeev worked at the CSKA football academy for more than ten years, after which, at the age of 16, he signed an agreement with the army team. In July, he was re-announced for the club and spent ten matches in the season for the CSKA double. At the same time, Akinfeev received a call to the Russian youth team, in which he made his debut in August of the same year in a duel with the Swedes, becoming the youngest goalkeeper in the Russian Premier League.
As part of the youth team in 2002, he became the champion of Russia.
After graduating from school, he entered the Moscow State Academy of Physical Culture (MGAFK). In 2009, he successfully defended his thesis, which was related to the goalkeeper's football tactics on the field.
At the age of 17, the young man first played for his native club in an away match with St. Petersburg Zenit in the 1/8 finals of the Russian Premier League Cup. In the second half, he replaced Dmitry Kramarenko and did not concede a single goal. The young athlete immediately drew attention to himself with his goalkeeping skills and good reaction. The Sport-Express publication noted Akinfeev after the first match: “He made a splash with a confident, mature game, looked stronger than Mandrykin.”
In the same season, Akifeev made his debut at the Russian Championship against the Samara Wings of the Soviets. In the last minute, Akinfeev parried a penalty kick from the club's leader Andrey Karyaki, and was also recognized as the best player of the match. In total, in the 2003 championship, he played thirteen matches, going out in turn with the main goalkeeper Veniamin Mandrykin. His team won the title of champion of Russia. Thus, 2003 marked the first achievement in big football for Akinfeev. From the next season, Akinfeev became the main goalkeeper of the army club.
On September 5, 2003, Akinfeev made his debut as part of the Russian Olympic team on the mast against the Irish team, which ended with a score of 2: 0 in favor of the Irish.
After the first game for the main team of CSKA in the Premier League, Akinfeev was called up to the main national team. In April 2004, he became a solid base player and has always been in the starting lineup for CSKA. He became the youngest newcomer to the national team in the history of Russian football.
In 2005, as part of the army club, the nineteen-year-old goalkeeper won the national championship, and also became the owner of the UEFA Cup and the Russian Cup.
The next season 2006/07 was no less successful for Akinfeev. Many football experts put him on a par with Lev Yashin and recognized him as the most promising Russian goalkeeper. However, in the spring of 2007, in a match against Rostov, the football player was injured and dropped out almost until the end of the season.
In the 2008 season, Akinfeev managed not only to regain his leading position in the national team, but also to become the captain of the army. At the 2008 European Championship, the athlete played five matches and won a bronze medal as part of the national team, as well as the best goalkeeper in terms of the number of saves.
In the same year, he played his 100th clean sheet and became the youngest Russian footballer with such an amazing result.
In August 2011, the CSKA goalkeeper suffered a serious knee injury and was operated on in Germany. Akinfeev returned to sports in early February next year. At the moment, Akinfeev is a well-known goalkeeper, even by world standards. He is the owner of the Order of Friendship, an eight-time winner of the Goalkeeper of the Year prize named after. Yashin, a member of Igor Netto's club and is featured in many lists of Russia's best football players.
Igor Akinfeev was called up to the national team on the eve of the 2018 World Cup and received the right to wear the captain's armband for the duration of the World Cup.
Akinfeev's style of play
Speaking about the strengths of the national team goalkeeper, experts note his ability to choose the right position. The goalkeeper's short height (185 cm) makes up for good reading of the game and the correct position at the goal. Where another goalkeeper will jump a considerable distance, Akinfeev will read the situation and take a couple of steps in the right direction.
A good reaction is another strong point of the goalkeeper of the Russian national team - in close combat, it allows you to save the team. When an opponent appears with the ball in front of the goal, Akinfeev is able to quickly reduce the distance and react to the blow.
Igor's weak side can be considered the game on the second floor: the CSKA goalkeeper feels uncomfortable in the fight against tall opponents due to lack of height, jumping ability and arm length. Therefore, he often prefers to stay on the line and not go to the balls that another would try to play.
Personal life of Igor Akinfeev
The Russian football player is married to Ukrainian model Ekaterina Gerun. He met the girl through the concert director of the soloist of the group "Hands Up" Serezha Zhukov. “It’s hard to call it a novel: there were no grandiose courtship, glances, winks. We just found each other, ”said the footballer.
The couple has a son Daniel (2014) and a daughter Evangeline (2015).
For the sake of the family, the wife of Igor Akinfeev, Ekaterina Gerun, sacrificed her own career, and she had already managed to prove herself as a model and actress, but after the birth of two children, she decided that the most important thing for her now was their health, as well as the well-being of her husband, who today is the best Russian goalkeeper.
Today, Katya is exclusively engaged in housework, taking care of the kids and her beloved wife.
Personal life of Igor Akinfeev
The football player has never been very sociable with the press, and he especially does not like to answer questions related to his personal life, so many will learn about all the events taking place in it almost by accident.
So, Igor met with Valeria Yakunchikova for a long time, and his friends and acquaintances were almost sure that soon the daughter of the administrator of the CSKA hockey club and the granddaughter of the famous coach Valery Nepomniachtchi, after whom Lera was named, and Igor Akinfeev will get married.
In the photo - Igor Akinfeev and Valeria Yakunchikova
Valeria also hoped for this, but Igor's feeling for Ekaterina Gerun intervened in the relationship of the couple in love, and he broke up with his former lover, whom he had met for several years. The break for Akinfeev's ex-girlfriend was very painful - she could not forgive Igor for betrayal and took it as a betrayal.
For everyone, it was a huge surprise that Igor married, but not with Valeria, but with another woman and even managed to become a father - by that time Catherine had managed to give birth to his first child - son Daniel.
The football player's wife, like him, is also a secretive person, so it is not known how and where she met her future husband, we can only say that before meeting him, Gerun did not particularly revere the athletes, considering them to be frivolous people.
In the photo - Akinfeev with his wife
Igor Akinfeev was able to dispel this opinion and conquered Catherine with his views on life, seriousness and prudence. Her parents quickly accepted Igor into their family, and their daughter's future husband also made a great impression on them.
Igor Akinfeev's wife
Ekaterina Gerun was born in Kyiv on November 1, 1986. All her childhood and youth were spent in Ukraine, where she graduated not only from high school, but also from the university, having received the specialty of a chemist. Katya's external data allowed her to win prizes at local beauty contests, and in the struggle for the right to represent Ukraine at the Miss Universe contest, she took fourth place.
Ekaterina Gerun
Ekaterina Gerun successfully started her modeling career, starred in several films in France several times, played a French student in the domestic film “Lectures for Housewives”, took part in the filming of video clips of famous performers, including Sergey Lazarev.
The wife of Igor Akinfeev improves not only her external beauty, playing sports, leading an active lifestyle, but also develops spiritually - Catherine reads a lot, likes to visit museums and galleries.
Igor adores his wife, pleases her with pleasant surprises and gifts, and she does everything possible to make him feel cozy and warm at home.
In the photo - the wife of Igor Akinfeev with his son
Two years ago, Catherine gave birth to her second child - daughter Evangelina, and this was the best gift for her loving husband.
Short biography of Igor Akinfeev
Igor was born in the Moscow region, in the city of Vidnoye on April 8, 1986. He started playing football early - at the age of four he was sent to the CSKA youth school and from the second training session he was already at the gate.
Igor Akinfeev went to the first training camp with his team when he was eight years old, and this became a real test for the young football player, who, together with his comrades, had to go to training in any weather, including in heavy rain.
The real reward for the young goalkeeper was a trip to a tournament in Yugoslavia, where after the match Igor was invited by the head of the football association of the republic, Milyanich, who, after watching his game, said that he saw him as a second Lev Yashin.
After graduating from high school, Akinfeev entered the Academy of Physical Culture, from which he graduated in 2009, having defended a diploma on the topic "Technical and tactical actions of a goalkeeper during a football match."
At the age of sixteen, Igor Akinfeev became the champion of Russia, in the same year he signed his first contract with CSKA and received a call-up to the Russian youth team. In its composition, he played his first match with the Swedish national team.
Igor's debut at the "adult level" took place in the spring of 2003 - against the St. Petersburg "Zenith", and he helped his team to draw. After his debut match in the Premier League with the Krylya Sovetov football team, Igor was recognized as the best player of the match - he deserved this title because he was able to defend his goal from a penalty in the last minute.
And the CSKA goalkeeper was recognized as the best player in the country in the 2004 season, when his team became the silver medalist of the championship. At the same time, he took third place among the top thirty-three and was named the best young goalkeeper in the world according to Fox Sports. In March 2017, Akinfeev became the captain of the Russian football team.
After the 2014 World Cup, the goalkeeper of the Russian team was severely criticized. After the victory over Spain, they are ready to carry him in their arms and offer to erect a monument during his lifetime. But what do we know about Igor Akinfeev?
How quickly the Russians change anger to mercy, indifference to admiration, is clearly demonstrated by the World Cup taking place these days. Now on the Web, such a change of emotions is called the word "change shoes."
The head coach of the Russian national team is a "fizruk", its main goalkeeper is a "hole", so it was for many before the start of the tournament. Now Stanislav Cherchesov- " ", but Igor Akinfeev"God's foot".
However, for adequate fans, the captain of the Russian team has always been a reliable goalkeeper. Many respect him for the fact that he talks little about himself, preferring to be judged by his work. In addition to the field, Igor can only be seen at charity events, for which Akinfeev never spares time and effort.
website tells what is known about the No. 1 goalkeeper in our country.
May 18, 2013 Match CSKA - FC Kuban. The army team is the winner of the Russian Football Championship 2012/2013. Source: globallookpress.com
First sports camp
Igor Akinfeev was born on April 8, 1986 in Vidnoye, a satellite town of the Russian capital. His father worked as a truck driver, and his mother worked as a kindergarten teacher. The boy was brought to the army football school when he was not even five years old. Despite the fact that all the children were older than him, the still very young Igor studied with no less zeal than the rest, and did not quit training after a few months, as many boys do.
However, the little sportsman in football chose his own place: at the gate. It turns out that Igor did not particularly like to run, which he himself later admitted. That's how I became a goalkeeper.
The future captain of the Russian national team got to the first training camp with other guys at the age of 8. Even then, he was quite independent - for example, he washed his uniform without anyone's help.
At the age of ten, Igor performed very successfully at the international tournament in Yugoslavia, where local experts did not hesitate to compare little Akinfeev with Lev Yashin, seeing the makings of a great goalkeeper.
Igor Akinfeev. 2005 Source: globallookpress.com Childish pranks and school years
Ros Igor with his brother Evgeny. By Igor's own admission, there were fights, tables were broken, mirrors were broken - everything, like any "normal" brothers. Together with a friend, they somehow threw a fire extinguisher from the roof of the house. They wanted to see if it exploded or not. Thank God, there were no victims or injured.
“I was late for training, of course, but I always came. When there was no money, I threw tantrums, cried - my parents borrowed money, and we still went to training. But in his professional career he was never late,” says Akinfeev.
If after the test at school there was a training, then he did not stay at the break to finish the work, so as not to be late for class. And the deuces did not frighten him. There were also favorite subjects, in particular, geography.
By the way, in childhood, Igor's favorite goalkeeper was none other than ... Stanislav Cherchesov. Probably nothing surprising - in the early 90s, the current head coach of the Russian national team was the No. 1 goalkeeper in it.
Wife and children of Igor Akinfeev
Igor's wife Ekaterina Gerun, the same age as her husband, was also born in 1986, but in Kyiv. The girl was a participant in the Miss Ukraine contest, worked as a model. In 2014, the couple had their first child, a son. Danila. With the second child, they did not postpone, after a year and a half, a daughter appeared in the family evangelina.
Goalkeeper of the Russian national football team and PFC CSKA Igor Akinfeev, winner of the Fyodor Cherenkov Football Gentleman of the Year award, and his wife Yekaterina at the award ceremony at the Nani restaurant. The goalkeeper of the Russian national team Igor Akinfeev became a real hero of the match "Spain - Russia", thanks to which our team reached the quarterfinals of the World Cup for the first time in history. We offer you some facts from the life of Akinfeev that will tell you about what Igor was like in childhood.
Igor Akinfeev was born on April 8, 1986 in Vidnoe. At that time, his mother worked as a kindergarten teacher, and his father was a truck driver.
As you can already understand, the family could not boast of great prosperity, so Igor did not even have a bicycle as a child. But in the archive there was a photo in which the baby poses in a children's car.
Igor is not the only child in the family, he has an older brother, whose name is Evgeny.
According to Igor, in his school years he only had football. “I always left the last lesson for training, despite the fact that I was always given a deuce in the magazine right in front of me,” he explained.
At school, he was most interested in such subjects as biology and geography.
Perhaps the most surprising thing is that Akinfeev's favorite goalkeeper in life was Stanislav Cherchesov, despite the fact that Igor went to the CSKA football school. The archive even found his photo with the goalkeeper of "Spartacus" - Alexander Filimonov. It was made in 1997, when CSKA played with Spartak.
The father spoke about his son: "Igor has always been a silent guy, but nevertheless, he always tried to achieve the maximum result in everything."
Pavel Koval, Akinfeev’s children’s coach, spoke about the guys from the group: “From the graduation that I coached, only 11 guys were taken in duplicate. But where did they go? Nobody knows. And Igor was able to achieve results, because he is a purposeful and serious person in life. He was not thinking about girls, but about football."
In 1996, Igor went to the international tournament in Yugoslavia, which became his debut. The head of the local football federation drew attention to the guy, which launched his career.
Akinfeev got into the main team of CSKA just before the 2002/03 season. Instructions to the young goalkeeper are given by Vyacheslav Chanov himself, who played a huge role in the progress of his skills.
And then there was an important match in Samara, where 17-year-old goalkeeper Akinfeev was able to save a penalty in his first game in the RFPL. Well, what happened next with Igor, we think you yourself already know.
