The Joey Barton of Russia, who once made up a story about breaking his leg, is not afraid to speak out on controversial issues. He will be in the shop window at Euro 2012
This article is part of the Guardian's Euro 2012 Experts' Network, a co-operation between 16 of the best media organisations from the countries who have qualified for the finals in Poland and Ukraine. guardian.co.uk is running previews from two countries each day in the runup to the tournament kicking off on 8 June.
Few players in any top league in Europe – at any time – could have tried harder to ruin their own careers than Roman Shirokov (although, admittedly, Adrian Mutu has a strong claim here).
The Russia midfielder has tried it all. Once, he made up a story about breaking his leg and had to wear a plaster to cover up the story. It failed. He has told the press that his holier-than-thou manager is a greedy bastard only interested in money. He has insulted his own fans and he has denounced the current Spain team as a bunch of "nobodies".
Inevitably, the fans love him. The only thing predictable about Shirokov is his unpredictability. In 2008, when Dick Advocaat's Zenit St Petersburg were flying high in the Russian Premier League and in the Uefa Cup, the Dutchman said: "One day Roman Shirokov could become the best defender in the country," praising the ability of the versatile player who had been playing non-league football four years earlier and had just made his debut for the national team. Shirokov's reply? "Defender? I don't want to be a defender. I hope to become the best Russian midfielder."
Shirokov was born in Dedovsk, about 40 kilometres west of Moscow and was part of the CSKA Moscow youth academy when the first incident of his action-packed career happened. He had been loaned out to Torpedo-ZIL but one day he went to a barbecue with his friends – and did not return for two months.
Later, in an attempt to cover his ill-discipline, he made up the story about breaking his leg. When the truth was discovered, Shirokov was sent back to the army club – to actually serve in the army rather than play football. He was still training with the reserves but his main duties included digging trenches and painting walls in red and blue, CSKA's club colours.
He left for non-league Istra but even if his football improved, his temper did not.
The experience did not change him. When he was playing for non-league Istra, a team from a small town outside Moscow,, not far from his native Dedovsk, he stayed out late drinking and gambling.
In fact, it was not until he met Katya, who later became his wife, that he changed his ways. In 2004 Shirokov decided to relaunch his career and played for Vidnoe in the third tier for a season before having his Premier League breakthrough a year later. But while his football was improving – his temper was not. Shirokov continue to clash with many a coaches.
In 2006, at Rubin Kazan, Kurban Berdyev had just started to build the side which would win back-to-back Russian titles and beat Barcelona at Camp Nou in the Champions League. Berdyev, who always carried his praying beads with him, is often portrayed as a coaching shaman in the Russian press but Shirokov, naturally, was less than impressed. Shirokov said: "The only God he recognises is Mr Franklin from the hundred dollar note."
It was not until 2007, at the age of 26, that Shirokov played his first full Premier League season, with unfancied FC Khimki. He scored seven goals in 27 games, including one against Zenit, and agreed a contract with the newly crowned Russian champions at the end of a season. Finally it was fame, rather than a hangover or an army officer, that came knocking at his door.
Not many people expected Shirokov to win a starting place in the Zenit midfield, which was at the time packed of international stars. Then Advocaat had a think, and moved Shirokov into central defence during pre-season. Shirokov could not match the departing Martin Skrtel when it came to tackling and in the air but his positioning and exemplary passing made him a good replacement.
In 2008, Zenit went on to win the Uefa Cup and Shirokov was superb against Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich, as well as in the final against Rangers in Manchester. He had already been called up for Russia by Hiddink and was a shoo-in for the Euro 2008 squad.
The tournament turned out to be the high point for several Russia players. Four of them went to England (Yuri Zhirkov, Roman Pavlyuchenko, Andrey Arshavin and Dinyar Bilyaletdinov) and the others got improved contracts with the Russian Premier League clubs. Shirokov, the controversial midfielder-come-defender with his unique and unforgettable style, turned out to be the only one who did not benefit from the biggest achievement in the history of the Russian national team. He did not have a great tournament.
To start of with, this is what Shirokov said when asked about Spain, Russia's opponents in the first game: "Spain are nothing. They keep the possession but can't really create chances." Inevitably, Spain crushed Russia 4-1 and Shirokov was responsible for at least two goals. His woeful performance was made even worse by his post-match comments: "We didn't even expect David Villa [who scored a hat-trick] to start against us".
Viktor Gusev, commentating on national TV, muttered angrily that "Shirokov doesn't live up to the standard of the national team" – and the phrase summed up Shirokov's tournament. He was dropped and an unused substitute in all the remaining matches.
He subsequently fell out with Hiddink, lost his place in Zenit's starting XI and spent most of 2009 sitting on the bench while also managing to have an argument with the Italian manager Luciano Spalletti, who had just arrived at the club. But did it finish him off? Of course it did not. When the dust settled, Shirokov pulled his socks up and started to work extremely hard. He won back his place in the Zenit midfield, scoring six goals in 21 matches, and was recalled to the national team by his former coach Advocaat.
Last season, finally, saw him reach his prime, at the age of 30. Shirokov played only 16 matches for Zenit in 2011 because of injury but scored six times and was feted as one the best players in the league. Russia qualified for the Euro 2012, with Shirokov far more important to the team's success than the fading Arshavin. Moreover, Shirokov blossomed in the Champions League where he helped Zenit reach the knockout stage for the first time in the history of the club. He also equalled the all-time Russian record for most goals in one Champions League season, joining Valery Karpin and Yuri Nikiforov on five goals. Things could not have been better for the former drinker and gambler.
And yet he is still a troublemaker. Leaving disciplinary issues behind him, Shirokov now expresses himself with words. He is the most active Russian footballer on Twitter, where he sometimes criticises the game and the officials in a Barton-esque way. He is not afraid to point out that the KHL (Russian ice hockey league) are way ahead of the Russian Premier League in terms of advertising and branding. When Zenit fans fired flares and nearly forced the referee to abandon a Champions League game, Shirokov went up to the stands and had a go at them, calling the fans "morons".
Since the start of this year, Shirokov has been hitting out at the pitch conditions in the Russian Premier League. He even suggested that Zenit stadium groundsman should be "shepherding goats on this pitch instead of playing football". Speaking of Anzhi Makhachkala, where Roberto Carlos and Samuel Eto'o are now earning all the money in the world, Shirokov told the billionaire Suleyman Kerimov to invest in the football infrastructure first, before buying players.
Shirokov's outspokenness has irritated many but it is difficult to find any flaws in his game at the moment. Now it is the Russian team who will have to live up to his standard, not the other way around. He is his country's best midfielder. "I'd like to test myself in Europe," he has said, and Euro 2012 could be the perfect time and place for him to prove that he is ready. However, with Roman Shirokov, it is impossible to predict anything.
Ivan Kalashnikov is the deputy editor at sports.ru
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