MOSCOW, (RIA Novosti football expert Marc...
feels that money isn"t the only issue for the Russian game."Even if the poor oligarchs get their money back, the problem of the Russian league is that it"s in Russia," he commented.
"Few great footballers want to go there. Firstly, because it"s alien to them and secondly because it doesn"t have a tradition. Yes, players are motivated by money. But the best can become multimillionaires at great traditional clubs in Italy, England or Spain. These guys don"t have much of a reason to risk Russia, even if salaries there were higher."
"It"s very hard to imagine Russian clubs winning the Champions League as more than a one-off. But a one-off victory, a la FC Porto or Ajax, is perfectly possible," he added.
For now though, Russian fans can only turn their attention to Rome on Wednesday and dream.
Marc Bennetts is the author of Football Dynamo: Modern Russia and the People"s Game (Virgin Books)
Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 [6]