Footballer Yakov Shmelev spoke about leaving for the Gibraltar championship for the sake of development
Russian football player Yakov Shmelev, who played in the USA, explained the transition to the championship of Gibraltar (British overseas territory). His words are quoted by “Championship”.
“I wouldn’t mind continuing in the States. In August I turned 24 years old, I didn’t find myself in a higher division. So it’s time to try something new. I could stay with the Michigan Stars and change clubs within the league in the winter, but it would be the same thing,” the athlete said. He noted that he decided to go to the European championship for the sake of development.
Shmelev joined the Lions in August 2023 as a free agent. The contract with the Gibraltar club is for one season. As part of the new team, he played four matches without scoring any goals.
On September 12, the head coach of the Russian national team, Valery Karpin, called on Russian players to leave for European clubs. He said that he advised leaving RPL many times. The coach added that he feels the difference between the level of the national team players who play in Europe and those who remain at home.
Source: Lenta
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