Alexei Smertin
Aleksey Smertin at a press conference
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Aleksey Gennadyevich Smertin | ||
| Date of birth | 1 May 1975 | ||
| Place of birth | Barnaul, RSFSR, Soviet Union | ||
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1992–1993 | Dinamo Barnaul | 42 | (2) |
| 1994–1997 | Zarya Leninsk-Kuznetsky | 124 | (13) |
| 1997–1998 | Uralan Elista | 49 | (3) |
| 1999–2000 | Lokomotiv Moscow | 39 | (7) |
| 2000–2003 | Bordeaux | 85 | (2) |
| 2003–2006 | Chelsea | 16 | (0) |
| 2003–2004 | → Portsmouth (loan) | 26 | (0) |
| 2005–2006 | → Charlton Athletic (loan) | 18 | (0) |
| 2006 | Dynamo Moscow | 22 | (0) |
| 2007–2008 | Fulham | 22 | (0) |
| Total | 443 | (27) | |
| National team | |||
| 1998–2006 | Russia | 55 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Aleksey Gennadyevich Smertin (Russian: Алексе́й Генна́дьевич Сме́ртин; IPA: [ɐlʲɪˈksʲej ɡʲɪnˈnadʲɪvʲɪtɕ ˈsʲmʲertʲɪn]; born 1 May 1975) is a retired footballer. He was a fairly versatile player and was able to play in defence as well as midfield. He works as a deputy executive director with FC Dynamo Moscow.
He played for clubs in Russia, France and England. Smertin retired from professional football in 2008 after having his contract with Fulham terminated and discovering a new career in politics.
He was the captain of the Russian national team, and earned 55 caps from 1998 to 2006, representing the nation at the 2002 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2004.
Born in Barnaul, Russian SFSR, Smertin has previously played for Dinamo Barnaul, Zarya Leninsk-Kuznetsky, Uralan Elista, Lokomotiv Moscow, and French team Girondins Bordeaux before moving on to Chelsea. His older brother Yevgeni Smertin played football professionally as well.
Claudio Ranieri brought Smertin to Chelsea from Bordeaux in August 2003 for £3.45m, before loaning him out to Portsmouth for the 2003–04 season. After some impressive performances at Fratton Park, most notably in Pompey's 1–0 victory over Manchester United, Smertin returned to London. However, Ranieri had now been succeeded by José Mourinho, who had made his own midfield signing in compatriot Tiago Mendes, adding to a midfield that already boasted Frank Lampard, Claude Makélélé, Geremi, and Scott Parker. Smertin only played a bit-part role for the team in 2004–05 as Chelsea won the title, but made enough appearances to earn a medal (16 in total). He did however score his first and only Chelsea goal this season, in the 3–1 Champions League win over Porto.
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