Belarus great Gurenko goes back to his roots
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
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"It's time to pay back the country which made me as a footballer," said former Belarus captain Sergei Gurenko, 36, after ending a six-season stay at FC Lokomotiv Moskva by joining FC Dinamo Minsk on a one-year deal.
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Former Belarus captain Sergei Gurenko is looking forward to bringing his career to a close in his homeland after joining FC Dinamo Minsk on a one-year contract from FC Lokomotiv Moskva.
Cap record
The 36-year-old last played in Belarus for FC Neman Grodno in 1994 before moving on to Lokomotiv, AS Roma, Real Zaragoza, Parma FC and Piacenza FC ahead of another six-season stay in the Russian capital which ends with the move to Minsk. "It's time to pay back the country which made me as a footballer," said Gurenko, the scorer of three international goals in a career which yielded a record 80 caps for Belarus.
Century beckons
"I had an opportunity to play for Lokomotiv for a couple more seasons but didn't want to return home spent as a player," he continued. "Besides that, my sons keep telling me I have to bring up 100 matches in the Belarussian league as I went to Russia with 99 games under my belt." His country's Footballer of the Year in 1999, Gurenko is likely to bring up that century when the 2009 Vysshaya Liga season begins in April.