1. Igor Vladimirovich Denisov is a Russian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
26 Facts About Igor Denisov
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Igor Denisov then played for Anzhi Makhachkala, Dynamo Moscow and Lokomotiv Moscow, winning a further Premier League and two Russian Cups with the last of those clubs.
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Igor Denisov made his debut for Russia in 2008, playing 54 games over the next eight years and featuring at Euro 2012 and the 2014 World Cup.
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Igor Denisov has been the subject of controversy, courting numerous arguments at the club and international level during his professional career.
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Igor Denisov was born in Leningrad and started his footballing career with Turbostroitel before going to Smena, the youth team of Zenit.
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Igor Denisov signed his first professional contract with Zenit, St Petersburg's only professional team, after graduating school in 2002.
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At the age of 18, Igor Denisov made his debut for Zenit in a league match against CSKA Moscow in 2002.
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Igor Denisov made his breakthrough with the club the following year, scoring twice in 19 appearances.
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On 29 June 2010, Igor Denisov extended his contract with Zenit for a further five years.
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Three weeks later, Igor Denisov was demoted to the reserve team for improper behavior according to the club.
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Igor Denisov announced his move to Russian Premier League club Anzhi Makhachkala for a fee of 15 million euros on 21 June 2013.
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On 15 August 2013, Igor Denisov moved along with fellow Anzhi players Yuriy Zhirkov and Aleksandr Kokorin to FC Dynamo for an undisclosed fee.
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Igor Denisov played in only three matches for Anzhi before the cash-strapped club began to sell its players.
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Igor Denisov returned to Dynamo's lineup in July 2015, after Cherchesov was dismissed as Dynamo's manager and replaced by Andrey Kobelev.
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Igor Denisov first featured in the Russian national set up, representing the Under-19 side against Denmark in the second qualifying round for the 2003 UEFA U-19 European Championships.
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Igor Denisov then went on to captain the Russia U-21 team.
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Igor Denisov trained with Russia in 2005 but did not get into the team.
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Igor Denisov was confirmed for the finalized UEFA Euro 2012 squad on 25 May 2012.
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Igor Denisov featured in all three Group A matches, as Russia picked up four points but ultimately failed to qualify for the knockout stage due to their head-to-head record with Greece.
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On 7 September 2012, Igor Denisov was appointed by new Russia manager Fabio Capello as the captain of the national team in the wake of Andrei Arshavin's absence.
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On 6 June 2016, Igor Denisov was ruled out of Euro 2016 with a thigh injury.
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Igor Denisov injured his foot in the incident and broke the instructor's nose.
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In September 2010, Igor Denisov was involved in a training ground bust up with coach Vladislav Radimov, the argument escalated from a call Radimov made in a practice game and reports claim that Igor Denisov was readying to punch Radimov before teammates physically stopped him.
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Two months later in a match against Spartak Moscow, Igor Denisov verbally abused Spartak's manager Valery Karpin, subsequently leading to a brawl with both sets of players and a four match ban for the combative midfielder.
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In November 2015, he was again moved to Dynamo's reserves squad by the new manager Andrey Kobelev after Igor Denisov demanded that the club management fire the club's doctor whom Igor Denisov called incompetent.
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Igor Denisov owns two South African pitbulls and is known in Russia as being a very good chess player and for never giving interviews to reporters.