Ufa goalkeeper David Yurchenko leaves a good impression this season of the Russian Premier League, and after the website reported in November about the footballer’s Armenian roots, the goalkeeper’s performances began to be closely followed in Armenia.
- David, it is known that your mother is half Armenian. Do you have many Armenian relatives?
My maternal grandfather was Armenian. Unfortunately, he passed away early. I didn't see any of my grandfathers. My godfather is also Armenian, so I have many friends and relatives in Armenia.
- Are they related to football?
No, I’m the only footballer in my family (laughs).
- Do you know Armenian?
I know several words, for example, “ցավդ տանեմ” (translated from Armenian - “I will take away your pain”), and I also called my grandmother in Armenian.
- The name David is very popular in Armenia...
I got this name due to my Armenian roots. My father, of course, had the right to choose my name, and he insisted that I be called David.
You started playing football in Tver, and then moved to Moscow, where you trained at the football schools of Spartak and Lokomotiv. Have you always been a goalkeeper? Which coaches influenced your career the most?
I always wanted to become a goalkeeper and knew from the very beginning that I would play in this role. In Tver, my mentor was Viktor Sergeevich Galkin, from whom I learned a lot.
- “Sport-Express” named you the best goalkeeper of the first part of the Russian Championship. Can we say that you are having the best season of your career?
I hope my best season is yet to come. I am grateful to everyone who appreciates my game, but I need to continue to work on myself and develop.
- How did Ufa react to the fact that you could receive an invitation to the Armenian national team?
Friends and relatives, of course, know about my Armenian roots, but the rest knew nothing about it, so when information appeared that people from Armenia were interested in me, many were surprised. Yes, I myself did not believe that all this was happening to me (laughs).
But absolutely everyone in Ufa supported me, because this is a new big stage in my career. I am very pleased that I received the attention of the Football Federation of Armenia, which has a rich history and, I am sure, a bright future.
In Armenia they also talk a lot about your teammate Denis Tumasyan. Have you talked to him about the national team? How can you describe Denis?
We both appreciate the attention from Armenia. We've had tough games lately, so we haven't had time to talk in detail with Denis about this issue yet.
Speaking about Denis, first of all, I want to note his human qualities. He is a very positive person with the right thoughts and outlook on life. On the field, he knows how to predict the moves of his opponents and acts brilliantly because he is a real player.
- Do you know anyone from the Armenian national team?
Some of the national team players play in Russia, but, unfortunately, apart from Roman Berezovsky, I don’t know anyone. But football life is such that we have many mutual friends.
- Yura Movsisyan is one of the best forwards in the RFPL. It would be interesting to hear the goalkeeper's opinion about him.
Yura is a very good striker who has a strong shot and is always aimed at the goal. I wish him good health and am confident that he has a great future ahead of him.
The Armenian national team is at the bottom of the table in its EURO 2016 qualifying group, but the team has a goal to qualify for the final stage of the tournament. How do you assess the team's chances of reaching the playoffs?
There are always chances and you always need to fight for them. There are still 3 home matches left, and when Armenia plays at home with the support of the fans, the team always goes forward and can defeat any opponent. You need to believe in yourself and your teammates and then everything can be achieved.
There was information that the coach of the Armenian national team Bernard Challand intends to attend the last matches of Ufa. Have you met him?
During matches I was focused on my game, so I couldn’t notice the coach. I was told that Bernard Challand was going to attend the Ufa matches, but I did not meet with him, because in a conversation with an FFA representative I asked to be given time until December 8, when the championship breaks.
- The break has come, and now you can calmly think about the FFA proposal...
There was no official offer for me to make a decision. I have such a character that I prefer action to words. Of course, I am very happy about the interest from the FFA and I want to play for Armenia, but until there is an official offer, I can’t say anything.
Now I’m in Moscow and I hope that the coach or FFA representatives will meet with me and we’ll calmly discuss everything.
The goalkeeper of the Ufa football club, whom fans voted four times as the team's best player, will play against Dynamo Moscow on March 8 in the first game of the second round of the Russian Championship.
Why did you choose the role of goalkeeper?
To be honest, I started with martial arts - following the example of my older brother: he is also an athlete, Russian champion in taekwondo, and was a member of the country's Olympic team. As a child, I followed him everywhere, and when he took little me with him into the yard, he sat me right in the stroller instead of a barbell when they played ball. So, maybe this is how he gave me the path to goalkeeping. And already at the age of eight, I myself decided that football fascinated me more than other sports. I chose the position of goalkeeper because I never liked running, I still hate it. I prefer to give hints, lead somewhere and read the game.
Many athletes say that the price for success is the absence of childhood. This is true?
A person who wants to achieve heights in his business always sacrifices time. Until I was seventeen, I didn’t even know what a disco was or just walking with friends in the evenings. I had a strict regime: getting up at half past six in the morning, half an hour to get ready - and it was time to go to the first training session. On the way there, you read something in textbooks, prepare for lessons, then a two-hour goalie training session - and you have to go to school. After school, lunch, at the same time you start doing homework, then you go to team training, then again individual lessons for goalkeepers - acrobatics, stretching, and it’s already evening. So I didn’t have time for any teenage entertainment. But this is right, I think, because up to a certain point you invest in yourself and only then can you get a return.
Now Ufa is in the championship with better results than predicted before the start of the season. And some are inclined to believe that this is largely your personal merit. What do you say to this?
I would not say so, this is the result of the entire team, including administrative staff, doctors, massage therapist, driver - everyone, we are united in our work. There is a huge life off the field and a lot of the credit for the overall success goes to those behind it. We all contribute little by little to the common goal - to be among the best teams in Russia. This is not my first year in Ufa, I know that many in the republic dreamed of the team playing in the Premier League, and, probably, we all just really want this.
The fans adore you, and following the results of the first round of the championship, sports journalists included you in the symbolic team. What do you think about it?
It is a very big responsibility that people trust me. This means that I have to meet their requirements, meet their expectations, and this is hard. Sometimes you have to turn a blind eye to some personal problems, not to be scattered and accumulate strength in order to splash it out to the maximum during the match.
Is the reaction of the stands important to you at all?
Certainly. It's nice to be supported. And at the same time, if during an away game I hear something negative addressed to me, it turns me on. But everyone knows that, unfortunately, there are anti-fans who you don’t want to hear at the stadium or see what they do. I believe that football is a family sport and people should go to games with their wives and children, knowing that it is safe there. It doesn’t matter who is playing: CSKA, Spartak, Ufa or Lokomotiv. It’s unpleasant when a person wants to spend time with his family, cheer for an interesting sports match, but curses and unprintable language are heard around him. This shouldn't happen. There is a so-called life “around football”, and it also has a right to exist. But it shouldn’t be on the top of the news, above the game itself.
Do family values play an important role in your life?
Undoubtedly. Family gives inner peace, balance, harmony. For me, family is sacred. The best moment of my life was the birth of my son. I was present at his birth, and I myself was the initiator of this. After what I saw and felt, I understand the full significance of life, and for me the birth of a child is something sublime, and not just physiology.
Have you ever doubted your decision to become a professional athlete?
You cannot regret what you have done in life: you must take responsibility for your actions from the very beginning. We cannot predict the future - whether it will be successful or not, what consequences the decision will lead to. Therefore, if you have chosen a path, follow it, achieve your goal, it will be hard - be patient, prove, first of all, to yourself that you are worthy. I don’t understand those who stop halfway - then what were all the expenses and sacrifices for? To get on the podium once and that’s it? If you have risen, you must stay at the top and demand even more from yourself. And this is even more difficult than just getting up once. You can’t stop at what you’ve achieved, you need to move on. We live to raise our children, and we must be an example for them in everything, so that they look up to us and are proud of us.
David Yurchenko born in Turkmenistan
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The footballer’s family contains a mixture of many nationalities:Russians, Georgians, Poles, Armenians. He earned his first money by selling apples on the street during his school years. He studied at the Moscow Spartak football school, then moved to the Lokomotiv school.Latvian champion with Metallurg
from Liepaja. Studied at the Faculty of Directing and Animation.Loves to play golf.
Text: Nailya Valieva. Photo: Alexander Roy
In a conversation with R-Sport agency correspondent Veronika Stolbunova, he spoke about his childhood, choice of goalkeeper position, playing in the Ufa team, relationship with the new head coach, desire to play in the Russian national team, and also shared the interpretation of his tattoos.
“I’ve always enjoyed reading the game.”
- David, you were born in Ashgabat, then at the age of 8 you moved to Russia, to Tver. Why did the family decide to move?
Everything is very simple: we moved because my older brother studied at the Faculty of Law in Tver. His parents decided that he could not get a proper education in Turkmenistan and sent him to study in Russia. It was there in Tver that I took my first steps in football, and before, like my brother, I went swimming and did martial arts - where the older one goes, so does the younger one. In Russia, I myself made a choice in favor of football.
- And did you immediately decide on the goalkeeper’s position?
Yes, instantly. Since childhood, I have not liked to run, but I have always liked to read the game, lead and give advice to the defense, and help out the team. Especially when you get beautiful jumps (laughs). This helped me choose the goalkeeper position.
- Do you regret that you chose football?
There wasn't a day that I regretted it. Football is the meaning of my life, something that I have loved since childhood. Thank God I have my health and can move forward. I'm very happy about this.
- Are you interested in any other sports?
We are not allowed to professionally engage in other sports under contract, but to maintain our tone and development - of course. The same swimming, cycling, tennis.
Communication and mutual understanding
- How do you assess Ufa’s results in the national championship?
Of course, I would like more - first of all, a better position in the standings. At the moment we are not happy with everything. Probably in connection with this, the management decided to change the head coach. Everyone wants more and hopefully we can turn things around and move higher soon.
- Has the work process changed much since the arrival?
- So you are already ready to take the field in the next match?
Yes, I was away for a long time and really missed the games. I want to finally get back into action, feel this drive, the rhythm of football and do everything to help the team gain points.
- Isn’t it psychologically scary to go out onto the field after an injury?
It's not scary to go out onto the field. There is no point in turning this over in our heads, because we all understand that football players are not immune from injuries, we have always had them, have them and will always have them. Going out thinking about a relapse or a new injury - why? Thoughts are material. I definitely don't have them. What’s scary is starting work in the gym after an injury, because you know that every day for 4-5 hours you have the same large amount of work.
While you were recovering from injury, Sergei Narubin took his place in goal. Do you have any competition with him?
I have a very good attitude towards Sergei. We have known each other for a long time. Our competition is healthy, and rightly so - without it it is impossible to grow and improve your sporting qualities. I was injured, it was a difficult situation, and Sergei replaced me. Whether it turned out well or not is not for me to judge, but for the coaching staff. The same goes for determining the lineup for the game. For my part, I will say that I am ready to take the field and am preparing for the game with Amkar.
- How did you like the last match with CSKA?
At the moment, CSKA confirms its lead and leadership in the championship, and we need to gain points in order to rise as high as possible and strengthen our position in the standings. There were some shortcomings in the match itself, we made a number of unnecessary mistakes - this was visible from the outside, since I watched the match from the stands and was very worried about the team. We will analyze the game in more detail with the head coach.
- You said that you watched the match in the stands. Have you been to the Ufa fan section?
Yes, I came to our fans to thank them for their support. The guys come with the team to the matches - even if there are not many of them, they are with us. I myself was interested to know what it was like to look at what was happening on the field from the fan sector, to feel this drive and energy. We talked, took pictures - the guys were pleased, and even more so for me.
- What happened to the bus when the team was going to the airport after the match? Was there some kind of fire?
I was not with the team at that moment, but was driving from the stadium towards home to visit my family in Moscow. From a conversation with the guys, I know that the bus started smoking, and they all got to the airport on their own. There was some force majeure, but everyone reacted to it with a smile. Just a coincidence. Thank God that everyone is alive and well. We laughed, smiled and moved on. This is not human life, but just iron, technology that can be restored.
“I don’t want to be a stranger in the country where I grew up”
- You were invited to the Armenian national team, but you refused. What is the reason for this decision?
This was not an easy decision for me. I am grateful to the Armenian Federation for their interest in me, for the fact that they saw me as the number one of their team. I have great respect for this country, because my mother is from Armenia, our relatives live there. But Russia is my homeland, and I don’t want to be a stranger in the country where I grew up and took my first steps in football. I want to prove what I can do here in my country. And I will do everything that depends on me to play for the Russian national team. This is what I dream about, what I strive for and what I want first of all.
- Have you already communicated with or?
We worked together with Leonid Viktorovich at Krylia Sovetov, in particular, he invited me from Dynamo Minsk. I know him very well as a specialist and a person, just like he does me. I have also known Sergei Ivanovich for a long time - when I was still a young trainee of the railway workers, he was the current goalkeeper of Lokomotiv. We did not communicate with them about the national team. I understand perfectly well that I have something to prove to myself, the football community, and the national team’s coaching staff. And I will do it.
- The Armenian team did not qualify for Euro 2016. Did you follow her performance?
Yes, I watched the matches. Of course, it’s a pity that the Armenian team couldn’t compete, because this team’s composition is quite combat-ready. But I can't judge what went wrong because I'm not there.
- But, on the other hand, joy for the Russian team’s performance...
Yes, of course, this is a great joy. I am glad that it was Leonid Viktorovich, at a difficult moment for the national team, when the whole country was worried about the team, who was able to unite the guys, instill in them his views on football, tactics and help them believe that they will achieve the desired result. It is very great that Russia will be at the Euro.
Many well-known specialists and veterans believed that the national team should not be coached by a foreign specialist. Should a Russian team really only be coached by a Russian?
In fact, the national team can be coached by any specialist who is appointed. The question is what tasks does he have in this post. If a coach has his own ambitions and coaching potential, then it doesn’t matter whether he is Russian or not. But again, we live in Russia, Russian guys play on the national team. It is important for us that the coach understands us, our psychology, but foreigners cannot always understand a Russian person; they have their own approach to work. For example, when I played in Latvia, it was not customary there for the head coach to talk to the players. They believe that a person has his own job, and he should do it the way he knows how. For them, this is paramount - work, but in Russia, football is a thrill, adrenaline, the emotions that we get, we want it ourselves. It's not just a job - it's what we live. Therefore, I think a Russian specialist should still work with the national team.
The older brother is like a father, friend and comrade
- Is there a goalkeeper in the world who most impresses you?
Yes, this is the goalkeeper, who at one time was such an open book for me, from whom I adopted a lot as a child, tried to imitate him. This is Gianluigi Buffon - the well-known Gigi, who is still playing, and God willing, will remain on the field as long as possible. This is a goalkeeper with a capital G, and now there is also a lot to learn from him in terms of developing goalkeeping skills.
- David, are you an optimist in life or are you prone to reflection - after a defeat, for example?
In life I am an optimist. But, of course, after the match I need time to recover. I am left alone with myself and begin to replay this or that situation that happened during the game, I try to look at it from the outside, and draw conclusions. This lasts about an hour. After that, I try to perceive everything that happened with a smile - I know what I did wrong and how to prevent it from happening in the future.
It is clear that some failures on the football field leave a residue. You live alone in Ufa, which means you can’t just come home and switch to communicating with your family. Does this have an effect?
Although I live far from my family, I am not alone - we live in an age of technology, there are phones, Skype - everything. After any match, I contact my brother first and without delay, even sometimes emotionally, we discuss this match. I don’t have such a feeling that I want to throw out negativity on someone. On the contrary: the negativity is inside me - from dissatisfaction with the game, for example. I talk it all out, discuss it with my brother, evaluate my actions and move on.
- Do you often consult with your brother?
Yes. For me, my brother is also my close friend, to some extent a father, an older comrade who has gone through a lot in this life and has a wealth of experience. We communicate not as an elder with a younger one, but on an equal basis, even sometimes out of emotion we can raise our voices at each other, but we both understand that this is just a conversation, and there will be no consequences.
- From whom, besides your brother, are you ready to accept criticism regarding football?
From the coaching staff who work with me and see my actions from the outside. They know me, my psychology, they know what I am capable of. By the way, my mother sometimes also criticizes my actions on the field (laughs).
- Give an example of criticism from your mother.
We played with Ural - in that match I was injured. Mom told me after the game: “Why did you push off so weakly when jumping for the ball and missed the goal? You always hit such balls.” But it was at that moment that I suffered a knee injury and explained to her that I simply could not reach the ball.
- Do you consider yourself an emotional person?
Yes, I am a very emotional person.
- Does it help or hinder you on the field?
It helps me on the field. On the field, emotions force you to do what, it would seem, you cannot do - some incredible actions in terms of jumping, reaction speed, this is adrenaline! All my emotions that I have on the football field are a plus. There was never a moment when I started swinging my fists on the football field. I play football and love what I do.
How do you usually spend your leisure time? For example, what was the last movie you watched that made an impression on you?
From the latter - two films. This is "Black Mass" about criminal Boston in the 80s of the twentieth century with Johnny Depp in the title role. This is a very strong actor and person. And, judging by the interviews he gives, he is a man with great inner peace. I generally love gangster films - they're classics. And when my team and I were flying to the game with CSKA, I watched “Infected” with Arnold Schwarzenegger on the plane. I was attracted to this film because in the trailer I saw the main idea - the attitude of a father towards his child. Although the protagonist’s daughter was infected with a certain virus, he was with her until the last moment and tried to help. The plot is simple, but this film made an impression on me - people fight to the end for their happiness, happiness in the family.
- You have a tattoo on your arm. Still a lot?
I got my first tattoo at the age of 28, a little over a year ago. It is dedicated to a grandiose event in my life - the birth of my son. I was present at the birth and was the first one after the doctor to hold him in my arms. Here is an angel in male form holding a child in his arms, with his name and date of birth. All my tattoos symbolize what I consider important for myself, sometimes they give me an incentive to move forward, and sometimes they warn me against wrong actions. On my left hand, which is closer to my heart, I have the “Last Supper” - a symbol of the purity of the relationship that Jesus gave to people. Another tattoo is a tiger, this is the year of my birth. This has something in common with my profession, I’m a goalkeeper. The next tattoo is my initials painted like an autograph. Everything was done consciously and with meaning. In my understanding, tattoos are a kind of amulet. When a football player is on the field, he is completely clean: there are no rings, chains, a cross on his neck, and tattoos are always with me, it protects me. I have my own meaning in this.
-Are you generally a superstitious person? Is there something you do before a match, for example?
No, I'm not superstitious. I'm not one of those who gets up on one foot, or puts on some kind of boot first. The more limits a person sets for himself, the less he will succeed.
Each of us has something to strive for. If we compare the current David Yurchenko and the ideal David Yurchenko, what will be the difference?
Yes, I am like this now, perfect (laughs). Seriously, I live with what I have. When you achieve something in life, you set new goals for yourself - that is, in essence, the desire for your ideal self is endless. Of course, like any person, I have a desire to have a big and strong family. Work is work, but we live for the sake of the family, for the sake of our children. This is the main thing in life. I want not only to prolong my family line, but also to be a worthy example for my family and children, so that you will never be ashamed of your actions. Live with dignity.
Serving as a goalkeeper in FC Tosno. Among his sporting achievements, the following can be highlighted: champion of the Russian Football National League 2012 (as part of Saransk “Mordovia”). Among the goalkeeper's individual awards, it can be noted that he was declared the best player of the month in the 2014/15 season, and subsequently the best player of the club at the end of the season (while playing for Ufa).
The goalkeeper's height is 187 centimeters, weight - 78 kilograms. He wears number 16 in FC Tosno. Earlier during his career he performed mainly in Russian championships. He had little experience in the Latvian and Belarusian championships.
Biography of a football player
David Yurchenko was born on March 27, 1986 in Ashgabat (Turkmenistan). Growing up and brought up in an average family, he began to be interested in football from an early age. At the age of eight, he moved with his family to the village of Tugtun (Republic of Kalmykia), and two years later he moved to Elista.
At the age of 8 he entered the Ketchener Youth Sports School, where he studied from 1994 to 1995. David Yurchenko is also a graduate of such Moscow football schools as Spartak and Lokomotiv.
His professional career began in 2004 in the Moscow club “Titan” from the 2nd division of Russia. Played 5 official matches for the club, in which he conceded 7 goals.
Season 2005/06 he played in the Latvian club Metallurg Liepaja. Here he was never able to make his debut as a starter; he trained with the reserves all year.
In 2007, he signed a professional contract with Dynamo Minsk, but he did not stay here for long. He played 11 matches for the “white-blues” and conceded 13 goals.
In January 2008, he was signed by the Samara club Krylya Sovetov. Soon he signed a four-year contract with Volzhan. In August of the same year, he played his first match in the Russian Cup against Orenburg Gazovik. His debut in the RFPL took place on March 13, 2010 in a game with Zenit. In total, he played 2 matches for Samara and conceded 4 goals. In 2010, he was loaned to Volgar-Gazprom from the FNL, where he played 28 matches and missed 32 goals.
Goalkeeper David Yurchenko in Mordovia
On January 4, 2012, he entered into a deal with the Samara club. He spent a year and a half here, during which he managed to defend the goal in 34 matches and concede 47 goals. With Mordovia he became the Russian champion in the 2011/12 season.
Career in Ufa
In June 2013, David Yurchenko joined the Ufa club from the city of the same name. He became the best goalkeeper for the City team. Played 62 matches here (conceded 73 goals). In the 2014/15 season, he was recognized as the best player of the month five times in a row. At the end of the season, he was named the best football player of Ufa (based on the results of the popular vote).
Transfer to Anzhi
At the beginning of 2016, he was loaned to Anzhi Makhachkala until the end of the 2015/16 season (he played in 12 matches and pulled 13 goals out of his net).
In the summer of 2016, he was bought by the Makhachkala club and became its full-fledged player. However, in the 2016/17 season he played only 4 matches, because he became the main goalkeeper of Anzhi
Currently he is the goalkeeper of the Tosno club (city of Tosno) from the Russian Premier League.