Zhirkov: I don't see myself as a head coach yet

The former Russia international is currently assistant to Andrey Arshavin at Kairat

Yuri Zhirkov has admitted that he does not see himself as a head coach in the near future, despite recently taking on an assistant role at Kairat.

The 38-year-old, who won 104 caps for Russia and played for clubs including Chelsea and Zenit Saint Petersburg, is currently working alongside former Arsenal midfielder Andrey Arshavin in Kazakhstan.

However, Zhirkov insists that he is not yet ready to take on the top job himself.

'I'm not ready yet'

"I don't see myself as a head coach yet," Zhirkov told Sport Express.

"I'm not ready yet. I need to learn more, gain more experience. I'm only 38 years old, so I have time.

"For now, I'm happy to be an assistant coach and learn from Andrey Arshavin. He's a great coach and I'm learning a lot from him."

Zhirkov retired from playing in 2021 after a successful career that saw him win the Premier League, the Champions League and the Europa League.

He has since moved into coaching and is now eager to learn as much as he can from Arshavin.

"Andrey is a very experienced coach," Zhirkov said.

"He's won a lot of trophies and he knows what it takes to be successful. I'm really enjoying working with him and I'm learning a lot from him every day."

Zhirkov is not the only former Russia international to have recently moved into coaching.

Former goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev is now the head coach of CSKA Moscow, while ex-defender Sergei Ignashevich is in charge of Torpedo Moscow.

It remains to be seen whether Zhirkov will follow in their footsteps and become a head coach in the future.

But for now, he is content to learn from Arshavin and continue his development as a coach.