Igor Denisov Declines Euro 2008 Invitation

Another day, another player turning down the chance to go to Euro 2008. First there was Clarence Seedorf, who just couldn’t work under Marco van Basten. Then there was Bojan Krkic, who’s too busy playing GTA 4.

And now Zenit St Petersberg midfielder Igor Denisov has turned down Guus Huddink’s invitation to join Russia’s Euro 2008 squad, apparently because he wasn’t happy that Hiddink didn’t include him in the initial preliminary squad. Is it just me or does that make no sense?

Seems that Denisov’s performance in the UEFA Cup Final caught Hiddink’s eye. He scored the opening goal in Zenit’s 2-0 win over Rangers last Wednesday:

But the midfielder just flat out said no, he wasn’t interested. Hiddink had only this to say about the player’s decision:

“I invited Denisov to join our team in our preparations for the Euro-2008 finals but he has refused,” Hiddink said.

“It’s his decision and we have to respect it. I’m not set to invite anybody else. We need to avoid any negative elements in our preparations for the final stage.”

I can see Denisov being a little annoyed that he wasn’t included in the initial squad. No one likes to be left out. But why not take the chance when it comes? Ivan on the Russia blog was keen for Denisov to be involved, describing the Zenit man as “a Guus-ish player”. So seems Denisov is cutting off his nose to spite his stubborn face.

And since Guus Huddink is a walking, talking “Get Out of the Group Stage Free” card, my guess is that Denisov is going to regret that decision sometime in the next few weeks.