Yuri Vladimirovich Kotov is a Russian professional footballer currently playing beach soccer at Spartak Club. Previously, he played professional football in big football for such clubs as CSKA, Istra and Maccabi Moscow. In beach soccer, he won the bronze medal of the European Championship and the Intercontinental Cup 2012 as part of the national team of Russia.
Biography
Yuri Kotov was born on November 24, 1987 in Moscow (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, now the Russian Federation). From a young age, Yuri began to play football, is a pupil of the CSKA children's and youth sports school, where he played at the youth level for a long time. The guy possessed good technique and a powerful blow, which was impossible to say about his teammates. Thanks to his talent, Yuri Kotov held a leading position in the team. It is worth noting that as a football player he was universal - he could hold the match in all existing roles except the goalkeeper.
Professional career in football
In 2004, Kotov began playing in the understudy league for the “Red Army”. In the current season, he managed to hold only one match, because he received a serious injury that knocked him out of the game. For a long time, the footballer could not adapt after the damage. Only in 2006, Yuri Kotov managed to enter the field again. True, as part of the Istra club from the city of the same name (the second division of Russia, the West zone). During the season, Kotov demonstrated a high-quality game, played in the position of a defensive midfielder. In total, he spent twenty-three matches and managed to score one goal. It seemed that soon the football player would move to one of the clubs of the top division, but another injury again crossed out all the plans and hopes of the football player for a brighter future.
In 2007, Yuri Kotov moved to the semi-professional club Maccabi Moscow (founded in 2003), which plays in the amateur league of Russia. As part of the “Muscovites”, Yuri held one match, after which he decided for himself that he would end his big football for life.
Retraining: career in beach soccer
In 2008, Yuri Kotov became a player of the Baltic Millennium beach soccer team, which included only three matches. Despite a more or less successful performance, the former professional footballer could not gain a foothold in the beach team and was forced to find another. In 2009, Kotov joined the MGUP team, where he also did not stay for long. After spending only three fights in their composition, the football player leaves the team. All these failures can be argued by the fact that Kotov to the end could not adapt to the beach game, however, he had progress.
Success in beach soccer, invitation to the national team
In 2010, Kotov signed a professional contract with the Strogino team, with whom he spent the season in the Russian beach soccer championship. Yuri Kotov spent 13 great matches, thereby helping the club win second place in the standings. Kotov’s phenomenal game was noticed by the Russian association, and the footballer was invited to join the Russian national beach soccer team in 2012. In the national team, the player became the champion of the Intercontinental Cup 2012 and the bronze medalist of the European Championship.
