Russia holding midfielder Igor Denisov suffered a hamstring injury as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Serbia on Sunday and is expected to miss Euro 2016, coach Leonid Slutskiy said.
“Denisov has a serious injury and it is likely we will need a replacement,” Slutskiy told reporters. “We are in touch with another player, who plays in the same position.”
Russian media said Zenit St Petersburg midfielder Artur Yusupov was likely to be called up to replace Denisov in the 23-man squad, with an official announcement expected yesterday.
Russia start their campaign against England on Saturday in Marseille, France, and the Serbia game was their final warm-up.
Russia’s Artem Dzyuba scored in the 85th minute at the Stade Louis II in Monaco, France, but Alexander Mitrovic equalized three minutes later for Serbia, who failed to qualify for the Euros.
Slutskiy kept faith with the attacking trio of Dzyuba, Fedor Smolov and Alexander Kokorin, who all started the 2-1 defeat by the Czech Republic on Wednesday last week.
Igor Akinfeev returned in goal, while 20-year-old Alexander Golovin was also given a chance in the center of midfield.
There were few chances for either side in what was a largely forgettable first half before Russia were hit by a major injury blow when 32-year-old Denisov, who plays for Dynamo Moscow, limped off during the second period.
Dzyuba scored after excellent work by Roman Shirokov and Kokorin, but three minutes later, Mitrovic sprung the offside trap and found himself one-on-one with Akinfeev. The Newcastle United forward made no mistake as he scored to make it 1-1.
Russia and England are in Group B at Euro 2016, alongside Slovakia and Wales.
Elsewhere, an early header by Burak Yilmaz gave Turkey a 1-0 victory against Slovenia in their international friendly.
Turkey started aggressively and it paid off in the fifth minute when Yilmaz connected with Hakan Calhanoglu’s free-kick into the center of the penalty area.
Slovenia failed to convert their chances, including a second-half attempt from Milivoje Novakovic.
Turkey open against Croatia at Euro 2016 on Sunday in Paris. Spain and Czech Republic are also in Group D.
Slovenia have not qualified.
Additional reporting by AP
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