Goalkeeper Alexander Filimonov is known to every connoisseur of Soviet and Russian football. He has won many club and personal trophies, spent as many as 28 years on the field, and today coaches the youth national team until the age of 17. The article describes how he began his career and what he achieved in his goalkeeper career.
early years
Alexander Filimonov was born on October 15, 1973 in Yoshkar-Ola. His father, Vladimir, was a Soviet football player, and therefore the boy decided to follow in his footsteps.
He began to study goalkeeper art. He spent his childhood in Chisinau, where he grew up as a football player - he himself says so. He says that in this city he lived more time than anywhere else - for 16 whole years.
In 1990, he graduated from the Burevestnik football school in Yoshkar-Ola, and then went to defend the colors of the Moldavian Dawn (but did not work out), after which he transferred to the Cheboksary Steel. But there he played just two matches.
As a result, he decided to return to Yoshkar-Ola to play for FC Druzhba. In this team, he became the main goalkeeper, and once even scored the only goal in his career.
Further career
In 1992, Alexander Vladimirovich Filimonov was finally spotted by a major league club. He was interested in the “Torch” from Voronezh. From the very first season, the young man entrenched in the first team. But that season, the club flew into the first league.
After spending a year there, Alexander went to play for FC Tekstilshchik from the city of Kamyshin. With this team, he balanced for 2 seasons in the middle of the standings. And then he was noticed by the Moscow Spartak.
The goalkeeper moved to the capital. He managed to beat Ruslan Nigmatullin in competition, and therefore he began to go out at the base. For five years, only in the Premier League, the goalkeeper played 147 matches.
But another goalkeeper appeared in the team - Maxim Levitsky. And Filimonov began to receive very little playing time. Alexander himself believes that the “impetus” to his departure to the bench was that he shared his idea with Oleg Romantsev about moving abroad.
He was invited to join the Kiev Dynamo. But the head coach was not interested in Alexander. And therefore, for the whole season he went out only 4 times on the field.
6 clubs in 9 years
There were endless transitions to other teams. Football player Alexander Filimonov from 2002 to 2011 played in the following clubs:
- Uralan Rarely went on the field due to the fact that the stargazer ordered the team. Allegedly, such is the "will of the stars."
- "Torpedo-Metallurg". The first season he spent as the main goalkeeper, but then came Yuri Zhevnov, who turned out to be a more technical goalkeeper.
- "Nea Salamina." In the winter of 2007 he realized his dream - he left to play for a foreign club in Cyprus. But he spent there only 12 matches.
- Kuban. For some time the team was coached by Alexander Tarkhanov, but then he was replaced by Sergey Pavlov. He was already familiar with Filimonov, and therefore put him at the base. But then the club’s general director said that the management did not plan to offer the goalkeeper a new contract.
- Lokomotiv from Tashkent. For this team he spent 49 games in one season.
- "The Long Ponds." It is difficult to say something about the career of football player Alexander Filimonov in this team, since she played in the amateur league.
So 9 years have passed. In 2011, the goalkeeper finally joined the club, where he then spent the whole 4 years.
End of career
Since the end of 2011, Alexander Filimonov has been a playing coach and captain of FC Arsenal from Tula. For the period until 2015, he played 75 matches.
The best season was 2012/13 - then the goalkeeper held 28 meetings and all in the starting lineup. According to the results, he was recognized as the best goalkeeper of the Central zone of the 2nd division. And in the next season, he did manage to withdraw Arsenal to the Premier League.
But on March 19, 2015, he was transferred to the double. After spending several months there, Alexander decided to leave the club. In the summer of 2015, he signed a contract with FC Dolgoprudny, where he was also a playing coach. In 2018, he officially ended his career. Alexander Filimonov held his farewell match on May 27 against Luke-Energia FC, aged 44.
Achievements
Over so many years of his football career, Alexander has managed to win many trophies and titles. Among them:
- 6-fold victory in the championship of Russia.
- Four victories in the Commonwealth Champions Cup. Three with Spartak and one with Dynamo.
- Cup of Russia.
- Gold in the Championship of the Russian Federation among amateur clubs.
- Victory in the PFL Championship.
- Place in the TOP 33 of the best RFPL players.
- Prize "Goalkeeper of the Year" them. Lev Yashin.
- The title of the best goalkeeper of the Premier League.
- Player of the Century at Mari El.
- 4th place among goalkeepers in the number of “dry” matches.
Interestingly, the goalkeeper was also involved in beach soccer. In this sport, he became the two-time champion of Russia, won 2 times the Cup and Super Bowl. But that is not all. He also managed to become the world champion in this sport, the winner of the Euroleague, and the owner of the Intercontinental Cup. And all in 2011.
As for his personal life: Alexander Filimonov had a wife. With Anna, the goalkeeper had two daughters. They were called Sasha and Anya. But over time, the marriage broke up. History has even overgrown with scandalous details: the goalkeeper allegedly did not want to pay child support. The topic was discussed for quite some time. However, then the former spouses settled everything.