Veretennikov Oleg is one of the few football players who played in all Russian championships as part of only one team - Rotor (Volgograd). For eight years of the game, he managed to become a leader, as well as a certain symbol of the hero city. Confessions Oleg achieved his stable results. The constancy with which he hit the gates of rivals in each season can be envied. This article will describe a brief biography of the athlete.
Carier start
Veretennikov Oleg began to play football professionally in 1986. His first team was the Sverdlovsk Uralmash. Then the athlete visited four more clubs and returned back. In 1992, Veretennikov arrived in Volgograd and ended up in Rotor. The coach of this team Vladimir Goryunov was able to agree with the leadership of Uralmash on the transition of a promising footballer. I had to persuade for a long time, since in Yekaterinburg they also managed to discern Veretennikov’s talent. But Goryunov was very convincing, and the negotiations were successful for him.
Major League
Veretennikov Oleg, whose biography is known to many fans of Russian football, became known after the first season. To gain a foothold in the major league is the main task set for him by the coach. Oleg decided it for the nine matches held. The next season, “Rotor” swung at the championship medals. Veretennikov played beautifully with Niederhaus and Esipov. In conjunction, these three showed excellent football. And Oleg himself played very well. Thanks to the fight for the ball and verified passes by partners, the athlete scored as many as 18 goals during the season. The leader’s game inspired the team and helped to win the silver, leaving behind such favorites of the tournament as CSKA and Dynamo.
Championship top scorer
The athlete did not receive this title immediately. Oleg Veretennikov, whose statistics improved with each game, achieved it only with the fourth attempt. Prior to this hero of this article, Kamchenko forward Panchenko, as well as Dynamo strikers Simutenkov and Kasumov, were ahead. But in 1995, Oleg had no equal: thanks to 25 goals scored, he not only topped the rating of goalkeepers, but also set a record for Russia. The previous achievement (21) belonged to Simutenkov and Panchenko.
Unserved penalty
But all the same, in 1995 Volgograd fans remembered not 25 Veretennikov’s goals, but only one goal that he could not score. Most offensively, it was a penalty that occurred in the 117th minute of the Russian Cup final between Dynamo and Rotor. After Andrei Krivov fell into the box, referee Siner appointed a penalty. Punching him volunteered Oleg Veretennikov. Unfortunately, the ball hit the post, and the outcome of the meeting was a foregone conclusion. The surviving Dynamo gained confidence after this miss and won the penalty shoot-out.
National team
Despite the successes in Rotor, Oleg was not called to play for the country. For this, there were any excuses: there was no experience in performing at international competitions, did not fit into the team game, etc. Of course, everything would have been different if Oleg Veretennikov, whose career was going up, played for one of the Moscow clubs. From the capital to go to the team was not difficult. It was almost impossible for a peripheral soccer player to join the national team. In Soviet times, any athlete from the hinterland knew that there were only two ways for growth: to go either to Kiev or to Moscow. The exception was the Georgian players choosing Tbilisi Dynamo. Oleg remained loyal to Rotor, so the shortcut to the national team was closed for him. But even when he joined the national team a few years later, he could not stay there for long.
Defeat
The finest hour of the hero of this article could be a match in Volgograd with Spartak. At stake were gold medals, taking which, "Rotor" could become the champion of Russia. Alas, Spartak turned out to be stronger. It was the blackest day in the life of Vladimir Goryunov. He never forgave this defeat to head coach of Rotor Viktor Prokopenko. And the latter hoped that Oleg Veretennikov would lead the team along. But the Spartak defenders neutralized the Volgograd scorer. As a result, “The Rotor got only silver.
Leaving the team
Oleg’s management periodically negotiated with Western clubs on its sale. Veretennikov himself wanted to play in the new team. But the managers of "Rotor" could not find a common language with potential buyers. After several months of searching, Veretennikov still signed a one-season contract with the Greek “Aris”. Then the athlete changed several more clubs.
In 2009, Oleg completed his career and is currently engaged in coaching.
Personal life
The athlete has a sister Olga and an older brother, who made a career in skiing. Oleg Veretennikov and his wife (photos of the spouses periodically appear in the press) raise two children: daughter Tatyana and son Pavel. The latter followed in his father's footsteps and became a footballer. Pavel played for “Energy”, “Rotor” and “Volgograd”.