 Tymoshchuk coachingZenit in 2017 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Anatoliy Oleksandrovych Tymoshchuk | ||
| Date of birth | (1979-03-30)30 March 1979 (age 46) | ||
| Place of birth | Lutsk, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union | ||
| Height | 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Defensive midfielder,centre back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Zenit Saint Petersburg (assistant) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1994–1995 | Volyn Lutsk | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1995–1997 | Volyn Lutsk | 62 | (8) |
| 1998–2001 | Shakhtar-2 Donetsk | 25 | (9) |
| 1998–2007 | Shakhtar Donetsk | 227 | (32) |
| 2007–2009 | Zenit Saint Petersburg | 67 | (10) |
| 2009–2013 | Bayern Munich | 86 | (4) |
| 2013–2015 | Zenit Saint Petersburg | 32 | (0) |
| 2015–2016 | Kairat | 34 | (1) |
| Total | 533 | (64) | |
| International career | |||
| 2000–2016 | Ukraine | 144 | (4) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2017– | Zenit Saint Petersburg (assistant) | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Anatoliy Oleksandrovych Tymoshchuk (Ukrainian:Анатолій Олександрович Тимощук[ɐnɐˈtɔl⁽ʲ⁾itɪmoˈʃtʃuk],Russian:Анато́лий Алекса́ндрович Тимощу́к; born 30 March 1979) is a Ukrainianfootball coach and formermidfielder. Since 2017, he has served as an assistant coach of theRussian Premier League clubZenit Saint Petersburg.[2] Tymoshchuk is regarded as one of the greatest players in the history ofShakhtar Donetsk[3] andZenit Saint Petersburg,[4] and is also a formercaptain of theUkraine national team.
Tymoshchuk began his professional career with his localVolyn Lutsk. He moved to play for Ukrainian giants Shakhtar Donetsk, which he captained and won theUkrainian Premier League,Ukrainian Cup andUkrainian Super Cup titles with. In 2008, Tymoshchuk won theUEFA Cup and theUEFA Super Cup as captain of Zenit Saint Petersburg. He also won a Russian Premier League andRussian Super Cup title. After joining German clubBayern Munich, Tymoshchuk won theBundesliga,DFB-Pokal and theDFB-Supercup titles. With Bayern, he also won theUEFA Champions League in2013 and finished as runners-up in2010 and2012.
A former captain of the Ukraine national team, Tymoshchuk is the nation's all-time most capped player with 144 caps. He took part in Ukraine's first-everFIFA World Cup in2006 and their firstEuropean Championship in 2012. He won theUkrainian Footballer of the Year on three occasions.
In 2022, theUkrainian Association of Football stripped Tymoshchuk of his (Ukrainian) coaching license and titles because he did not speak out againstRussia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine and stayed on as assistant coach at Zenit Saint Petersburg. On 6 January 2023, he was formally sanctioned by Ukraine among other Russian and pro-Russian celebrities, having hisassets frozen and state awards revoked.[5][6][7][8]
Tymoshchuk started his career playing for his hometown clubVolyn Lutsk, having risen through the ranks at the team. Following two successful seasons, the player began to attract attention from bigger clubs.
In 1997, at age 18, Tymoshchuk's contract was purchased from Volyn byShakhtar Donetsk. At Shakhtar, he was a key member of the team which won threeUkrainian Premier League titles, threeUkrainian Cups and aUkrainian Super Cup. His time with Shakhtar is credited with establishing him as a great midfielder in Europe.[9]
In 2006, havingcaptained Shakhtar for a number of years, Tymoshchuk became linked with a string of European clubs, includingJuventus,Feyenoord,Celtic andRoma.[10]
On 27 February 2007, Tymoshchuk transferred toZenit Saint Petersburg for a reported €15 million fee.[11] He was soon named as the new captain of the team.[12] Zenit managerDick Advocaat was very impressed with him, saying, "About Tymoshchuk I can say only good things, and not only the player but also the person. Tymoshchuk – is a professional from head to toes. I never had complaints to him about discipline. While Tymoshchuk and I are at the club, he will be the captain of Zenit."[13]
His first season at the club ended in success, with Zenit winning theRussian Premier League title for the first time in club history and the club's first league title since its 1984Soviet Top League triumph.[14] At the end of the season, Tymoshchuk was included in the annual list of thebest 33 players of the Premier League,[15] and was also voted as league player of the year by popular sports magazineSport-Express.[16]
After Zenit won the championship,astronautYuri Malenchenko—known as a fan of the team—waved Zenit shirt with Tymoshchuk's name on it while in space. In so doing, Zenit became the first team to have its uniform shown in space.[17]
During the 2007–08 European season, Tymoshchuk captained Zenit to theUEFA Cup title, in which they defeatedScottish Premier League clubRangers 2–0 in thefinal.[18] The club then went on to claim the2008 UEFA Super Cup in a 2–1 victory overManchester United.[19]
In February 2009,Bayern Munich general managerUli Hoeneß announced Tymoshchuk had agreed to join Bayern.[20] Initially, Zenit announced no agreement had yet been reached between the two clubs. However, on 18 February, Bayern announced Tymoshchuk would join the club in July 2009 in order to allow Tymoshchuk to play for Zenit until the summer.[21] He played his last match with Zenit on 14 June 2009.
Tymoshchuk officially joined Bayern on 1 July 2009 with a contract set to expire 30 June 2012.[22] The transfer fee was undisclosed, but German media reports estimated the deal at €14 million.[23]
Tymoshchuk played his first match for Bayern againstMilan in the 2009Audi Cup, coming on as a second-half substitute. He also started in the final against Manchester United, where he was substituted off in the 77th minute; Bayern won the match 7–6 on penalties.[24] He scored his first goal for Bayern againstJuventus in the2009–10 UEFA Champions League. On 8 May 2010, Tymoshchuk won his first trophy with Bayern, the2009–10 Bundesliga, followed one week later by the2009–10 DFB-Pokal title.[25] In total, Tymoshchuk made 21Bundesliga appearances in the 2009–10 season, ten as a substitute, but failed to start a match in the whole of the second half of the season.[26]
In late July 2010, Bayern managerLouis van Gaal described Tymoshchuk's prospects as "not very bright", adding, "If a player doesn't play or doesn't have bright prospects then I would leave if I were them."[27] Nevertheless, from October 2010 until March 2011, Tymoshchuk started all of Bayern's matches.[28][29]
In 2011, new Bayern managerJupp Heynckes said Tymoshchuk would play more under him.[30] Tymoshchuk was given a chance to start in matches at the time the team was plagued with injuries, filling in at central defence.[31][32] He started in central defence alongsideJérôme Boateng in theChampions League final inMunich, which Bayern lost toChelsea on penalties. Before the final, Heynckes said, "Tymoshchuk is a great team player. He's really important for us, and in situation, when three players are disqualified, his experience and ability to play in different positions is really useful for us."[33] Because Tymoshchuk played a bigger role under Heynckes than under Van Gaal, he became an important part of the team. GoalkeeperManuel Neuer said of Tymoshchuk, "For me the main job – not to let goals in. As a result, I love partners who have the same job. Anatoliy – is quite an aggressive footballer, but it's a smart aggression. He knows perfectly, when to choose the right position, to stop the attack of the opponent, and when to use such a move, like taking the ball harshly. No doubt, Tymoshchuk is doing a great job at Bayern!"[34]
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After winning the2012–13 Champions League with Bayern, Tymoshchuk returned to Zenit,[35] despite receiving offers from different clubs around Europe.[36] Russian media claim Tymoshchuk was signed by Zenit not only because of his skills as player, but for his ability to integrate the Russians and the foreigners in the team and stop the rumoured conflicts among groups in the squad.[37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44] Tymoshchuk himself said the return to Zenit was the last transfer in his career, indicating he would finish his playing career with the club.[45]
In 2014, Zenit lost 4–2 toBorussia Dortmund, with Dortmund scoring twice in the first five minutes of the match. Tymoshchuk has said there was a chance for his team to score when the scoreline was 3–2, but they never did.[46]
On 6 July 2015, Tymoshchuk signed an 18-month contract withKazakhstan Premier League sideKairat.[47] He captained the team in his league debut.[48] He helped the team to its2015 Kazakhstan Cup title. Tymoshchuk left Kairat upon the completion of his contract in November 2016.[49] Without officially announcing his retirement, he began studying for his PRO coaching license.[50]
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Since his debut in 2000, Tymoshchuk became a key member of theUkraine national team. He gained recognition for his performance during the2006 FIFA World Cup in which Ukraine reached the quarter-finals, being namedman of the match in Ukraine's victory overTunisia.[51] Tymoshchuk has been described as one of the catalysts for Ukraine's firstWorld Cup appearance.[52] In 2009, he wonCyprus International Football Tournaments.[53]
On 11 October 2010, in a friendly match againstBrazil, Tymoshchuk became the second Ukraine player to earn 100 caps, afterAndriy Shevchenko, who reached the milestone in a friendly againstCanada two days prior.
On 20 December 2011, Tymoshchuk was named the best footballer in the history of Ukraine; he finished first in a nationwide poll to determine the key individuals in the Ukrainian game since the nation's independence in 1991.[54] During his playing career, he was "a deep-lying midfielder who is comfortable on the ball and capable of ferocious long-range shooting".[55] After Shevchenko's retirement in 2012, Tymoshchuk inherited the captaincy of the team.
He is the most capped Ukrainian player with 144 appearances as of 29 June 2016. In August 2016, Tymoshchuk officially retired from international football.[56]
Tymoshchuk was married to Nadiya Tymoshchuk (née Navrotska).[57] The couple met in his hometownLutsk while living in the same neighbourhood, when they were 15 and 16.[58] Their twins were born three months prematurely in April 2010.[59] In July, it was determined the children were growing well and would be released from hospital.[26] In summer 2016, Nadiya, who lives in Munich with their children, announced she was filing for divorce.[60] Since their divorce, Tymoshchuk's children have remained in Germany with his ex-wife.[58]
In June 2008, Tymoshchuk was awarded the title of "Honorary citizen of Lutsk".[61] The honour was rescinded on his 43rd birthday in 2022.[62]
Tymoshchuk's favorite player isLothar Matthäus.[63] He stated that the historical team in which he most wanted to play was theGermany national team in 1990, alongside Matthäus.[64] He is also a fan of the Ukrainian bandOkean Elzy and Russian painterMikhail Vrubel. He is an avid collector ofwines,t-shirts andicons.[65]
Tymoshchuk considersfour his lucky number; he often wore 4 or 44 as his shirt number at both international and club level.[63] Aside from his nativeUkrainian, he speaksPolish andRussian as well as basicCroatian andGerman.[26]
Tymoshchuk and his father have since 2000 organized tournaments, the International Anatoliy Tymoshchuk Junior Cup, for children from Ukraine and neighbour states in Lutsk. The winners get cups and money awards. The mission of the tournament was to encourage children to continue their football training by giving them a chance to participate in a real competition.[66][67]
At the time of theRussian invasion of Ukraine, Tymoshchuk was an assistant coach at Russian club Zenit St Petersburg. His behaviour has drawn controversy and condemnation in his home country[68][69][70][71] where he was widely known and admired as the country's most capped player.
On 11 March 2022, theUkrainian Association of Football (UAF) stripped Tymoshchuk of his (Ukrainian) coaching licence and titles because of his role at Zenit St Petersburg and for not speaking againstRussia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine.[2][72] The UAF stated that his "conscious choice" to continue at Zenit "damages the image of Ukrainian football".[2] Reports also surfaced suggesting he might be a Russian spy.[73] A Polish sport commentator described his case as that of "a collaborator, erased from Ukrainian sport history".[74] Others have speculated that Tymoshchuk is being used by the Russian state and unable to speak freely for fear of retribution.[75]
In response to the UAF's action, Tymoshchuk returned his regalia to Ukraine and filed a lawsuit with theCourt of Arbitration for Sport.[76][77][78]
In 2023, Tymoshchuk was officially sanctioned for "treason" and included on a sanctions list for a period of ten years, blocking all his assets and preventing him from entering the country.[79] Later that year, allegations arose that Tymoshchuk had tried to acquire Romanian citizenship[80] despite claims that his grandmother's birth in the country was inaccurate.[81][82]
In January 2024, American football coachDennis Lukens said he had been in contact with Tymoshchuk after the invasion, and reportedly tried to help Tymoshchuk leave the country.[83] Lukens said that Tymoshchuk told him he loved Ukraine and asked for his help to leave Russia, but was stuck and unable to leave.[84][85] Lukens's speculation that Tymoshchuk had already left the country by other means caused wide speculation in Ukraine, however the comments were quickly debunked after Tymoshchuk was prominently pictured at an ice hockey match in St. Petersburg days later.[86][87]
When criticising Tymoshchuk, Russian sports journalistVasily Utkin said that "[Tymoshchuk] cares only and exclusively about money," and claimed that whilst a player for Zenit, he asked the club for large numbers of tickets with the purpose of reselling them.[88] However, that story was quickly disproved by others. Former Zenit playerVladislav Radimov called it "complete nonsense" and provided a story how Tymoshchuk at one point gave him two tickets to a game, but refused to take money from him for those tickets.[89] Russian sports journalist Alexey Andronov also spoke out in defence of Tymoshchuk, and said how at one point Tymoshchuk gave him and another journalist tickets to a game, but did not ask for money in return. He also pointed out how players requesting tickets from their club for friends is a normal practice in Russia, but unheard of in other European leagues.[90]
In September 2024, Tymoshchuk donated a signed Zenit St Petersburg football jersey in support of the Russian military, with proceeds going to support action in sent to theKursk Region. The signed shirt sold for 700,000 rubles.[91] The action was widely condemned in Ukraine, with former teammateOleksandr Aliyev calling the actions an "abomination".[92][93]
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| Club | Season | League | Cup | Europe | Super Cup | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Volyn Lutsk | 1995–96 | Ukrainian First League | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 11 | 1 | ||
| 1996–97 | Ukrainian First League | 38 | 6 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 40 | 6 | |||
| 1997–98 | Ukrainian First League | 14 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 1 | |||
| Total | 62 | 8 | 5 | 0 | — | — | 67 | 8 | ||||
| Shakhtar-2 Donetsk | 1997–98 | Ukrainian Second League | 6 | 4 | — | — | — | 6 | 4 | |||
| 1998–99 | Ukrainian First League | 14 | 5 | — | — | — | 14 | 5 | ||||
| 1999–2000 | Ukrainian First League | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | ||||
| 2000–01 | Ukrainian First League | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 25 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 9 | ||
| Shakhtar Donetsk | 1997–98 | Ukrainian Premier League | 9 | 3 | — | — | — | 9 | 3 | |||
| 1998–99 | Ukrainian Premier League | 18 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 23 | 2 | ||
| 1999–2000 | Ukrainian Premier League | 23 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 28 | 0 | ||
| 2000–01 | Ukrainian Premier League | 25 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 11 | 0 | — | 41 | 5 | ||
| 2001–02 | Ukrainian Premier League | 26 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 1 | — | 39 | 5 | ||
| 2002–03 | Ukrainian Premier League | 30 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 0 | — | 40 | 5 | ||
| 2003–04 | Ukrainian Premier League | 29 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 0 | — | 41 | 7 | ||
| 2004–05 | Ukrainian Premier League | 25 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 41 | 4 | |
| 2005–06 | Ukrainian Premier League | 27 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 38 | 6 | |
| 2006–07 | Ukrainian Premier League | 15 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 26 | 2 | |
| Total | 227 | 32 | 39 | 6 | 57 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 326 | 39 | ||
| Zenit Saint Petersburg | 2007 | Russian Premier League | 29 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 1 | — | 42 | 10 | |
| 2008 | Russian Premier League | 27 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 44 | 6 | |
| 2009 | Russian Premier League | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | — | 14 | 2 | ||
| Total | 67 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 27 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 100 | 18 | ||
| Bayern Munich | 2009–10 | Bundesliga | 21 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 1 | — | 32 | 1 | |
| 2010–11 | Bundesliga | 26 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 37 | 4 | |
| 2011–12 | Bundesliga | 23 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 0 | — | 39 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | Bundesliga | 16 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 1 | |
| Total | 86 | 4 | 15 | 0 | 29 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 132 | 6 | ||
| Zenit Saint Petersburg | 2013–14 | Russian Premier League | 21 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 28 | 0 |
| 2014–15 | Russian Premier League | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | 21 | 0 | ||
| Total | 32 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 49 | 0 | ||
| Kairat | 2015 | Kazakhstan Premier League | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 |
| 2016 | Kazakhstan Premier League | 24 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 33 | 1 | |
| Total | 34 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 533 | 64 | 71 | 11 | 137 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 749 | 81 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ukraine | 2000 | 4 | 0 |
| 2001 | 12 | 0 | |
| 2002 | 8 | 1 | |
| 2003 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2004 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2005 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2006 | 12 | 0 | |
| 2007 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2008 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2009 | 11 | 0 | |
| 2010 | 9 | 1 | |
| 2011 | 12 | 2 | |
| 2012 | 11 | 0 | |
| 2013 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 144 | 4 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 April 2002 | Lobanovsky Dynamo Stadium,Kyiv, Ukraine | 19 |  Georgia | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 2 | 8 October 2010 | Lobanovsky Dynamo Stadium, Kyiv, Ukraine | 99 |  Canada | 2–2 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 3 | 1 June 2011 | Lobanovsky Dynamo Stadium, Kyiv, Ukraine | 105 |  Uzbekistan | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 4 | 6 June 2011 | Donbas Arena,Donetsk, Ukraine | 106 |  France | 1–0 | 1–4 | Friendly |
Shakhtar Donetsk-2
Shakhtar Donetsk[95]
Zenit Saint Petersburg[95]
Bayern Munich[95]
Kairat[95]
Individual
{{cite web}}:|last= has generic name (help)
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