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Arshavin makes Hiddink plea

28 Mar 2009 - 14:20:13

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Arsenal midfielder Andrey Arshavin hopes Guus Hiddink decides to remain as Russia manager and not become the permanent Chelsea boss in the summer.

Hiddink has been in temporary charge at Stamford Bridge since Luiz Felipe Scolari's departure last month, but is continuing in his role as Russia's coach.

However, Arshavin fears that the Dutch coach will decide to take on the Chelsea job full-time at the end of this season.

He told The Sun: "Only Hiddink knows his destiny and his own future - and we can't influence him. But I am worried that if Chelsea start to win things, he may stay on in England longer than he's supposed to.

"It's very important that he stays on (at Russia). I and my team-mates want Hiddink to stay coaching the national side.

"If he decides to leave our team, it'll be a disaster and a massive loss for Russian football. Without Guus, Russia will be a completely different team and I don't know who they could bring in without affecting the results.

"He's been a major factor in our success. A lot of the hopes of the Russian national team rest on him. Without Hiddink, it's unlikely we would have been able to reach such heights.

"After Hiddink came to London, Chelsea began to play better and were stronger - which is exactly what happened when Guus took over as head coach of the Russian national team.

"It means Guus is doing both jobs very well. I'm not really that surprised that Hiddink can do that because he has so much experience and football knowledge.

"Everyone knows that Guus is one of the best managers in the world - he would certainly be in the top five."