On Wednesday, the famous striker and coach of Dynamo Moscow Valery Gazzayev turns 70 years old!
Valery Gavrilovich was born in Vladikavkaz and has been fond of football since childhood. He started his career at the local Spartak, and in 1976 he moved to the capital. After three seasons at Lokomotiv, the original striker with unconventional dribbling accepted an invitation from Alexander Sevidov and became a Dynamo player.
Gazzaev stood out for his ability to take control of the game, speed, sharp thinking on the field, and quickly became the team leader. Already playing for Dynamo, he established himself in the USSR national team, and in 1980 he won bronze at the home Olympic Games. As for the blue-whites, he helped them win the USSR Cup by scoring the winning goal in the final match against Zenit in 1984
In just 7 years, Gazzaev played 237 matches for the blue-whites and scored 87 goals, becoming the third top scorer in the club's history. He also became the top scorer of the Cup Winners' Cup in the 1984/85 season, in which the Dynamo team reached the semifinals.
After finishing his football career in 1986, Valery Georgievich started coaching at the children's school of Dynamo Moscow, and after graduating from the Higher School of Coaches, he headed his native Spartak Vladikavkaz and led it to the elite division. Later, he returned to the Vladikavkaz team again and won the Russian championship with them in 1995.
He joined Dynamo twice, managing the team in 1991-1993 and 1999-2001, and winning bronze medals of the Russian Championship with it. However, he achieved the greatest success in his coaching career with CSKA: 3 championships, 4 cups, 2 super cups of the country and a victory in the UEFA Cup! In the early 2000s, Gazzaev headed the Russian national team, later he was engaged in political activity in various state bodies.
Congratulations to Valery Georgievich on his anniversary, we wish him health, good luck and success in all endeavors!