Golovin Scores Twice as Russia Beat Iran 2:0

Russia beat Iran 2:0 in Kazan on Monday, with Alexander Golovin scoring both goals in a BetBoom friendly.

Konstantin Tyukavin's agent, Alexei Safonov, gave his verdict on the Dynamo Moscow forward's display. "I think Kostya played well for himself in this match. He didn't lose the ball or spill his touches. The only thing that disappointed me was the pitch quality in Kazan. Otherwise, the side played quite well. Karpin picked the best possible line-up. I think this is the strongest squad available today," Safonov told Sport-Express.

Tyukavin himself rated the performance highly, calling it one of the best Russia have produced in five years and pointing to the team's fight on the night.

By the Goal Index ratings, Golovin was the standout on the pitch with 8.3 after a brace and 84 minutes on the field, ahead of Alexei Batrakov (8.0) and goalkeeper Matvei Safonov (6.7). Sergei Azmun led Iran's individual marks at 5.9, while Alexander Sobolev, introduced from the bench, finished bottom of the Russian ratings on 5.8. Tyukavin himself was rated 6.3.

Maksim Glushenkov, who also featured, said afterwards that he does not rate Iran as the strongest opponents the national team could face.

Among those in the squad, defender Ilya Vakhania, 25, is still awaiting his first Russia goal since joining the set-up in March, while Nail Umyarov of Spartak Moscow has two goals for his club since 2021. Golovin's double continues a productive run for the Monaco midfielder, who has four league goals this season as his side sit top of Ligue 1 with 13 points from five games — form that followed Monaco's 2:1 win over PSG earlier this month.

Russia next face Namibia in Yekaterinburg on 3 October, before taking on Nigeria in Nizhny Novgorod on 6 October — two further tests for Karpin to weigh his selection before more competitive fixtures resume.