Denis Cheryshev · Biography

On 14 June 2018, in the opening match of the World Cup in Moscow, Denis Cheryshev scored twice in Russia’s 5-0 win over Saudi Arabia. He scored again against Egypt (3-1) and against Croatia in the quarter-finals, which Russia lost on penalties. He finished the tournament with four goals, more than any other Russian player, and was named in the FIFA World Cup Fantasy Team. A left winger, he was born on 26 December 1990 in Nizhny Novgorod, then part of the Soviet Union, and learned almost all of his football in Spain.

Childhood in Spain and Real Madrid’s academy

His father, Dmitri Cheryshev, also a footballer, signed for Sporting Gijón, and Denis joined the Asturian club’s youth teams, where he stayed from 1996 to 2000. The family then moved to Burgos. There he played for Burgos Promesas between 2000 and 2002 and was picked for the Castile and León regional side. In 2002 he entered Real Madrid’s academy, where he completed his development by 2009.

Real Madrid Castilla and the first team

While still a youth player he made nine Segunda División B appearances for Castilla in 2008-09. Between 2009 and 2013 he became a regular in the reserve side, with 109 matches and 22 goals in all competitions. In 2011-12 he was part of the team that won its Segunda División B group and was promoted to the Spanish second division, where he made his debut on 17 August 2012 against Villarreal. On 27 November that year he played for the first team in the Copa del Rey against Alcoyano, becoming the first Russian to appear for Real Madrid. His top-flight debut came on 19 September 2015 against Granada. On 2 December 2015 he scored at Cádiz in the Copa del Rey round of 32, but he was carrying a suspension from yellow cards in the previous edition: the club was expelled for fielding an ineligible player and Florentino Pérez’s appeal failed. He was a member of the 2015-16 squad that went on to win the Champions League.

Loans to Sevilla, Villarreal and Valencia

In September 2013 he joined Sevilla on loan. Injuries restricted him to four league games and the move was not made permanent, although that side won the 2013-14 Europa League. His next loan, at Villarreal in 2014-15, gave him his first full season at the top level: he scored on his debut, on 24 August 2014 away to Levante, and ended the campaign with seven goals in 40 games. On 1 February 2016 Valencia took him on loan until the end of the season, and on 13 February he scored in a 2-1 win over Espanyol.

Villarreal and Valencia

On 15 June 2016 Villarreal signed him permanently on a deal running to 2021. Over two seasons he played 35 league games and scored twice. On 14 August 2018 he returned to Valencia on loan; he scored two goals in a season in which the team finished fourth in LaLiga and won the 2019 Copa del Rey. On 29 June 2019 the club bought him for a reported fee of around six million euros. On 23 October 2019 he scored his first Champions League goal, in a 1-1 draw away to Lille. Injuries shaped his years at Mestalla, and he left when his contract expired in 2022.

Italy, Greece and Cyprus

On 31 August 2022 he signed a two-year deal with Venezia in Italy’s Serie B. In his third league match, on 1 October 2022, he scored twice in a 4-1 win away to Cagliari. He made 32 league appearances and scored four goals in Venice. On 22 September 2024 he joined Panionios, in the Greek second tier, where he played 21 league games and scored twice. In February 2026 he signed for Krasava ENY Ypsonas of the Cypriot First Division.

Russia national team

He came through every Russian youth level: 16 games and nine goals for the under-15s, six and five for the under-17s, five and two for the under-18s, and 18 and seven for the under-21s. His senior debut came in November 2012 in a 2-2 friendly against the United States. His first competitive cap was on 14 August 2013, a World Cup qualifier against Northern Ireland, from which he was stretchered off after five minutes. Injury kept him out of Euro 2016, and he was not called up again until 27 March 2018, against France. After the World Cup he played 33 minutes of the 3-0 defeat to Belgium at Euro 2020, where Russia went out in the group stage. Between 2012 and 2021 he won 33 caps and scored 12 goals for Russia.

Honours

With Real Madrid Castilla he won Segunda División B in 2012; with Sevilla, the Europa League in 2014; with Real Madrid, the Champions League in 2016; and with Valencia, the Copa del Rey in 2019. At the 2018 World Cup he was named in the FIFA Fantasy Team.