"I don't want to be a clown in the circus": Russian footballer categorically refused to return to Russian Federation and ended his career

Russian footballer Mikhail Merkulov, who has been playing for Croatian "Rijeka" since 2021, categorically refused to return to the championship of his native country. The 29-year-old athlete called the Russian championship a circus and announced that he was ending his professional career.

Merkulov told about this in an interview with the propaganda channel "Match TV". The former defender of Ekaterinburg Ural and Kazan Rubin also added that he has been experiencing health problems for the last year and a half, which influenced his decision to stop playing.

"I have made a decision that I will most likely be ending my career. I had options to continue my career in Russia, but I don't want to be a clown in the circus. I don't want to perform in that arena. I tried to find something here, there were a few options from the lower leagues, but I decided I wouldn't put myself or the team in jeopardy: I didn't want to sign a contract and then realize a week later that my knee wasn't coping. I don't want to just sit on the payroll. The decision to finish was made quite a long time ago, because I didn`t play for the last year and a half. Morally and psychologically I was ready," said Merkulov.

Earlier, Brazilian striker David Neres, who was under contract with Shakhtar Donetsk but never played a single match for the Ukrainians due to Russia's full-scale invasion, categorically refused to move to a Russian club.

As reported by OBOZREVATEL, Ukrainian striker Ruslan Chervyakov, despite Russia's military aggression against his native country, signed a contract with Moscow's Torpedo.

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