Holder for three years in the cages of the Russian selection, the goalkeeper of PSG, Matvey Safonov (14 caps) will however not be there for this new international break. The official reason, given by the selection, is a lack of a defined schedule for the coming weeks. “There are no confirmed matches yet, that’s why we haven’t called it“, justified Vitaliy Kafanov, the goalkeeper coach of the Russian team. Indeed, since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russia has been banned from international football competitions, and has only played rare friendly matches, for example against Vietnam, Belarus or Serbia, since the start of the year 2024.
But the unofficial reason for Safonov’s absence would rather be due to a legal case. A Moscow court could thus prevent him from leaving Russian territory due to a dispute with his ex-wife. According to the Russian press, Safonov’s lawyers have, in fact, advised him not to go to Russia, as the matter is not completely over. It is therefore not certain that we will see the PSG goalkeeper again in the colors of his selection before the end of this affair.
