He was expected to replace Russian international Marat Izmailov, who is on loan to Portuguese club Sporting Lisbon for a year.
hiː wʌz ɛkspˈɛktᵻd tə ɹᵻplˈeɪs ɹˈʌʃən ˌɪntɚnˈæʃənəl mˈæɹæt ˈɪzmeɪlˌʌv, hˌuː ɪz ˌɔn lˈoʊn tə pˌoːɹtʃəɡˈiːz klˈʌb spˈoːɹɾɪŋ lˈɪsbən fɚɹə jˈɪɹ.