Russian skipper Roman Shirokov ruled out of World Cup

Russia captain Roman Shirokov will not feature in the World Cup this summer with an achilles tendon injury.

The 32-year-old was selected by manager Fabio Capello in hope that he would regain fitness in time for the World Cup. However, this seems not to be case, as the talented star played no part in any of Russia's three warm-up matches till date.

This has prompted Capello to choose Rubin Kazan's Pavel Mogilevets as his replacement in the 23-man squad.

"On Monday, Shirokov will fly to Finland to undergo surgery there," Capello said. "Shirokov plays a big role in the team, but now others have the opportunity to show what they are capable of doing. I am one of those people who believes that the glass is always half full."

"Mogilevets will replace Shirokov in our squad but we still have time before June 15 to make final changes in the squad's line-up."