From Top Scorer to Academy Coordinator: Veli Kasumovs Journey in Azerbaijani Football

The former player of Moscow’s Dynamo, **Veli Kasumov**, who became the top scorer in the Russian championship in 1992 with 16 goals in 23 matches, shared insights about his current role.

“To be honest, I’m not one for talking much. Whether here or elsewhere, I tend to keep to myself. Right now, I’m in Azerbaijan working as the coordinator for the academy of the Shamakhy club, which competes in the Premier League. I’ve been here for four years.

We’ve opened a new stadium, and since then, I’ve been focused on improving the skills of the young players in the academy. This was not traditionally a football town, but now I’m training about two hundred children at a high level. Players from here have the potential to make it into the Azerbaijani national team – that’s the plan at the moment,” Kasumov stated in an interview with Nikolai Baranov from Championat.