Name: Anatoliy Yakovych Kuksov
Nickname: "Kotya"



Country: Soviet Union | Ukraine
Club: FC Zorya Luhansk
Position: *CMF, AMF, DMF
Side: RF/BS
Age: 23-26 years (21/11/1949)

Height: 174 cm
Weight: 72 kg

Attack: 78
Defence: 60
Balance: 78
Stamina: 83
Top Speed: 77
Acceleration: 76
Response: 77
Agility: 80
Dribble Accuracy: 82
Dribble Speed: 76
Short Pass Accuracy: 83
Short Pass Speed: 75
Long Pass Accuracy: 84
Long Pass Speed: 76
Shot Accuracy: 76
Shot Power: 85
Shot Technique: 75
Free Kick Accuracy: 76
Curling: 78
Header: 70
Jump: 73
Technique: 82
Aggression: 74
Mentality: 78
Goalkeeper Skills: 50
Team Work: 85

Injury Tolerance: B
Condition: 6
Weak Foot Accuracy: 7
Weak Foot Frequency: 7
Consistency: 7
Growth Type: Standard/Lasting

CARDS:
P01 - Classic N°10
P18 - Talisman
S02 - Passer


SPECIAL ABILITIES: Tactical Dribble - Passing - Playmaking - Centre

Attack/Defence Awareness Card: Attack-Minded


INFO:
True living legend of Luhansk football. An excellent organizer of the team's attacks, a playmaker, point guard - the central axis around which the whole game of the team was built, led the team on the field with a captain's armband. The footballer of the highest class, the chief dispatcher of the team for many years, had a fine understanding of the game, an excellent master of set pieces. He is perhaps the best midfielder in the history of the team. Kuksov spent his entire sports career at Zarya, where he played for 16 years. In the USSR national team in 1972 he played 8 matches (including 5 matches for the Olympic team). Bronze medalist of the 1972 Olympic Games, champion of the USSR in 1972.

Anatoly Kuksov was born in Lugansk in a large family. With the boys near the stadium until the night he was chasing the ball. At first, they didn’t take a short guy to Zarya, but the older comrades put in a word and coach Goryansky, after watching him in training, enrolled in a double. Kuksov made his debut in the team in 1969 in a match against Sverdlovsk Uralmash. He scored his first goal against Minsk Dynamo in the same year. Since then, he played for Zorya until 1985.

Organizer, team playmaker, player with a well-placed shot from medium and long distance. Physically strong, he had excellent dribbling and well-placed blows from both feet. The undisputed leader of the team, both on and off the field. Huge range of actions, efficiency, desire to participate in each episode of the game, a sense of responsibility. Such characteristics are most often given to Anatoly Kuksov by football directories. But neither at the peak of his career, nor later, when only memories of Zorya's championship ambitions remained, the midfielder was not tempted by tempting offers. "The legendary Lev Yashin himself called to Dynamo Moscow," recalls Anatoly Yakovlevich. - I was promised an apartment and a car - "Volga"! Invited to CSKA, "Lokomotive", Leningrad "Zenith" and Kiev "Dynamo". But I didn't want to go far from home, especially since the children were growing up..."

The performance of the patriot "Zarya" - 517 matches in one team (in all leagues) - is a record for Soviet football.