Anzhi Makhachkala's immense wealth will not do Russian football any good, CSKA Moscow’s Pontus Wernbloom told his club’s website Thursday.
The 26-year-old Swedish midfielder stated that huge spending power of the Dagestan club bankrolled by Russian billionaire Suleiman Kerimov won't guarantee success, nor will it have a broader beneficial impact on Russian football.
"On the one side, it’s good when really skillful players come to the league. But it's probably not great for your football when one team has such a bigger budget than the others," Wernbloom was quoted as saying.
"Anyway, money doesn’t decide everything."
Anzhi rocked the football world by persuading global stars Roberto Carlos and Samuel Eto'o to come to Russia, and strengthened further over the summer with the signing of FC Kuban striker Lacina Traore.
CSKA and Anzhi clash on Sunday, with the Moscow side trying to shake a two-defeat start to their Premier League campaign.
Wernbloom said that Anzhi still have to gel as a team unit, but that does not mean they are not a threat.
"Anzhi have bought many players of late, and becoming a team in the truest sense of the word still lies ahead of them. However, they are already very dangerous," the Swedish international said.
Wernbloom joined CSKA from Dutch side AZ Alkmaar in January 2012, and scored a stoppage-time equalizer on his debut as the Moscow team held Real Madrid to a 1-1 draw in the Champions League.
He picked up his 24th cap at Euro 2012 as a substitute as Sweden beat France 2-0 in their final group stage game.
Wernbloom insisted that it was not money but the "long and glorious history of CSKA" that persuaded him to come to Russia.
Anzhi, meanwhile, will play away match against the Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem in the second leg of Europa League third qualifying round on Thursday.
The Russian side won the first match 2-0 thanks to goals from youngsters Oleg Shatov and Fyodor Smolov.
