Russia goalkeeper Vyacheslav Malafeev has decided to quit international football to bring up his children rather than because of his advancing years, he said Tuesday.
The 33-year-old has 29 caps for Russia and was the country's first-choice goalkeeper at Euro 2012.
He was left to raise his two children on his own after his wife Marina died in a car crash in March last year.
"Refusing to play for the national team is a hard decision, both from a personal and a professional point of view, but at the moment it is the right decision for my family," Malafeev said on the Russian Football Union website Monday.
He added that the decision was "temporary" and could be reversed.
On Tuesday, Malafeev hit out at claims he quit the Russia team because of his age.
"I don't understand why many people are connecting my exit from the squad with my age," Malafeev said on Twitter.
"It's a pity that we have people who know so little about football. Goalkeepers play until the age of 38-40."
Malafeev played every match of Russia's unsuccessful Euro 2012 campaign as his main rival for the No. 1 jersey, CSKA Moscow's Igor Akinfeev, was still unfit after a crucial ligament injury.
The team crashed out in the group stage with Malafeev failing to keep a single clean sheet.
New Russia coach Fabio Capello chose Akinfeev to start in his first game in charge, a friendly against Ivory Coast on August 16, which was widely understood as a signal that Malafeev would revert to a substitute role.
Malafeev continues to play for his club side Zenit St. Petersburg, where he has won three Russian titles and the 2007-08 UEFA Cup.
He was in the Russia side that reached the semifinals of Euro 2008, although Akinfeev played every minute of Russia's games at the tournament.
Russia's next games are World Cup qualifiers against Northern Ireland at home on September 7 and away to Israel four days later.
