Russia will face Croatia in Moscow September 6 in its first Euro-2008 qualifier in Group E, which also comprises England, Andorra, Estonia, Macedonia, and Israel.
But with CSKA Moscow center back Vassily Berezutsky still recovering from picking up a knock in early August, the Dutch trainer has been left without experienced cover. Hiddink said he was in contact with Berezutsky's club doctors to establish whether he could take the field.
Hiddink also said that two players would be new for him: Nuremberg striker Ivan Sayenko will make his international debut and captain Alexei Smertin will return to the fold after missing a friendly against Latvia two weeks ago.
Russia failed to qualify for this year's World Cup in Germany in a campaign that saw a new nadir when the team was thrashed 7-1 by Portugal in October 2004. Although performances subsequently improved after Yury Syomin, one of the country's most respected managers, took over from Georgy Yartsev, it was not enough to save him and he resigned after the last game.
Hiddink, whom Russian fans expect to work miracles after he guided South Korea to the semifinals of the 2002 World Cup and took Australia to its World Cup debut this summer, said earlier that team's success in the qualifiers for the European Championships in Austria and Switzerland would be a major boost to the Russian soccer.
