SOCHI, RUSSIA – MARCH 13: Russian President Vladimir Putin holds a glass of champagne during a lunch hosted by the office of the Russian President Vladimir Putin for the Presidents of the International Paralympic Committee member organisations during the 2014 Sochi Paralympic Games on March 13, 2014 in Sochi, Russia. (Photo by Harry Engels/Getty Images)

While not the head coach, Vladimir Putin’s suggestions to the Russian national soccer team for 2018 will be put into effect, based on a report from TASS, a Russian news outlet, that was published Monday.

The team had already planned its preparation for the national team, but will have to implement changes requested by Putin.

Putin’s suggestions were based around giving perspective young talent more playing time to prepare them for the World Cup. The suggestions have a deadline of March 30, 2016.

From Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko:

“We were spared some time, we will work on it and think about it jointly with the football clubs and the league [the Russian Football Premier League]. The instructions’ sole purpose is to successfully prepare the team. We will definitely do this and we have a set of measures currently under the implementation.”

Russia will play host to the 2018 World Cup, and will have a total of 11 different host cities that include Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sochi, Kazan, Saransk, Kaliningrard, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don, Nizhny Novgorod, Yekaterinburg, and Samara.

Putin’s suggestions for his nation’s team could be great. If he’s as good a soccer strategist as he is a hockey player, Russia just might win the World Cup.

However, what we know of Putin’s soccer knowledge is questionable at best. Putin suggested earlier this month that suspended FIFA president Sepp Blatter deserved the Nobel Peace Prize.

[TASS]

About Harry Lyles Jr.

Harry Lyles Jr. is an Atlanta-based writer, and a Georgia State University graduate.