Russia and Zenit captain Artem Dzyuba goes viral for all wrong reasons after 'masturbation video' appears online

Russian World Cup hero Artem Dzyuba broke the internet in his homeland after a leaked video appeared online showing the striker pleasuring himself while lying in bed.

In the footage, which is of unknown origin but quickly went viral on Saturday night, the giant Zenit St Petersburg star is seen masturbating in bed while grunting with pleasure.

The more perceptive Russian social media users picked up on background noise from the television which appears to be from a Match TV broadcast featuring blonde presenter Maria Orzul, and have suggested the footage is from December of 2019.  

The video and screenshots soon spread like wildfire across Russian Twitter and messenger services such as Telegram.  

Neither Dzyuba nor Zenit have officially commented on the X-rated clip, although the 32-year-old has blocked the 'comment' option on his Instagram account. 

However, that has not stopped Russian football fans from having a field day at the expense of their national team skipper.

"Artem Dzyuba risks missing the match with Krasnodar [on Sunday]. He's following an individual training program," read one tweet. 

"When Dzyuba's used his hand but you don't want to check," read another, playing on the use of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in modern football.

"He always said he could do it all on his own," one person wrote, while a parody account for Russia manager Stanislav Cherchesov added: "I won't offer my hand to Dzyuba anymore." 

A twist to tale is also the supposed presence of the voice of TV presenter Orzul in the clip, with whom Dzyuba was linked romantically back in 2015 when both were married. Dzyuba later reconciled with wife Kristina, and the pair have two sons.  

Referring to the explicit clip, prominent Russian sports commentator Dmitry Guberniev wrote on his Telegram account: "Again Artem Dzyuba alarmed everyone. And again everyone calls my friend Masha Orzul! We all know that Dzyuba is a passionate person, but this time Orzul has nothing to do with it! I know for sure!" 

The 6ft 4in star became a national hero during the Russia 2018 World Cup, scoring three times on his team's run to the quarterfinals and becoming known for his trademark 'salute' celebration.  

Dzyuba was elevated to captain by manager Cherchesov after the tournament and has made 47 appearances for 'Sbornaya', scoring 26 times. 

Dzyuba and his iconic salute celebration. © AFP

The frontman – who has been linked to a move to Europe throughout his career, including to English Premier League club Tottenham – has been a driving force in Zenit's domestic success in recent years, helping them win back-to-back Russian league titles and landing a league and cup double last season. 

Dzyuba was in the starting line-up for Zenit's Russian Premier League clash with Krasnodar at Gazprom Arena on Sunday, where he got on the scoresheet, but has been dropped from the national team squad for the upcoming friendly with Moldova and UEFA Nations League games against Turkey and Serbia.

Russia manager Stanislav Chercehsov explained in a statement on Sunday that "it was decided not to call Artem Dzyuba up to the current training camp in order to protect both the team and the player from excessive negativity and tension.

"Artem will have time to normalize the situation. I hope that this topic will no longer be raised during the team's work at this training camp," he added. 

The big target man was the butt of more online merriment in July, when locker room footage showed Dzyuba simulating sex with Iranian teammate Sardar Azmoun during Zenit's title-winning celebrations.