The speed and explosiveness boasted by this wide player are ideal for producing penetrating runs and make him a specialist on the counter-attack. He joined the Real Madrid academy at Under-12 level and, having steadily risen up the ranks of the club's youth system, took his place in the Castilla squad in 2010.
With the Whites' reserves, he was part of the team that earned promotion to Segunda División in 2012. In the 2012/13 season he was one of the side's outstanding performers, scoring 11 goals in a campaign that also brought his competitive first-team debut, on 27 November 2012 against Alcoyano in the Copa del Rey. A few days earlier, he had made his senior international bow for Russia in a friendly against the USA.
In 2013/14 he went to Sevilla, where he won the Europa League, before spending 2014/15 at Villarreal, enjoying an excellent season in which he netted seven times and was the team's highest assist-provider.
