A
forward, Simutenkov started his professional career in the old Soviet league with
Dynamo Moscow in 1990. He spent the next five years with Dynamo, the last three in the Russian league, which he led in scoring with 21 goals in 1994. A transfer to
Serie A's
Reggiana followed, and Simutenkov spent the next five seasons in Italy (the last with
Bologna), scoring a total of only 23 goals. He clinched the promotion to
Serie A during the
1995–96 season with
Carlo Ancelotti as manager. In 1999, Simutenkov transferred to Spanish club
Tenerife, and spent three uneventful seasons there. He signed with the
Kansas City Wizards in 2002, becoming
Major League Soccer's first Russian player. Igor scored four goals in his first season (plus one in playoffs), seven in his second (plus two in playoffs), before missing a big chunk of the third with an injury, ending with a solitary goal in league play. He scored the
golden goal in the final of the 2004
Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, but was released by the Wizards following the 2004 season, at which time he returned to Russia and signed with Rubin. At the end of season 2005, while made only three appearances for
Rubin Kazan, Simutenkov declared his retirement from professional football. He told that he could not perform at the high level because of a few serious permanent injuries. However, in 2006 he was included in the squad of
FC Dynamo Voronezh, a
Second Division side. Simutenkov is also known for the famous Simutenkov-case in which the European Court of Justice acknowledged the direct effect of the partnership-agreement between the European Communities and Russia. In this judgment Spanish nationality-clauses for non-EU footballers were found in breach with Community law. == International career ==