At the age of 16, while still attending school, Syomin started his player career at Spartak Oryol, a Soviet Second League club.

Syomin started his coaching career in 1983, when he was called to save Pamir Dushanbe, a First League team, from relegation.

During the period of his work Lokomotiv transformed from a mid-table club to one of the leaders of Russian football, winning the championship in 2002 and 2004.

In 2005 Syomin left Lokomotiv for the Russia national team to help it reach the 2006 FIFA World Cup final tournament.

In 2007, he returned to FC Lokomotiv Moscow as club president, but one year later his contract was terminated due to team's low league position.

[1] Later in 2007 Syomin took over the managerial position with FC Dynamo Kyiv in Ukraine and guided the club to a championship in the 2008-09 season as well as a semi-final appearance in the UEFA Cup.

[4] Syomin was announced as Anzhi Makhachkala manager on 18 June 2015, signing a one-year contract with the option of an additional year.

[8] The Russian Premier League was suspended at the time due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Russia, with Lokomotiv in 2nd position in the standings.