Marked for Gleb Krivtsov
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Player ratings21 Jun 2027
Successful dribbles: 30. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
The dugout21 Jun 2027
Dzmitry Noyok: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Ostrovets have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad21 Jun 2027
Dmitriy Gradoboev was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Boardroom21 Jun 2027
The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Ostrovets now.
Transfer targets21 Jun 2027
Ostrovets asked and Torpedo-BelAZ said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
The terraces21 Jun 2027
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Gleb Krivtsov has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Squad21 Jun 2027
A row about effort at Ostrovets
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Alexandr Emeljanov was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Transfer targets21 Jun 2027
A loan move for Ivan Bykau is in the works
Ostrovets have made the call to Minsk. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
Player ratings21 Jun 2027
Nobody on the pitch touched Gleb Krivtsov
7.29, and no serious argument from anybody who was there. Ostrovets had eleven men on the pitch and one of them decided how it went.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings7 Jun 2027
Successful dribbles: 23. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Squad7 Jun 2027
Dmitriy Gradoboev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad7 Jun 2027
At 21, Daniil Tsyk is already the best thing here
An average of 7.00 in a first team he is several years too young for. Ostrovets have something, and by now the whole division has noticed.
Squad7 Jun 2027
A row about effort at Ostrovets
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Gleb Krivtsov was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Player ratings7 Jun 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.04, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Match7 Jun 2027
Halfway: Ostrovets sit in position 5
20 points at the turn. The first half of a season is a promise; the second is a bill, and the town is about to find out which of the two this one was.
The dugout7 Jun 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Squad7 Jun 2027
Daniil Tsyk makes the team of the month
Four or five weekends of consistency, measured against everybody else in the division. A quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.
Match5 Jun 2027
It needed Egor Mikhey to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Molodechno, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad26 Apr 2027
The medical room confirms 50 days on the sidelines for Alexey Semenov, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad26 Apr 2027
Dmitriy Gradoboev was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Boardroom26 Apr 2027
The numbers do not look good at Ostrovets
Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.
Squad26 Apr 2027
Gleb Krivtsov falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match24 Apr 2027
0‑2 to Baranovichi, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
The dugout26 Apr 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout26 Apr 2027
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑2 Mikalai Filipenko left the room before anybody could ask which.
Player ratings26 Apr 2027
Successful dribbles: 14. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
The dugout26 Apr 2027
No place in the plan for Egor Shashko
The manager wanted a different profile for this opponent, which is a real football reason and no consolation. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match31 Mar 2027
The cup run ends for Ostrovets
1‑2 against Minsk, and the road stops here. Cup exits are quick deaths — no second leg, no next week, just the league from now until May.
Player ratings5 Apr 2027
No sign of nerves from Daniil Tsyk at 21 — 7.96
The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Daniil Tsyk did not need any: 7.96, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Market5 Apr 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Ostrovets, and it is not being withdrawn.
Player ratings5 Apr 2027
Successful dribbles: 24. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad5 Apr 2027
Dmitriy Gradoboev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad5 Apr 2027
Words at Ostrovets training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Gleb Krivtsov is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout5 Apr 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Andrey Agapov, and the manager let it.
Squad5 Apr 2027
A place in the month's best eleven for Daniil Tsyk
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Daniil Tsyk has come out of that comparison in the side, and Ostrovets have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
The dugout5 Apr 2027
Kirill Goncharik has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Ostrovets will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings29 Mar 2027
Marked 7.80 at 20, in a side that makes no allowances for age. He did not need any, and he looked the least nervous man on the pitch.
Squad29 Mar 2027
Words exchanged at Ostrovets
Dmitriy Gradoboev and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Match27 Mar 2027
Late, late show earns Ostrovets a point
Minute 88, against Lida, and a goal that felt like a win to everybody who had stayed. It was a draw. Nobody leaving the ground will describe it as one.
Squad29 Mar 2027
A row about effort at Ostrovets
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Alexandr Emeljanov was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Match27 Mar 2027
A 1‑1 draw with Lida leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
Boardroom29 Mar 2027
The accounts are being read more closely than the results. Wages before ambition is the order of business now, and the manager has been told so.
Player ratings29 Mar 2027
Successful dribbles: 14. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
The view from the dugout
“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Mikalai Filipenko chose the glass-half-full version of 1‑1; the supporters left with the other one.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Transfer targets22 Feb 2027
The deal with Lokomotiv Gomel is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Squad22 Feb 2027
Dmitriy Gradoboev was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad22 Feb 2027
A row about effort at Ostrovets
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Gleb Krivtsov was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market1 Feb 2027
Egor Shashko hands in a written request
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Ostrovets can pretend not to have heard.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Transfer targets1 Feb 2027
The deal with Minsk is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Words exchanged at Ostrovets
Dmitriy Gradoboev and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Gleb Krivtsov falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
The manager makes an example of Andrey Agapov
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Transfer targets1 Feb 2027
Minsk have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Ostrovets now.
Squad1 Feb 2027
The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Dmitry Serdyukov is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad11 Jan 2027
Dmitriy Gradoboev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad11 Jan 2027
Gleb Krivtsov falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Market11 Jan 2027
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Viktar Signevich is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Market11 Jan 2027
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Maksim Martynovich has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market11 Jan 2027
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
The dugout11 Jan 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The dugout30 Nov 2026
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Ostrovets may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad30 Nov 2026
Dmitriy Gradoboev was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad30 Nov 2026
Words at Ostrovets training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Gleb Krivtsov is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Boardroom30 Nov 2026
Wages eat 179% of everything Ostrovets earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
The dugout30 Nov 2026
The manager makes an example of Ivan Mokshin
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The dugout30 Nov 2026
The manager makes Egor Shashko a promise
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Ostrovets. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad9 Nov 2026
Words exchanged at Ostrovets
Dmitriy Gradoboev and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad9 Nov 2026
A row about effort at Ostrovets
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Gleb Krivtsov was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Market9 Nov 2026
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Valery Laptev has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
The manager makes an example of Egor Shashko
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Market9 Nov 2026
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
He asked about his future and was given an answer with minutes in it. The manager has now made a promise in a building where promises are remembered, and the clock on it has started.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The dugout19 Oct 2026
Ivan Mokshin: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Ostrovets have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad19 Oct 2026
A row about effort at Ostrovets
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Dmitriy Gradoboev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Squad19 Oct 2026
Ivan Mokshin was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The dugout19 Oct 2026
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Alexandr Krotov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The dugout19 Oct 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Ilya Yurkevich, and the manager let it.
The dugout19 Oct 2026
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Alexandr Emeljanov has written the date down.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market28 Sep 2026
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Ostrovets they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Boardroom28 Sep 2026
There is no worse way to lose a footballer. Artem Kilyimanov has pre-agreed a move away, which means every appearance between now and June is made by a man the club can no longer sell, and somebody upstairs will be asked why the contract was allowed to get here.
Squad28 Sep 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ostrovets this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad28 Sep 2026
Words at Ostrovets training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Gleb Krivtsov is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout28 Sep 2026
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Ostrovets. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
The dugout28 Sep 2026
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Ostrovets, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match12 Aug 2026
Minsk ended it 0‑1. The season narrows to the league now, and everyone in the ground knew it before the final whistle.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Words exchanged at Ostrovets
Dmitriy Gradoboev and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Match15 Aug 2026
Ostrovets cannot find the net
3 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Words at Ostrovets training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Gleb Krivtsov is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout17 Aug 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Egor Mikhey, and the manager let it.
Squad17 Aug 2026
No place for Alexey Semenov in the new shape
He is not being dropped. There is simply nowhere in the formation Ostrovets are playing to put a man who does what he does, which is a harder thing to be told than any team sheet.
Market17 Aug 2026
“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.
Market17 Aug 2026
Oleg Petrovskiy is 20, and Ostrovets have signed him for the player he will be rather than the one he is. The first team can wait; the point of a deal like this is the years it buys.
The dugout17 Aug 2026
“It is not the end of the world and it is not good enough. Both of those are true.” The manager, after a 0‑0 draw, said the honest thing and then went to say it again inside.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Transfer targets10 Aug 2026
The deal with Dinamo Minsk is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
Transfer targets10 Aug 2026
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: another club keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Squad10 Aug 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ostrovets this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings10 Aug 2026
Successful dribbles: 21. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
The terraces10 Aug 2026
He is 22 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
Market10 Aug 2026
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Dzmitry Noyok has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Market10 Aug 2026
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Ruslan Gordeichuk has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Market10 Aug 2026
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Valery Signevich has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Market10 Aug 2026
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Raman Hleb has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.