Marked for Eric Hunal
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad6 Sep 2027
21 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Zbrojovka Brno lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
The dugout6 Sep 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Zbrojovka Brno may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Boardroom6 Sep 2027
Deadline passes with 28 signed and 30 gone
That is the business done at Zbrojovka Brno until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Market6 Sep 2027
Business is business: Adam Carlén goes
Pardubice paid $880.0K and Zbrojovka Brno took it, which is the whole story in one sentence. The longer version involves a wage budget and will be told all season.
Squad6 Sep 2027
David Tkáč in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Zbrojovka Brno this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market6 Sep 2027
Colin Andrew has left for Pardubice in a $190.0K deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.
Squad6 Sep 2027
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Filip Blecha commits to Zbrojovka Brno for another 3 years.
Squad6 Sep 2027
Amadou Danté 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.
Transfer targets6 Sep 2027
Zbrojovka Brno asked and Krasnodar said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market14 Jun 2027
Adam Carlén has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Zbrojovka Brno they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Market14 Jun 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad14 Jun 2027
Daler Kuzyaev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Market14 Jun 2027
Danijel Kolarić has left for Slavia Prague in a $620.0K deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.
The dugout14 Jun 2027
Filip Blecha back under a manager who knows him
The new man at Zbrojovka Brno has worked with Filip Blecha before and it went well. He arrives with a view of the player already formed, which is worth more than any pre-season.
Squad14 Jun 2027
Words at Zbrojovka Brno training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Patrik Čavoš 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.
Market14 Jun 2027
Rigino Cicilia is free to find somewhere else
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Zbrojovka Brno has been clear about where Rigino Cicilia stands, which is more than many ever get.
The dugout14 Jun 2027
The manager makes an example of Eric Hunal
“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 dugout14 Jun 2027
When it matters, Adam Carlén plays
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad24 May 2027
Words exchanged at Púchov
Eric Hunal 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 dugout24 May 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 dugout24 May 2027
Boris Gáll asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Market17 May 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 Púchov, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad17 May 2027
Tempers go at Púchov
Eric Hunal 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 dugout17 May 2027
The manager makes an example of Jozef Dolný
“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.
Boardroom17 May 2027
94% of the income goes out in wages at Púchov
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
The dugout17 May 2027
Koke has been promised minutes
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 Koke has written the date down.
Squad17 May 2027
Koke is settling
A few words of the language, a friend at the next peg, and a training ground that has stopped feeling foreign. Nothing measurable, and everything visible on Saturdays.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Market10 May 2027
Boris Gáll 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 Púchov can pretend not to have heard.
Squad10 May 2027
Eric Hunal in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Púchov this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad10 May 2027
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Púchov know it.
The dugout10 May 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 dugout10 May 2027
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say František Kóša is on it.
The dugout10 May 2027
Jozef Dolný knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Púchov, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Market10 May 2027
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Boris Krstić’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
Market10 May 2027
The clock does Milan Jirásek’s negotiating for him
7 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee Púchov could ask drops and the wages Milan Jirásek can ask rise.
The dugout10 May 2027
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
Squad26 Apr 2027
Boris Krstić in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Púchov this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout26 Apr 2027
Kamil Karaš gets it from the manager
“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
Amath Cissé knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Púchov, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Market26 Apr 2027
Koke linked with a move away
The name of Koke keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Púchov say nothing, which says plenty.
Market26 Apr 2027
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Boris Gáll may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
The dugout26 Apr 2027
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 Marián Šmatlák has written the date down.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad12 Apr 2027
Daler Kuzyaev 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.
Squad12 Apr 2027
Fernando Cabido arrives at the club he grew up with
Every footballer has an answer to the question about his boyhood club, and most of them never get to act on it. Fernando Cabido has, at Zbrojovka Brno, and the first month will show what that does to a man.
The dugout12 Apr 2027
Filip Blecha back under a manager who knows him
The new man at Zbrojovka Brno has worked with Filip Blecha before and it went well. He arrives with a view of the player already formed, which is worth more than any pre-season.
Squad12 Apr 2027
Words at Zbrojovka Brno training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Patrik Čavoš 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.
Market12 Apr 2027
He is 20, and the scouting reports agree on the only line that matters: the ceiling. Signings like this are lottery tickets written by professionals.
Squad12 Apr 2027
6 new faces, and Zbrojovka Brno are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
The dugout12 Apr 2027
Adam Hrdina knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Zbrojovka Brno, and both men came out saying it was fine.
The dugout12 Apr 2027
Adam Carlén has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Zbrojovka Brno 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.
Market12 Apr 2027
The Amadou Danté story refuses to die
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Amadou Danté signs something — a contract at Zbrojovka Brno or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom5 Apr 2027
The scrutiny sharpens at Púchov
Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at Púchov is running low.
Squad5 Apr 2027
Eric Hunal in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Púchov this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad5 Apr 2027
It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph a local paper has to write. 34 years old, 3 points down on where he was, and a body that has started charging interest on a career.
The dugout5 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.
Squad5 Apr 2027
It will be explained as a change for the team and it may even be one. Nobody who has worn one believes that, and neither does the man who has just had it taken away.
The dugout5 Apr 2027
Roman Zemko asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Squad5 Apr 2027
“I respect the manager and I am not going to sit here and pretend I am happy.” It is the most common sentence in football and it has never once been the end of a story.
Boardroom5 Apr 2027
Púchov trim $863.0K from the budget
The money the manager was told he had is now money the manager used to have. $863.0K, gone from the table without a statement, and a dressing room that understands what it means.
Market5 Apr 2027
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Daniel Pavúk’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad29 Mar 2027
Tempers go at Púchov
Eric Hunal 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 dugout29 Mar 2027
Boris Gáll gets it from the manager
“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.
Market29 Mar 2027
The Koke story refuses to die
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Koke signs something — a contract at Púchov or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad22 Mar 2027
Words exchanged at Púchov
Eric Hunal 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.
Boardroom22 Mar 2027
Wages swallow 111% of the Púchov income
Every club pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time it has been tried.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
The manager makes an example of Stanislav Koval
“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.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
The dugout15 Mar 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Zbrojovka Brno may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad15 Mar 2027
Daniel Vašulín 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.
Squad15 Mar 2027
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Zbrojovka Brno know it.
Squad15 Mar 2027
Filip Vedral 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 dugout15 Mar 2027
Filip Blecha back under a manager who knows him
The new man at Zbrojovka Brno has worked with Filip Blecha before and it went well. He arrives with a view of the player already formed, which is worth more than any pre-season.
Squad15 Mar 2027
Too much change too quickly at Zbrojovka Brno
7 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
The dugout15 Mar 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Denis Granečný, and the manager let it.
The dugout15 Mar 2027
When it matters, Adam Carlén plays
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
Market15 Mar 2027
The Amadou Danté story refuses to die
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Amadou Danté signs something — a contract at Zbrojovka Brno or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Market1 Mar 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Púchov can pretend not to have heard.
Squad1 Mar 2027
A falling-out at Púchov
Boris Krstić and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Player ratings1 Mar 2027
Successful dribbles: 19. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
The dugout1 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 Feb 2027
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑1 defeat, delivered by Dominik Gyomber to a room that had heard them before.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
Kamil Karaš asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
Squad1 Mar 2027
Eric Hunal still has not settled
A year in and the language has not come, the city has not opened up, and he eats alone more often than anybody at Púchov would like to admit. It is showing on Saturdays.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Player ratings15 Feb 2027
Successful dribbles: 36. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Match13 Feb 2027
No end in sight to Púchov's wait for a win
8 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Púchov has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad15 Feb 2027
A falling-out at Púchov
Eric Hunal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Transfer targets15 Feb 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Rangers International have kept their man, and Púchov go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The dugout15 Feb 2027
No place for Kamil Karaš on the big day
He found out with everybody else, an hour before kick-off, from a sheet of paper on a wall. Nobody at Púchov pretended it was anything other than a decision about him.
The dugout15 Feb 2027
The manager makes an example of Štěpán Marcaník
“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 dugout15 Feb 2027
František Kóša has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Púchov 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.
The dugout15 Feb 2027
“There are things I liked and things we will be doing on Tuesday until they are right.” 0‑0, and a manager who had already decided what Tuesday looked like.
Match13 Feb 2027
Ninety minutes, two goalkeepers with clean gloves, and not one finish worth keeping. MSK Zilina B will be the happier side with the point.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Market8 Feb 2027
Boris Gáll 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 Púchov can pretend not to have heard.
Match6 Feb 2027
7 matches without a win for Púchov
The run now stands at 7, and the questions being asked around Púchov are no longer polite ones.
Squad8 Feb 2027
Eric Hunal in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Púchov this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Transfer targets8 Feb 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Dukla Banská Bystrica have kept their man, and Púchov go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Match6 Feb 2027
Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout8 Feb 2027
The manager makes an example of Kamil Karaš
“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 dugout8 Feb 2027
No place for Boris Gáll on the big day
He found out with everybody else, an hour before kick-off, from a sheet of paper on a wall. Nobody at Púchov pretended it was anything other than a decision about him.
The dugout8 Feb 2027
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Squad8 Feb 2027
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Marijan Fotak and Púchov agree another 3 years.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match30 Jan 2027
The wait goes on for Púchov
6 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
Púchov close the window on a squad of their own making
3 in and 1 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Tempers go at Púchov
Eric Hunal 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.
Match30 Jan 2027
Amath Cissé among the goals in a wild afternoon
6 goals in one match, Amath Cissé on the scoresheet, and a scoreline that will look like a misprint. Neutrals could not have asked more of Púchov and Zlate Moravce.
Match30 Jan 2027
2‑4 to Zlate Moravce, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Transfer targets1 Feb 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. MSK Zilina have kept their man, and Púchov go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
The manager makes an example of Eric Hunal
“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.
Player ratings1 Feb 2027
Successful dribbles: 17. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 2‑4 defeat, delivered by Dominik Gyomber to a room that had heard them before.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Player ratings11 Jan 2027
No sign of nerves from František Kóša at 20 — 7.78
The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. František Kóša did not need any: 7.78, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Player ratings11 Jan 2027
At 33 every good afternoon gets called a throwback, and this one was: 8.26, and nobody on the pitch better.
Squad11 Jan 2027
Form comes and goes; this has not gone. Fabian Bzdyl is 19, and the version of him training now would not have got into the side he was in a year ago.
Transfer targets11 Jan 2027
Everything agreed with Zlate Moravce, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Squad11 Jan 2027
Words exchanged at Púchov
Boris Krstić 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.
Match9 Jan 2027
6 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Púchov and Slávia TU Košice in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
Transfer targets11 Jan 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Dukla Banská Bystrica have kept their man, and Púchov go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The dugout11 Jan 2027
The manager makes an example of Jozef Dolný
“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.
Squad11 Jan 2027
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Mamadou Traore Coulibaly commits to Púchov for another 4 years.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad4 Jan 2027
The kind of year that ends with a name being read out in a hall. Púchov had the benefit of it every week and now have the problem of everybody else knowing.
Transfer targets4 Jan 2027
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Púchov have done the hard part with Pohronie, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Squad4 Jan 2027
Tempers go at Púchov
Eric Hunal 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.
Player ratings4 Jan 2027
Daniel Pavúk ran the middle of the pitch — 6.83
He won it back and then made something of it, which is two jobs and the reason the scoreline looks the way it does. 14 combined actions and a mark of 6.83, and not one of them will make a highlights package.
Squad4 Jan 2027
A move Tiago Da Costa would have made for nothing
There is a version of every career where the player ends up somewhere he chose rather than somewhere that chose him. Tiago Da Costa is living that version at Púchov, and it tends to show in the first month.
Transfer targets4 Jan 2027
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Match2 Jan 2027
Beaten 1‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout4 Jan 2027
Boris Gáll gets it from the manager
“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.
Squad4 Jan 2027
The award goes to Filip Twardzik, and nobody around here is inclined to argue with the choice.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Player ratings28 Dec 2026
No sign of nerves from František Kóša at 20 — 7.61
The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. František Kóša did not need any: 7.61, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Squad28 Dec 2026
Words exchanged at Púchov
Eric Hunal 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.
Match26 Dec 2026
2‑3 to Inter Bratislava, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Boardroom28 Dec 2026
125% of the income goes out in wages at Púchov
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
“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.
Squad28 Dec 2026
A mistake Filip Dlubáč will not forget
Goalkeepers do not get to make mistakes; they get to make goals. He made one, he knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 2‑3, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
Filip Dlubáč is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
Somebody else has been better, the manager has said so with a team sheet, and there is no argument to be had. He will get the shirt back the only way it can be got back.
In brief
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Squad
Boris Krstić named player of the week
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Squad
A Púchov teenager takes the young player award
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Market
Koke linked with a move away
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad21 Dec 2026
The match ball belongs to Boris Krstić, whose 9 goals turned a difficult afternoon into a procession.
Match19 Dec 2026
18‑0, and the margin flattered nobody — it could have carried another goal or two without complaint. Afternoons like this are why people keep coming.
Squad21 Dec 2026
Fabian Bzdyl takes the match ball home
4 goals in one afternoon from one man. The other players were also present, a witness confirmed.
Player ratings21 Dec 2026
A brace, and František Kóša takes the afternoon — 9.16
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. František Kóša provided it, and the 9.16 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Player ratings21 Dec 2026
No sign of nerves from Fabian Bzdyl at 19 — 8.40
The hardest thing about being 19 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Fabian Bzdyl did not need any: 8.40, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Player ratings21 Dec 2026
Milan Jirásek, 34, rolls back the years — 8.44
There is an age at which every good afternoon gets described as a throwback, which is unfair and also accurate. 8.44 at 34, and nobody on the pitch was better.
Player ratings21 Dec 2026
Ninety minutes of Boris Krstić at his very best
Marked 10.00. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Púchov.
Squad21 Dec 2026
A falling-out at Púchov
Eric Hunal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Match19 Dec 2026
18 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Púchov and Slovan Bratislava U21 in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
From our football correspondent
Steady
The dugout14 Dec 2026
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Púchov may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Player ratings14 Dec 2026
Age has not caught Filip Twardzik yet — 7.86
At 33 he is supposed to be managing his minutes. Instead he was marked 7.86 and looked, for ninety minutes, exactly like the player everybody remembers.
Squad14 Dec 2026
Eric Hunal in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Púchov this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
The manager makes an example of Michal Trnovský
“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.
Player ratings14 Dec 2026
Both jobs done by Daniel Pavúk — 6.64
A midfielder is measured on whether the team functions when he is on the pitch, which is nearly impossible to see and completely obvious in retrospect. 9 actions, 6.64, and a manager who will not be substituting him again in a hurry.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
Michal Trnovský dropped after a run of poor form
The one version of being left out a player cannot argue with, and the one he takes worst. Somebody else has been better and the team sheet says so, in public, every week until it changes.
Match12 Dec 2026
It needed Filip Twardzik to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Petržalka, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
Filip Twardzik knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Púchov, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Squad14 Dec 2026
Eric Hunal has to sit this one out
A booking nobody needed, on a night the game was already won. Púchov lose a player for the most avoidable reason there is.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings7 Dec 2026
Filip Twardzik pops up at the right end — 7.60
7.60, 1 on the scoresheet, and the specific comedy of a back-four player celebrating like somebody who does this every week. He does not, and that is exactly why the ground reacted the way it did.
Squad7 Dec 2026
A falling-out at Púchov
Boris Krstić and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
Jozef Dolný gets it from the manager
“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 Dec 2026
Somebody has moved past him. It is not a dropping and it is worse than one, because a dropping is about a Saturday and this is about where he stands.
Squad7 Dec 2026
Eric Hunal named in the team of the month
A month is long enough that nobody gets in by accident. Eric Hunal is in the division's best eleven for it, which is a quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
There is no complaint available here and everybody involved knows it, which does not make the walk to the bench any shorter. Form is the only currency in football that cannot be borrowed against.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
Filip Twardzik knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Púchov, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Squad7 Dec 2026
The captaincy has been taken off Roman Zemko. Púchov will call it a decision about the team; a dressing room reads it as a verdict on a man.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Player ratings9 Nov 2026
Marked 7.71 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.
Squad9 Nov 2026
Tempers go at Púchov
Eric Hunal 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.
Match7 Nov 2026
At last: Púchov win one
6 matches without a win, and then this, against Považská Bystrica. Relief is a strange noise in a football ground and it was the only noise at the end.
The terraces9 Nov 2026
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 20-year-old it feels ownership of. František Kóša 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.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
The manager makes an example of Filip Dlubáč
“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.
Player ratings9 Nov 2026
Marked 7.79 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, Púchov had the best player on the pitch.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
There is no complaint available here and everybody involved knows it, which does not make the walk to the bench any shorter. Form is the only currency in football that cannot be borrowed against.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
“We earned that. I asked them for a reaction and I got one, and now I want the same again on Saturday.” Dominik Gyomber on a 2‑1 afternoon that pleased him more than he was prepared to show.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match31 Oct 2026
6 matches without a win for Púchov
The run now stands at 6, and the questions being asked around Púchov are no longer polite ones.
Squad2 Nov 2026
Words exchanged at Púchov
Eric Hunal 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.
Match31 Oct 2026
Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Boardroom2 Nov 2026
117% of the income goes out in wages at Púchov
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
The manager makes an example of Marián Šmatlák
“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 dugout2 Nov 2026
“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑2, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
Somebody else has been better, the manager has said so with a team sheet, and there is no argument to be had. He will get the shirt back the only way it can be got back.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say František Kóša is on it.
Squad2 Nov 2026
The captaincy has been taken off Filip Dlubáč. Púchov will call it a decision about the team; a dressing room reads it as a verdict on a man.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad26 Oct 2026
6 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Match24 Oct 2026
5 matches without a win for Púchov
The run now stands at 5, and the questions being asked around Púchov are no longer polite ones.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
Matej Obšivan: 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.” Púchov have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad26 Oct 2026
A falling-out at Púchov
Eric Hunal and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
Jozef Dolný gets it from the manager
“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.
Match24 Oct 2026
A point taken on 88 minutes is worth exactly one point and considerably more than that to a dressing room. This side does not stop, which is a reputation worth more than the result.
Squad26 Oct 2026
Púchov are still strangers to each other
21 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
Somebody else is better right now than Michal Trnovský
The team sheet says it in public every week until it changes. The only version of being dropped a footballer cannot argue with, and the one he takes hardest.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings5 Oct 2026
No sign of nerves from František Kóša at 20 — 7.73
The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. František Kóša did not need any: 7.73, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Boris Krstić in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Púchov this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings5 Oct 2026
Milan Jirásek ran the middle of the pitch — 6.78
He won it back and then made something of it, which is two jobs and the reason the scoreline looks the way it does. 11 combined actions and a mark of 6.78, and not one of them will make a highlights package.
Boardroom5 Oct 2026
Wages eat 126% of everything Púchov 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 dugout5 Oct 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Marián Šmatlák, and the manager let it.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Eric Hunal 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.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
Somebody else has been better, the manager has said so with a team sheet, and there is no argument to be had. He will get the shirt back the only way it can be got back.
Match3 Oct 2026
It needed František Kóša to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Zlate Moravce, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
In brief
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The dugout
The manager’s verdict
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Squad
František Kóša finally opens his account
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Market
Koke linked with a move away
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings21 Sep 2026
The game went through Daniel Pavúk — 6.96
Marked 6.96 on 15 actions at both ends of the pitch. Midfielders like this get described as unspectacular by people who have never tried to play against one.
Squad21 Sep 2026
Eric Hunal in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Púchov this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout21 Sep 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Amath Cissé, and the manager let it.
Match19 Sep 2026
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout21 Sep 2026
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑1, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
The dugout21 Sep 2026
Michal Trnovský dropped after a run of poor form
The one version of being left out a player cannot argue with, and the one he takes worst. Somebody else has been better and the team sheet says so, in public, every week until it changes.
The dugout21 Sep 2026
Boris Gáll does not fit this one
Ninety specific minutes wanted a different sort of player, and the manager picked one. He is not out of form and he is not in the side, and both are true.
Looking ahead21 Sep 2026
Stará Ľubovňa next, and one man in the Púchov dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
Squad21 Sep 2026
A year in and the city has not opened up, the language has not come, and lunch is eaten alone more often than anybody at Púchov would admit. It shows on Saturdays.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market14 Sep 2026
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Player ratings14 Sep 2026
At 34 every good afternoon gets called a throwback, and this one was: 8.35, and nobody on the pitch better.
Squad14 Sep 2026
Tempers go at Púchov
Eric Hunal 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.
Match12 Sep 2026
Three points for Púchov, 4‑3 the final word against Slávia TU Košice in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Match12 Sep 2026
Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 7 goals between Púchov and Slávia TU Košice, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.
The terraces14 Sep 2026
Púchov supporters have found a favourite in Boris Krstić
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Boris Krstić 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.
Player ratings14 Sep 2026
Daniel Pavúk was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.12. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
The dugout14 Sep 2026
The manager makes an example of Stanislav Koval
“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.
Squad14 Sep 2026
Filip Dlubáč lets one through his hands
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Boardroom7 Sep 2026
Púchov close the window on a squad of their own making
33 in and 11 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.
Transfer targets7 Sep 2026
The deal with Debrecen 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.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Words exchanged at Púchov
Eric Hunal 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.
Transfer targets7 Sep 2026
Púchov asked and Mlada Boleslav 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 dugout7 Sep 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Michal Trnovský, and the manager let it.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Marcus Traore is the month’s best young player
At 19 he was better than everybody his age in the division for four weeks running, which is harder than one good afternoon. Púchov will try not to make too much of it.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Eric Hunal has outgrown this division
There is a level at which a footballer stops being tested and starts being contained, and he reached it some time ago. Púchov know it, and so does everybody who watches him.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Four weeks in which nobody in the division did his job better. The award goes on a shelf and the player goes back into the side, which is the order Púchov prefer.
The dugout7 Sep 2026
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say František Kóša is on it.
In brief
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Looking ahead
A reunion for Koke
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Market
Koke linked with a move away
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The dugout
The manager makes Stanislav Koval a promise