Marked for Nikolay Sotnikov
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market8 May 2028
“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.
Match8 May 2028
9 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Squad8 May 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Denis Polyakov and Arsenal Dzerzhinsk agree another 2 years.
Squad8 May 2028
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad8 May 2028
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nikolay Sotnikov 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 terraces8 May 2028
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 21-year-old it feels ownership of. Daniel Volskiy 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.
Squad8 May 2028
The manager makes an example of Jakub Nečas
“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 ratings8 May 2028
Marked 7.17. Ask anyone leaving the ground what settled it and you will get one name, which is the only award that has ever really counted.
Match6 May 2028
The crowd waited for a goal that never came. Dnepr Mogilev defended in numbers and left with what they came for, and the two sides could be playing still without troubling a scorer.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market17 Apr 2028
“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.
Match15 Apr 2028
7 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.
Squad17 Apr 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad17 Apr 2028
Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Squad17 Apr 2028
The manager makes an example of Yuriy Lovets
“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.
Squad17 Apr 2028
Dmitriy Matyash 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.
Player ratings17 Apr 2028
Successful dribbles: 12. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Match15 Apr 2028
Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Smorgon came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.
Market17 Apr 2028
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Valeriy Gorbachik’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match8 Apr 2028
1‑1 against Belshina, and the road stops here. Cup exits are quick deaths — no second leg, no next week, just the league from now until May.
Match8 Apr 2028
The run now stands at 6, and the questions being asked around Arsenal Dzerzhinsk are no longer polite ones.
Market10 Apr 2028
“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 ratings10 Apr 2028
A chastening introduction for Dzmitry Shikavka — 5.44
It is a hard way to meet a crowd. Marked 5.44 on the day he was handed the shirt, and the important thing now is what the next one looks like.
Squad10 Apr 2028
Denis Polyakov 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 ratings10 Apr 2028
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 Apr 2028
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 22-year-old it feels ownership of. Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Squad10 Apr 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Valeriy Gorbachik, and the manager let it.
Player ratings10 Apr 2028
Marked 8.11 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market27 Mar 2028
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Arsenal Dzerzhinsk can pretend not to have heard.
Player ratings27 Mar 2028
Successful dribbles: 25. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad27 Mar 2028
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad27 Mar 2028
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Squad27 Mar 2028
The manager makes an example of Maxim Samotoy
“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.
Squad27 Mar 2028
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.
Match25 Mar 2028
It needed Luis Chávez to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Isloch, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
Player ratings27 Mar 2028
5.62 on the card. Some afternoons a footballer looks like a man who has only just been introduced to the game, and this was one of them.
Player ratings27 Mar 2028
Marked 5.68. Nothing he attempted worked and by the hour mark he had stopped attempting much, which is the part a manager notices rather than the mistakes.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market20 Mar 2028
“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.
Squad20 Mar 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match18 Mar 2028
Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad20 Mar 2028
The manager makes an example of Yuriy Lovets
“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.
Squad20 Mar 2028
Ivan Oreshkevich 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.
Squad20 Mar 2028
Maxim Samotoy 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 Arsenal Dzerzhinsk, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Player ratings20 Mar 2028
Successful dribbles: 12. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Player ratings20 Mar 2028
5.41 on the card. Some afternoons a footballer looks like a man who has only just been introduced to the game, and this was one of them.
Market20 Mar 2028
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Valeriy Gorbachik’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market13 Mar 2028
“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.
Squad13 Mar 2028
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad13 Mar 2028
Maxim Samotoy 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market28 Feb 2028
“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 Arsenal Dzerzhinsk, and it is not being withdrawn.
Boardroom28 Feb 2028
The silence upstairs is getting loud at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk
Nobody on the board has said anything against the manager, which is the point — they have stopped saying anything for him either.
Squad28 Feb 2028
Not a run of form — an actual step up, held for months. At 19 he is doing things at this level he could not do at the start of the season, and the coaching staff will tell you exactly which of them.
Squad28 Feb 2028
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad28 Feb 2028
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ivan Oreshkevich 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market21 Feb 2028
“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.
Squad21 Feb 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad21 Feb 2028
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Maxim Samotoy 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market14 Feb 2028
“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 Feb 2028
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad14 Feb 2028
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market31 Jan 2028
“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 Arsenal Dzerzhinsk, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market31 Jan 2028
The bid was some way short and Arsenal Dzerzhinsk did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Boardroom31 Jan 2028
The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.
Squad31 Jan 2028
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad31 Jan 2028
Maxim Samotoy 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market24 Jan 2028
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Arsenal Dzerzhinsk can pretend not to have heard.
Market24 Jan 2028
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market24 Jan 2028
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad24 Jan 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad24 Jan 2028
Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Squad24 Jan 2028
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market27 Dec 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 Arsenal Dzerzhinsk, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market27 Dec 2027
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Arsenal Dzerzhinsk they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad27 Dec 2027
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad27 Dec 2027
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ivan Oreshkevich 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.
Loan watch27 Dec 2027
22 appearances at Volna Pinsk and the goals keep coming. Arsenal Dzerzhinsk are watching this more closely than the borrowing club would like.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market20 Dec 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 Arsenal Dzerzhinsk can pretend not to have heard.
Squad20 Dec 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad20 Dec 2027
Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market13 Dec 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 Arsenal Dzerzhinsk, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad13 Dec 2027
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad13 Dec 2027
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad29 Nov 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Vadim Tseluyko
24 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Arsenal Dzerzhinsk lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Market29 Nov 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 Arsenal Dzerzhinsk, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market29 Nov 2027
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad29 Nov 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad29 Nov 2027
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Squad29 Nov 2027
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Giovanni Bustos trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad22 Nov 2027
Vadim Tseluyko damages knee ligaments — 32 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 32 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Market22 Nov 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.
Squad22 Nov 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market8 Nov 2027
Maxim Samotoy 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 Arsenal Dzerzhinsk can pretend not to have heard.
Squad8 Nov 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad8 Nov 2027
Ivan Tolkachev in trouble away from the ground
Every paper's favourite story and every manager's least. What happened is being dealt with internally, which is the phrase clubs use when they would rather nobody asked again.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market1 Nov 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.
Market1 Nov 2027
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Dzmitry Shikavka will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Arsenal Dzerzhinsk the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad1 Nov 2027
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad1 Nov 2027
He will be fined, he will apologise, and he will play on Saturday. The order of those three tells you everything about what a football club actually values.
Squad1 Nov 2027
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Squad1 Nov 2027
The medical room confirms 38 days on the sidelines for Vitaliy Malevich, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market18 Oct 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.
Squad18 Oct 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Arsenal Dzerzhinsk may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Denis Polyakov 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market11 Oct 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 Arsenal Dzerzhinsk, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad11 Oct 2027
Maxim Samotoy 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.
Squad11 Oct 2027
Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market4 Oct 2027
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad4 Oct 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Denis Polyakov and Arsenal Dzerzhinsk agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad4 Oct 2027
Denis Polyakov 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market20 Sep 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.
Player ratings20 Sep 2027
Mark Mokin, 21, plays like he has been here for years — 8.06
A mark of 8.06 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 21-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.
Player ratings20 Sep 2027
A chastening introduction for Ivan Mazurkevich — 5.40
It is a hard way to meet a crowd. Marked 5.40 on the day he was handed the shirt, and the important thing now is what the next one looks like.
Squad20 Sep 2027
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad20 Sep 2027
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Match18 Sep 2027
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Ilja Vasin. 2‑1 against Smorgon, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
The terraces20 Sep 2027
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 21-year-old it feels ownership of. Mark Mokin 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.
Squad20 Sep 2027
“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 ratings20 Sep 2027
Successful dribbles: 14. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market6 Sep 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 Arsenal Dzerzhinsk, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market6 Sep 2027
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Arsenal Dzerzhinsk they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad6 Sep 2027
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad6 Sep 2027
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Squad6 Sep 2027
Luis Chávez 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.
Match4 Sep 2027
A 1‑0 win over Gomel, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Player ratings6 Sep 2027
Marked 5.65, and generously at that. Nothing came off, and by the end the crowd had stopped expecting it to.
Loan watch6 Sep 2027
22 appearances at Volna Pinsk and the goals keep coming. Arsenal Dzerzhinsk are watching this more closely than the borrowing club would like.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match30 Aug 2027
Position 15, 18 points, and a fixture list with fewer games left in it than excuses. The arithmetic is not cruel yet, but it has stopped being kind.
Match28 Aug 2027
10 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk has to find a result from somewhere.
The terraces30 Aug 2027
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
Player ratings30 Aug 2027
No sign of nerves from Alexey Dayneko at 21 — 8.10
The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Alexey Dayneko did not need any: 8.10, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Squad30 Aug 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad30 Aug 2027
Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Match28 Aug 2027
1‑2 to Slutsk, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad30 Aug 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.
Squad30 Aug 2027
The team sheet said everything about Maxim Samotoy
Warm-up bib, ninety minutes of watching, and a handshake at the end that fooled nobody. Big matches tell you who a manager trusts; this one told Maxim Samotoy.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Player ratings9 Aug 2027
Successful dribbles: 30. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Market9 Aug 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.
Match7 Aug 2027
7 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad9 Aug 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Arsenal Dzerzhinsk may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad9 Aug 2027
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad9 Aug 2027
Words at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Squad9 Aug 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Yuriy Lovets, and the manager let it.
Match7 Aug 2027
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Player ratings9 Aug 2027
Marked 5.32, and generously at that. Nothing came off, and by the end the crowd had stopped expecting it to.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match2 Aug 2027
Position 14, 16 points, and a fixture list with fewer games left in it than excuses. The arithmetic is not cruel yet, but it has stopped being kind.
The terraces2 Aug 2027
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
Market2 Aug 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.
Match31 Jul 2027
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.
Squad2 Aug 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.
Squad2 Aug 2027
Jakub Nečas 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.
Squad2 Aug 2027
Denis Polyakov 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.
Squad2 Aug 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.
Match31 Jul 2027
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market19 Jul 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.
Squad19 Jul 2027
Ilja Vasin: 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.” Arsenal Dzerzhinsk have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Match17 Jul 2027
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad19 Jul 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Arsenal Dzerzhinsk this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad19 Jul 2027
Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Squad19 Jul 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 terraces5 Jul 2027
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
Market5 Jul 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.
Match5 Jul 2027
Position 13 and 14 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Squad5 Jul 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Arsenal Dzerzhinsk may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad5 Jul 2027
Jakub Nečas 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.
Squad5 Jul 2027
Nikolay Sotnikov 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.
Squad5 Jul 2027
The manager makes an example of Luis Chávez
“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.
Market5 Jul 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.
Player ratings5 Jul 2027
1 error, one goal, and a night in front of the same three seconds. He will see it tonight, tomorrow and probably in February, and everybody who has played knows exactly which frame he keeps stopping on.