Kirill Davidenko

Central Midfielder - Baltika 2
3 Apr 2027
Saturday
Process

Marked for Kirill Davidenko

35 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

29 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

At 20, Kirill Davidenko is already the best thing here

An average of 7.01 in a first team he is several years too young for. Baltika 2 have something, and by now the whole division has noticed.

Squad

Tempers go at Baltika 2

Ivan Belikov 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 dugout

Matvey Romashin 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.

Market

Arnur Sagalbaev linked with a move away

The name of Arnur Sagalbaev keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Baltika 2 say nothing, which says plenty.

Market

Artemy Bludov placed on the list

Baltika 2 have made Artemy Bludov available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.

The dugout

The manager plants his flag on Denis Makarov

“Judge me on him.” Managers do not say that kind of thing by accident — it moves the pressure from Denis Makarov’s shoulders onto his own, and both of them know it.

In brief

Back issues
33 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

15 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

The knee: Ivan Belikov out for 15 days

15 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Baltika 2 lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.

Squad

Timofey Schelkunov out for 24 days

The medical room confirms 24 days on the sidelines for Timofey Schelkunov, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.

Squad

At 21, Denis Makarov is already the best thing here

An average of 7.14 in a first team he is several years too young for. Baltika 2 have something, and by now the whole division has noticed.

Squad

A falling-out at Baltika 2

Ivan Belikov and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

The dugout

No hiding place for Daniil Turischev

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Daniil Turischev, and the manager let it.

The dugout

David Cherkasov 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 Baltika 2, and both men came out saying it was fine.

In brief

32 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

8 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Evgeny Kim puts it in writing

“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 Baltika 2, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Arseny Popushoy is the real thing at 20

A season average of 7.26 at an age when most of his year group are still in the youth team. Baltika 2 know what they have, and so, by now, does everybody else.

Squad

Tempers go at Baltika 2

Arnur Sagalbaev 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.

Squad

Arseny Popushoy is the month’s best young player

At 20 he was better than everybody his age in the division for four weeks running, which is harder than one good afternoon. Baltika 2 will try not to make too much of it.

Squad

Arseny Popushoy 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 dugout

No hiding place for Artemy Bludov

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Artemy Bludov, and the manager let it.

In brief

31 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

1 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Ivan Belikov 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.

Market

Denis Makarov turns Kolomna down

“It was not right for me. I am not going to explain why to anybody except the people I owe an explanation to.” A deal agreed between two clubs, and a player who declined to be part of it.

Player ratings

Arseny Popushoy scores twice — 8.55

Two goals and a mark of 8.55 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.

Market

Aymane Mourid puts it in writing

“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 Baltika 2, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Remember the name: Kirill Davidenko

He is 20, he is averaging 7.01, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.

Squad

Tempers go at Baltika 2

Ivan Belikov 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 ratings

Nobody could get near Denis Makarov

Successful dribbles: 21. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Match

Baltika 2 find a way past Zvezda

Zvezda made Baltika 2 work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑1 at the end and the table does not ask how.

The terraces

One of their own: Kirill Davidenko

He is 20 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.

In brief

30 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

22 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Player ratings

Arseny Popushoy, 20, steals the show — 8.44

Marked 8.44 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.

Market

Artemy Bludov 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 Baltika 2 can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

A falling-out at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

The terraces

One of their own: Denis Makarov

He is 21 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.

Match

Baltika 2 see off Tver

Three points for Baltika 2, 2‑0 the final word against Tver in a contest settled by the finer margins.

The dugout

The manager’s verdict

“I am not going to get carried away and I will not let them either. It was a good day. There will be harder ones.” Alexandr Petukhov kept it short after the 2‑0 win, which is what managers do when they are happy.

Squad

Arseny Popushoy, 20, is the weekend’s best young player

Measured against every other kid in the division and first among them. The senior award is where Baltika 2 would like this to lead.

The dugout

David Cherkasov left out for tactical reasons at Baltika 2

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.

The dugout

Yegor Lyubakov knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Yegor Lyubakov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

In brief

28 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

8 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Arnur Sagalbaev at 20 — 7.62

The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Arnur Sagalbaev did not need any: 7.62, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Squad

Arseny Popushoy is the real thing at 20

A season average of 7.19 at an age when most of his year group are still in the youth team. Baltika 2 know what they have, and so, by now, does everybody else.

Match

4 matches without a win for Baltika 2

The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Baltika 2 are no longer polite ones.

Squad

Tempers go at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko 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.

Match

Baltika 2 refuse to lose to Dinamo Vologda

A point taken on 94 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.

Player ratings

Denis Makarov beats them one at a time

Successful dribbles: 15. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.

Squad

A place in the month's best eleven for Denis Makarov

Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Denis Makarov has come out of that comparison in the side, and Baltika 2 have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.

The dugout

No place for Evgeny Kim 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 Baltika 2 pretended it was anything other than a decision about him.

Match

Baltika 2 share the spoils with Dinamo Vologda

A 1‑1 draw with Dinamo Vologda leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.

In brief

27 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

1 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

A knee injury of the worst kind for Ivan Belikov

61 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Baltika 2 lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.

Market

Denis Makarov turns Kolomna down

“It was not right for me. I am not going to explain why to anybody except the people I owe an explanation to.” A deal agreed between two clubs, and a player who declined to be part of it.

Player ratings

Arseny Popushoy beats them one at a time

Successful dribbles: 33. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.

Squad

Tempers go at Baltika 2

Ivan Belikov 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.

Match

Torpedo Vladimir take the points off Baltika 2

Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

The dugout

No hiding place for David Cherkasov

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to David Cherkasov, and the manager let it.

Looking ahead

Top-of-the-table clash for Baltika 2

Dinamo Vologda next, and the two sides the division is watching meet each other. Whoever wins will be told nothing is decided in the same breath as being congratulated.

Squad

Aymane Mourid 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 dugout

Alexandr Petukhov faces the questions

“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Alexandr Petukhov after 0‑1, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.

In brief

26 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

25 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A knee injury of the worst kind for David Cherkasov

22 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Baltika 2 lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Denis Makarov

Successful dribbles: 38. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Remember the name: Kirill Davidenko

He is 20, he is averaging 7.00, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.

Squad

Eldzhat Mamedov 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 Baltika 2 this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

The terraces

Baltika 2 supporters have found a favourite in Timofey Schelkunov

There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 21-year-old it feels ownership of. Timofey Schelkunov 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 ratings

Timofey Schelkunov was the difference for Baltika 2

Marked 7.29. Ask anyone leaving the ground what settled it and you will get one name, which is the only award that has ever really counted.

The dugout

No hiding place for Daniil Turischev

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Daniil Turischev, and the manager let it.

The dugout

Alexandr Petukhov: “We have to be better”

“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.

The dugout

David Cherkasov knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and David Cherkasov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

In brief

24 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

11 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Squad

The knee: David Cherkasov out for 38 days

38 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Baltika 2 lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.

Match

No mercy from Baltika 2

Yenisey 2 will want this one forgotten quickly: 3‑0, every duel lost, and a long ride home. Baltika 2 were ruthless in the way good sides are ruthless.

Match

Baltika 2 refuse to drop out of the race

Position 3, 40 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking it.

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Arnur Sagalbaev at 20 — 7.87

The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Arnur Sagalbaev did not need any: 7.87, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Squad

At 20, Arseny Popushoy is already the best thing here

An average of 7.22 in a first team he is several years too young for. Baltika 2 have something, and by now the whole division has noticed.

Squad

Andrey Tsitsilin is a better footballer than he was

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.

Squad

Tempers go at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko 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 terraces

Baltika 2 supporters have found a favourite in Kirill Davidenko

There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 20-year-old it feels ownership of. Kirill Davidenko 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 dugout

The manager makes an example of Yegor Lyubakov

“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.

In brief

  • Boardroom Nobody left the Baltika 2 dressing room in a hurry
  • Player ratings Nobody could get near Denis Makarov
  • The dugout The manager’s verdict
22 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

28 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Kirill Davidenko is the real thing at 20

A season average of 7.00 at an age when most of his year group are still in the youth team. Baltika 2 know what they have, and so, by now, does everybody else.

Squad

A falling-out at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

The terraces

One of their own: Arseny Popushoy

He is 20 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.

Player ratings

Arseny Popushoy takes the honours

Marked 7.28 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, Baltika 2 had the best player on the pitch.

The dugout

Baltika 2 keep their word to Nikita Bokov

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 dugout

No hiding place for Magomed Ismailov

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Magomed Ismailov, and the manager let it.

The dugout

Alexandr Petukhov on the point

“A point is a point and I will take it, but we should have had all three.” Alexandr Petukhov after the 0‑0 draw, and the sentence every manager in the country said at some stage this weekend.

Match

Baltika 2 draw a blank against Irkutsk

The crowd waited for a goal that never came. Irkutsk defended in numbers and left with what they came for, and the two sides could be playing still without troubling a scorer.

The dugout

Nikita Bokov left out for tactical reasons at Baltika 2

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.

In brief

21 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

21 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Player ratings

Arseny Popushoy was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 35. 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.

Squad

Denis Makarov is the real thing at 20

A season average of 7.08 at an age when most of his year group are still in the youth team. Baltika 2 know what they have, and so, by now, does everybody else.

Squad

Words exchanged at Baltika 2

Ilja Kirsh 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.

Squad

Ivan Belikov 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.

Match

A bad afternoon for Baltika 2 against Saturn

0‑1 to Saturn, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

The dugout

Nikita Bokov 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 dugout

Alexandr Petukhov answers for it

“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.

Squad

Young player of the week: Arseny Popushoy

At 20 he was the best of everybody his age in the division for one weekend. Nobody should build a career on it and everybody quietly does.

The dugout

Ivan Belikov 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.

In brief

20 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

14 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Match

Baltika 2 refuse to drop out of the race

Position 3, 33 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking it.

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Arseny Popushoy at 20 — 8.59

The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Arseny Popushoy did not need any: 8.59, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Squad

At 20, Arseny Popushoy is already the best thing here

An average of 7.21 in a first team he is several years too young for. Baltika 2 have something, and by now the whole division has noticed.

Squad

David Cherkasov stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” David Cherkasov and Baltika 2 agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

Tempers go at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko 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 terraces

Baltika 2 supporters have found a favourite in Denis Makarov

There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 20-year-old it feels ownership of. Denis Makarov 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.

Match

Baltika 2 see off Kolomna

Three points for Baltika 2, 2‑0 the final word against Kolomna in a contest settled by the finer margins.

The dugout

David Cherkasov 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 dugout

Alexandr Petukhov: “That is the standard”

“That is what I want every week. Not the result, the way they went about it.” The manager, after 2‑0, already talking about the next one.

In brief

18 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

30 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Arseny Popushoy at 20 — 8.07

The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Arseny Popushoy did not need any: 8.07, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Squad

Kirill Davidenko is the real thing at 20

A season average of 7.00 at an age when most of his year group are still in the youth team. Baltika 2 know what they have, and so, by now, does everybody else.

Squad

A falling-out at Baltika 2

Arnur Sagalbaev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Player ratings

Denis Makarov was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 15. 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.

Match

Arseny Popushoy rescues a point for Baltika 2

It needed Arseny Popushoy to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Zenit 2, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.

The dugout

Alexandr Petukhov: “We have to be better”

“It is not the end of the world and it is not good enough. Both of those are true.” The manager, after a 1‑1 draw, said the honest thing and then went to say it again inside.

Market

Ivan Gavrilov told to find a new club

“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Ivan Gavrilov has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Baltika 2.

Squad

Arseny Popushoy, 20, is the weekend’s best young player

Measured against every other kid in the division and first among them. The senior award is where Baltika 2 would like this to lead.

Market

The Arnur Sagalbaev story refuses to die

It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Arnur Sagalbaev signs something — a contract at Baltika 2 or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.

In brief

16 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

16 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Baltika 2 are in among the leaders

Position 3 and 25 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.

Squad

Remember the name: Arseny Popushoy

He is 20, he is averaging 7.07, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.

Squad

Tempers go at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko 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.

In brief

14 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

2 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Player ratings

Arseny Popushoy was unplayable

Successful dribbles: 29. 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.

Squad

Remember the name: Kirill Davidenko

He is 20, he is averaging 7.00, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.

Squad

A falling-out at Baltika 2

Arnur Sagalbaev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Match

Tver take the points off Baltika 2

Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

The dugout

Alexandr Petukhov answers for it

“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 dugout

Yegor Lyubakov 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 dugout

Baltika 2 pick somebody else ahead of Evgeny Kim

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.

Squad

Baltika 2 have started building around Denis Makarov

He used to be one of the options. He is now one of the men the options are picked around, and the change happened quietly enough that only the dressing room noticed on the day.

Squad

“I want to play”: Yegor Lyubakov speaks

“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.

In brief

13 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

26 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Remember the name: Denis Makarov

He is 20, he is averaging 7.01, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.

Squad

Words exchanged at Baltika 2

Ilja Kirsh 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.

Squad

A row about effort at Baltika 2

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Eduardo Anderson was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Squad

Too much change too quickly at Baltika 2

15 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 dugout

The manager makes an example of Daniil Turischev

“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 dugout

Andrey Tsitsilin 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 dugout

Eduardo Anderson left out for tactical reasons at Baltika 2

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.

Looking ahead

Ivan Belikov goes back to face Tver

Every squad has one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Ivan Belikov’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and Baltika 2 needing him to play as if none of it matters.

Market

The Timofey Schelkunov story refuses to die

It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Timofey Schelkunov signs something — a contract at Baltika 2 or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.

In brief

12 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

19 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Baltika 2 are in among the leaders

Position 2 and 22 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.

The dugout

Daniil Turischev says Baltika 2 went back on their word

“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.

Squad

At 20, Arseny Popushoy is already the best thing here

An average of 7.07 in a first team he is several years too young for. Baltika 2 have something, and by now the whole division has noticed.

Player ratings

Arseny Popushoy was unplayable

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.

Squad

The step up is real for Eldzhat Mamedov

At 20 he is doing things this season that he could not do last season, and doing them every week. Form comes and goes; this has stayed long enough to be called something else.

Squad

Tempers go at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko 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.

Match

A bad afternoon for Baltika 2 against Dinamo Vologda

0‑1 to Dinamo Vologda, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

The dugout

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 Alexandr Petukhov to a room that had heard them before.

Market

Daniil Turischev told to find a new club

“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Daniil Turischev has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Baltika 2.

In brief

10 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

5 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Match

Baltika 2 are top

22 points and nobody above them. The word is not being said around the ground yet, and it is being thought in every seat.

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Kirill Davidenko at 20 — 8.34

The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Kirill Davidenko did not need any: 8.34, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Squad

The step up is real for Andrey Tsitsilin

At 18 he is doing things this season that he could not do last season, and doing them every week. Form comes and goes; this has stayed long enough to be called something else.

Squad

Remember the name: Kirill Davidenko

He is 20, he is averaging 7.01, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.

Squad

A falling-out at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

The terraces

One of their own: Arseny Popushoy

He is 20 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.

Match

Baltika 2 get the job done against Torpedo Vladimir

A 1‑0 win over Torpedo Vladimir, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

Squad

Denis Makarov is the division's best young player this month

At 20 he has spent a month being better than everybody his age in the league, which is a different and harder thing than one good afternoon. Baltika 2 will try very hard not to make too much of it.

The dugout

Alexandr Petukhov has his say

“We earned that. I asked them for a reaction and I got one, and now I want the same again on Saturday.” Alexandr Petukhov on a 1‑0 afternoon that pleased him more than he was prepared to show.

In brief

9 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

28 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Player ratings

Denis Makarov, 20, plays like he has been here for years — 8.27

A mark of 8.27 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 20-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.

Squad

Denis Makarov is the real thing at 20

A season average of 7.01 at an age when most of his year group are still in the youth team. Baltika 2 know what they have, and so, by now, does everybody else.

Squad

Words exchanged at Baltika 2

Ilja Kirsh 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.

Squad

Words at Baltika 2 training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ivan Belikov 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 terraces

One of their own: Kirill Davidenko

He is 20 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.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Andrey Tsitsilin

“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.

Squad

Too much change too quickly at Baltika 2

15 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.

Match

Honours even between Baltika 2 and Spartak Moscow 2

2‑2, and both dressing rooms will call it two points lost. A draw that asked plenty of questions and answered none of them.

The dugout

The manager’s verdict

“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Alexandr Petukhov was not hiding it after 2‑2, and nobody in the Baltika 2 dressing room was either.

In brief

8 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

21 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Triumph

Player ratings

Kirill Davidenko, 20, plays like he has been here for years — 8.37

A mark of 8.37 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 20-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.

Market

Strogino come back empty-handed

The bid was some way short and Baltika 2 did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.

Squad

At 20, Arseny Popushoy is already the best thing here

An average of 7.01 in a first team he is several years too young for. Baltika 2 have something, and by now the whole division has noticed.

Squad

Tempers go at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko 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.

Match

Baltika 2 keep winning on the road

4 away wins in a row. Travelling support is the truest kind, and this season it is being repaid in the only currency that counts.

The terraces

The crowd has taken to Denis Makarov

At 20 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.

Match

Baltika 2 get the job done against Kosmos

A 2‑0 win over Kosmos, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

The dugout

A satisfied Alexandr Petukhov

“The players deserve the credit. My job was easy today.” It was not, and everybody in the room knew it; after 2‑0, Alexandr Petukhov could afford to be generous.

Player ratings

Arnur Sagalbaev beats them one at a time

Successful dribbles: 13. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.

In brief

6 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

7 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Squad

A falling-out at Baltika 2

Arnur Sagalbaev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad

Arseny Popushoy is the division's best young player this month

At 20 he has spent a month being better than everybody his age in the league, which is a different and harder thing than one good afternoon. Baltika 2 will try very hard not to make too much of it.

Squad

A step back for Arseny Popushoy at Baltika 2

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.

Squad

Evgeny Kim named in the team of the month

A month is long enough that nobody gets in by accident. Evgeny Kim is in the division's best eleven for it, which is a quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.

Market

Baltika 2 put Arnur Sagalbaev up for sale

The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Arnur Sagalbaev may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.

The dugout

The manager makes an example of Ivan Gavrilov

“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.

In brief

5 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

31 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Triumph

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Denis Makarov

Successful dribbles: 31. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Arseny Popushoy at 20 — 8.26

The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Arseny Popushoy did not need any: 8.26, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Match

Nobody wants to play Baltika 2 right now

5 wins in a row changes how opponents warm up: quieter, more glances across. Runs end, everybody knows that — but nobody in this dressing room is planning for it.

Market

Denis Makarov 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 Baltika 2 can pretend not to have heard.

The terraces

One of their own: Kirill Davidenko

He is 20 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.

Match

Baltika 2 keep winning on the road

3 away wins in a row. Travelling support is the truest kind, and this season it is being repaid in the only currency that counts.

Match

Arseny Popushoy sends Baltika 2 past Cherepovets

It finished 1‑0, and it was Arseny Popushoy’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Baltika 2.

Squad

Maxim Shnaptsev 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 Baltika 2 this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

16 new faces, and Baltika 2 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.

In brief

4 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

24 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Triumph

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Arnur Sagalbaev at 20 — 8.43

The hardest thing about being 20 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Arnur Sagalbaev did not need any: 8.43, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Match

Baltika 2 cannot stop winning

4 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Arseny Popushoy

Successful dribbles: 24. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Tempers go at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko 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.

Match

Baltika 2 get the job done against Irkutsk

A 2‑0 win over Irkutsk, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

The dugout

Alexandr Petukhov has his say

“We earned that. I asked them for a reaction and I got one, and now I want the same again on Saturday.” Alexandr Petukhov on a 2‑0 afternoon that pleased him more than he was prepared to show.

Squad

Denis Makarov, 20, is the weekend’s best young player

Measured against every other kid in the division and first among them. The senior award is where Baltika 2 would like this to lead.

The dugout

No place in the plan for Nikita Bokov

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.

Squad

Evgeny Kim has company in his position

The competition arrived without a word said to him about it. Evgeny Kim keeps the shirt for now, at Baltika 2's convenience rather than his own.

In brief

3 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

17 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Triumph

Player ratings

Both of them Denis Makarov's — 8.22

2 goals, and the second was the one that settled it. Marked 8.22, and he could have had a third with better luck at the near post.

Market

Ilja Kirsh has said yes to Minsk

The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Baltika 2 have lost him in all but the paperwork.

Match

Baltika 2 cannot stop winning

3 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Arseny Popushoy

Successful dribbles: 23. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Kirill Davidenko 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 Baltika 2 this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

Denis Makarov sends Baltika 2 past Saturn

It finished 2‑1, and it was Denis Makarov’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Baltika 2.

The terraces

One of their own: Denis Makarov

He is 20 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.

The dugout

The view from the dugout

“We controlled it. There were spells I did not like and we will look at them, but the group showed me something.” Alexandr Petukhov, on a 2‑1 win that he was already picking apart on the walk to the press room.

Squad

Ivan Belikov 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.

In brief

2 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

10 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Triumph

Match

No mercy from Baltika 2

Kolomna will want this one forgotten quickly: 7‑0, every duel lost, and a long ride home. Baltika 2 were ruthless in the way good sides are ruthless.

Player ratings

Arnur Sagalbaev, 20, steals the show — 9.42

Marked 9.42 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.

Squad

3 goals for Arnur Sagalbaev

The match ball belongs to Arnur Sagalbaev, whose 3 goals turned a difficult afternoon into a procession.

Player ratings

Vladislav Pospelov pops up at the right end — 7.55

7.55, 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.

Match

7 goals as Baltika 2 and Kolomna go for it

Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 7 goals between Baltika 2 and Kolomna, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.

Squad

Words exchanged at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko 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 terraces

One of their own: Vladislav Pospelov

He is 19 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.

Market

Baltika 2 and Kirill Davidenko are talking past each other

“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 dugout

The manager’s verdict

“I am not going to get carried away and I will not let them either. It was a good day. There will be harder ones.” Alexandr Petukhov kept it short after the 7‑0 win, which is what managers do when they are happy.

In brief

1 Edition

The Baltika 2 Gazette

3 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Triumph

Match

Baltika 2 tear Chertanovo apart

Rarely has this fixture seen a display like it: 5‑0 against Chertanovo, and it could have been more.

Player ratings

Arseny Popushoy, 20, steals the show — 8.13

Marked 8.13 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.

Squad

Evgeny Kim signs a new deal

“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Evgeny Kim commits to Baltika 2 for another 4 years.

Squad

A falling-out at Baltika 2

Kirill Davidenko and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

The terraces

The crowd has taken to Kirill Davidenko

At 20 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.

Match

Chertanovo blown away early

There is a particular helplessness in conceding 2 times before the twentieth minute. Chertanovo tried to reorganise, Baltika 2 did not allow it, and the result was written long before it was confirmed.

Player ratings

Kirill Davidenko ran the middle of the pitch — 7.31

He won it back and then made something of it, which is two jobs and the reason the scoreline looks the way it does. 10 combined actions and a mark of 7.31, and not one of them will make a highlights package.

Market

Talks stall between Baltika 2 and Evgeny Kim

“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.

Squad

25 new faces, and Baltika 2 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.

In brief