Marked for Kirill Burov
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad22 Mar 2027
A row about effort at Gomel
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Vladislav Lazarev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
Andrei Rios 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.
Looking ahead22 Mar 2027
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Slutsk in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
Egor Yudenko gets picked when it counts
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 Egor Yudenko is on it.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
Egor Troyakov 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.
Looking ahead22 Mar 2027
Home comforts ahead for Gomel
Slutsk, position 13, come to town on Saturday. Nobody will call it a big game and nobody at the club will be treating it as anything else.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad22 Feb 2027
A fracture rules Evgeniy Barsukov out for 30 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Gomel will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Market22 Feb 2027
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Lokomotiv Gomel waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Gomel is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Market22 Feb 2027
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Stanislav Kleschuk will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Gomel the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Market22 Feb 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.
Transfer targets22 Feb 2027
Everything agreed with Rubin, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Transfer targets22 Feb 2027
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Jablonec keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Squad22 Feb 2027
Tempers go at Gomel
Denis Laptev was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad22 Feb 2027
A row about effort at Gomel
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Vladislav Lazarev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Transfer targets22 Feb 2027
Gomel asked and Baltika said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad15 Feb 2027
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 37 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Market15 Feb 2027
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Gomel have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Market15 Feb 2027
Ivan Pavlov 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 Gomel can pretend not to have heard.
Squad15 Feb 2027
Denis Laptev 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 Gomel this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market15 Feb 2027
The phone has started ringing about Dmitriy Emeljanov again, and this time the name on the line is Lokomotiv Gomel. Gomel are listening politely and promising nothing.
Transfer targets15 Feb 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Cukaricki have kept their man, and Gomel go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Squad15 Feb 2027
Words at Gomel training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Pavel Pashevich 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.
Transfer targets15 Feb 2027
A loan enquiry to Jablonec: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
The dugout15 Feb 2027
The manager has not finished forgetting Denis Kovalevich's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market8 Feb 2027
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Gomel people have started saying his name in the past tense.
Squad8 Feb 2027
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 46 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Market8 Feb 2027
Gomel say no — this time
The offer from Molodechno for Kirill Burov was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Market8 Feb 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 Gomel can pretend not to have heard.
Squad8 Feb 2027
A falling-out at Gomel
Denis Laptev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad8 Feb 2027
Vladislav Lazarev 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 targets8 Feb 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Slovan Liberec have kept their man, and Gomel go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The dugout8 Feb 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.
Transfer targets8 Feb 2027
Gomel have made the call to Cukaricki. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad28 Dec 2026
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 110 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Squad28 Dec 2026
Tempers go at Gomel
Denis Laptev 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 Dec 2026
Vladislav Lazarev 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 dugout28 Dec 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Igor Zayats, and the manager let it.
The dugout28 Dec 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 Konstantin Lipnitskiy is on it.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
Kirill Burov 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 Kirill Burov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad21 Dec 2026
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Gomel will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Squad21 Dec 2026
Denis Laptev 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 Gomel this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market21 Dec 2026
One of our own: Raman Pavlov joins the Gomel first team
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Raman Pavlov is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
The dugout21 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.
Squad21 Dec 2026
A row about effort at Gomel
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Vladislav Lazarev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
The manager has not finished forgetting Denis Kovalevich's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad7 Dec 2026
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Gomel will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Squad7 Dec 2026
Words exchanged at Gomel
Viktor Sotnikov 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 dugout7 Dec 2026
The manager makes an example of Andrei Rios
“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.
Squad7 Dec 2026
A row about effort at Gomel
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Vladislav Lazarev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
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.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Daniil Silinskiy trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The dugout23 Nov 2026
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Gomel have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Denis Laptev 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 Gomel this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad23 Nov 2026
A row about effort at Gomel
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Pavel Pashevich was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad9 Nov 2026
“The easiest signature of my career.” Viktor Sotnikov and Gomel agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad9 Nov 2026
Words exchanged at Gomel
Denis Laptev 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.
Market9 Nov 2026
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Uladzimir Kislyak is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Market9 Nov 2026
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Viktar Shikavka has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Squad9 Nov 2026
A row about effort at Gomel
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Vladislav Lazarev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout9 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 Georgiy Kukushkin is on it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The dugout12 Oct 2026
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Gomel may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad12 Oct 2026
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Timofey Simanenka and Gomel agree another 5 years.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Words exchanged at Gomel
Denis Laptev 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.
Squad12 Oct 2026
A row about effort at Gomel
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Timofey Simanenka was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout12 Oct 2026
Kirill Burov 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 dugout12 Oct 2026
Denis Laptev 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
Steady
Boardroom14 Sep 2026
Gomel close the window on a squad of their own making
14 in and 2 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.
Squad14 Sep 2026
A row about effort at Gomel
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Timofey Simanenka was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Transfer targets14 Sep 2026
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.
The dugout14 Sep 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.
Transfer targets14 Sep 2026
CSKA Sofia have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
The dugout14 Sep 2026
The view from the dugout
“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Ihar Sivakov chose the glass-half-full version of 0‑0; the supporters left with the other one.
The dugout14 Sep 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.
Player ratings14 Sep 2026
Defensive actions: 14, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad14 Sep 2026
“I want to play”: Kirill Burov 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.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match12 Aug 2026
Cup ties wait for somebody to seize them, and Kirill Burov obliged against Niva. 2‑1 on the night, and the name in the next round’s hat is Gomel.
Match12 Aug 2026
Cruel end for Niva as Gomel pounce
There is no crueller way to lose a football match. Gomel scored in the 109th minute, the restart barely happened, and the away end was still standing when the whistle went.
Player ratings17 Aug 2026
Successful dribbles: 26. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Transfer targets17 Aug 2026
The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Pandurii keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Words exchanged at Gomel
Denis Laptev 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 terraces17 Aug 2026
At 19 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.
Match15 Aug 2026
0‑1 to Slavia Mozyr, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Vladislav Lazarev 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 dugout17 Aug 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.