Marked for Alexandr Zybin
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom11 Jun 2029
Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at Kuban Holding is running low.
The terraces11 Jun 2029
The mood at Kuban Holding has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Market11 Jun 2029
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Kuban Holding is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Market11 Jun 2029
“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 The request is on a desk at Kuban Holding, and it is not being withdrawn.
The dugout11 Jun 2029
This is not rotation. Malik Jamai has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Kuban Holding is pretending otherwise.
Squad11 Jun 2029
Michał Wcisło 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.
Squad11 Jun 2029
Nicolas Tabor 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 dugout11 Jun 2029
Iznaur Tashaev 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 Kuban Holding, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match10 Jul 2028
Every point is an argument now for Kvant
Position 14 and 22 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.
Market10 Jul 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 Kvant can pretend not to have heard.
The dugout10 Jul 2028
This is not rotation. Amirkhan Selyaev has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Kvant is pretending otherwise.
Squad10 Jul 2028
A falling-out at Kvant
Nikita Scherbiy and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Transfer targets10 Jul 2028
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.
Squad10 Jul 2028
A row about effort at Kvant
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Artem Smoroda was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Transfer targets10 Jul 2028
A loan move for Nikolay Alekhin is in the works
Kvant have made the call to Dinamo Bryansk. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
Transfer targets10 Jul 2028
A loan move for Artem Meshalkin is in the works
Kvant have made the call to Dinamo St Petersburg. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
The dugout10 Jul 2028
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Amirkhan Selyaev trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match12 Jun 2028
Every point is an argument now for Kvant
Position 14 and 22 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.
The dugout12 Jun 2028
This is not rotation. Amirkhan Selyaev has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Kvant is pretending otherwise.
Squad12 Jun 2028
A falling-out at Kvant
Nikita Scherbiy and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad12 Jun 2028
A row about effort at Kvant
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ivan Zhuravlev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout12 Jun 2028
Maxim Sofin 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.
Market12 Jun 2028
The name of Amirkhan Selyaev keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Kvant say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad22 May 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 Kvant this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout22 May 2028
“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 dugout22 May 2028
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match15 May 2028
Kvant are in real trouble now
Position 14, 22 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 dugout15 May 2028
This is not rotation. Amirkhan Selyaev has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Kvant is pretending otherwise.
Squad15 May 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 Kvant this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout15 May 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Yegor Vedernikov, and the manager let it.
The dugout15 May 2028
Marat Volkov 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.
Market15 May 2028
The name of Amirkhan Selyaev keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Kvant say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad15 May 2028
“I did not sign to watch. Nobody does.” The oldest complaint in the game, and Kvant will have to answer it with minutes or with a move.
Squad15 May 2028
He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at Kvant has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.
Market15 May 2028
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Zhora Avetisyan may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Boardroom8 May 2028
Prokhor Krylov has until the next board meeting
What was said behind closed doors has now been said in front of a microphone. Everybody at Kvant can do the arithmetic, including the man it is aimed at.
Squad8 May 2028
Words exchanged at Kvant
Nikita Scherbiy 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.
Boardroom8 May 2028
The owner puts $6.7K into Kvant
This is money that keeps the lights on rather than money that buys a centre-half, and the difference is the whole story. A club funded by its owner rather than by its football has exactly one conversation left ahead of it.
The dugout8 May 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Vladislav Konokotin, and the manager let it.
Squad8 May 2028
Artem Smoroda 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.
Boardroom8 May 2028
87% of the income goes out in wages at Kvant
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
The dugout8 May 2028
Every squad is half players the manager chose and half players he inherited. Vladislav Konokotin was chosen, the man who chose him has gone, and he starts again from nothing under the next one.
The dugout8 May 2028
Yegor Vedernikov 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.
Market8 May 2028
“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.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match17 Apr 2028
Kvant sink to position 14
22 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
The dugout17 Apr 2028
This is not rotation. Amirkhan Selyaev has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Kvant is pretending otherwise.
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 Kvant this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout17 Apr 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Nikita Scherbiy, and the manager let it.
Squad17 Apr 2028
A row about effort at Kvant
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Artem Smoroda was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Market17 Apr 2028
The name of Amirkhan Selyaev keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Kvant say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad10 Apr 2028
Tempers go at Kvant
Mark Polushin 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 dugout10 Apr 2028
“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.
Squad10 Apr 2028
Words at Kvant training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Artem Smoroda 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.
Squad10 Apr 2028
The medical room confirms 31 days on the sidelines for Viktor Shevchenko, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
The dugout10 Apr 2028
Nikita Scherbiy 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.
Market10 Apr 2028
“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.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match20 Mar 2028
Kvant are in real trouble now
Position 14, 22 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 dugout20 Mar 2028
This is not rotation. Amirkhan Selyaev has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at Kvant is pretending otherwise.
Squad20 Mar 2028
A falling-out at Kvant
Nikita Scherbiy and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout20 Mar 2028
“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 dugout20 Mar 2028
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Yegor Vedernikov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Market20 Mar 2028
The name of Amirkhan Selyaev keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Kvant say nothing, which says plenty.