Marked for Daniil Grada
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad8 Feb 2027
A falling-out at Rotor 2
Andrey Khityaev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Match6 Feb 2027
Arsenal Tula 2 left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
The dugout8 Feb 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Mikhail Tsipushtanov, and the manager let it.
Squad8 Feb 2027
A row about effort at Rotor 2
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Alexey Pogudin was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout8 Feb 2027
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Squad8 Feb 2027
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 dugout8 Feb 2027
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.
Market8 Feb 2027
Rotor 2 have let the market know Alexey Pogudin can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.
The dugout8 Feb 2027
Daniil Grada 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 Daniil Grada trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad21 Dec 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Rotor 2 this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad21 Dec 2026
Alexey Pogudin 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 dugout21 Dec 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Stepan Pravkin, and the manager let it.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Artem Savin was not hiding it after 0‑0, and nobody in the Rotor 2 dressing room was either.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
Somebody else has been better, the manager has said so with a team sheet, and there is no argument to be had. He will get the shirt back the only way it can be got back.
Match19 Dec 2026
Ninety minutes, two goalkeepers with clean gloves, and not one finish worth keeping. Spartak Tambov will be the happier side with the point.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
Daniil Grada 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 Daniil Grada trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Player ratings21 Dec 2026
10 times he got in the way of something. Centre-halves get written about when they make mistakes and ignored when they do not, so an afternoon like this needs saying out loud: he is the reason the scoreline reads as it does.
Player ratings21 Dec 2026
Successful dribbles: 9. 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
Crisis
Market14 Dec 2026
“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 Rotor 2, and it is not being withdrawn.
Match12 Dec 2026
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad14 Dec 2026
A row about effort at Rotor 2
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Alexey Pogudin was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Yegor Tarin, and the manager let it.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑1, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.
Squad14 Dec 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Rotor 2 this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad14 Dec 2026
“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.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
The form table has caught Yegor Tarin
Somebody else has been better, the manager has said so with a team sheet, and there is no argument to be had. He will get the shirt back the only way it can be got back.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Timofey Falchenko trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market7 Dec 2026
“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 Rotor 2, and it is not being withdrawn.
Player ratings7 Dec 2026
No sign of nerves from Daniil Grada at 18 — 7.69
The hardest thing about being 18 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Daniil Grada did not need any: 7.69, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Match5 Dec 2026
It finished 2‑1, and it was Nikita Plotnikov’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Rotor 2.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
“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 Rotor 2
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Alexey Pogudin was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Squad7 Dec 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Rotor 2 this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad7 Dec 2026
Daniil Grada is no longer first choice
The manager has re-ordered his thinking and Daniil Grada has come out of it lower. He will be told it is temporary, and the players who have heard that before will avoid his eye.
Squad7 Dec 2026
Yegor Tarin named in the team of the month
A month is long enough that nobody gets in by accident. Yegor Tarin is in the division's best eleven for it, which is a quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.
The dugout7 Dec 2026
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.” Artem Savin, on a 2‑1 win that he was already picking apart on the walk to the press room.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings30 Nov 2026
Yegor Tarin, 21, steals the show — 7.80
Marked 7.80 at 21, in a side that makes no allowances for age. He did not need any, and he looked the least nervous man on the pitch.
Squad30 Nov 2026
A falling-out at Rotor 2
Mikhail Tsipushtanov and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad30 Nov 2026
A row about effort at Rotor 2
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nikita Plotnikov was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout30 Nov 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Alexey Pogudin, and the manager let it.
Match28 Nov 2026
It needed Yegor Tarin to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Kvant, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
Player ratings30 Nov 2026
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.
The dugout30 Nov 2026
Artem Savin: “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.
The dugout30 Nov 2026
Somebody else is better right now than Alexey Pogudin
The team sheet says it in public every week until it changes. The only version of being dropped a footballer cannot argue with, and the one he takes hardest.
Looking ahead30 Nov 2026
The leaders are next for Rotor 2
Znamya Truda top the table and they are coming into view. Nothing to lose, which is what every manager says before losing.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match21 Nov 2026
Rarely has this fixture seen a display like it: 3‑0 against Strogino, and it could have been more.
Player ratings23 Nov 2026
The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Mikhail Tsipushtanov did not need any: 7.95, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Words exchanged at Rotor 2
Mikhail Tsipushtanov 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 terraces23 Nov 2026
Rotor 2 supporters have found a favourite in Yegor Tarin
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 21-year-old it feels ownership of. Yegor Tarin 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 dugout23 Nov 2026
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.” Artem Savin kept it short after the 3‑0 win, which is what managers do when they are happy.
The dugout23 Nov 2026
Somebody else has been better, the manager has said so with a team sheet, and there is no argument to be had. He will get the shirt back the only way it can be got back.
Squad23 Nov 2026
A row about effort at Rotor 2
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Leon Amirkhanyan was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Market23 Nov 2026
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Rotor 2 has been clear about where Matteo Antignani stands, which is more than many ever get.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Young player of the week: Daniil Grada
At 18 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.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Player ratings16 Nov 2026
Andrey Khityaev pops up at the right end — 7.31
7.31, 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.
Squad16 Nov 2026
Mikhail Tsipushtanov 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.
Match14 Nov 2026
A bad afternoon for Rotor 2 against Ryazan
1‑3 to Ryazan, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad16 Nov 2026
A row about effort at Rotor 2
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nikita Plotnikov was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout16 Nov 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.
Match16 Nov 2026
Halfway: Rotor 2 sit in position 11
14 points at the turn. The first half of a season is a promise; the second is a bill, and the town is about to find out which of the two this one was.
The dugout16 Nov 2026
“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 1‑3, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.
The dugout16 Nov 2026
There is no complaint available here and everybody involved knows it, which does not make the walk to the bench any shorter. Form is the only currency in football that cannot be borrowed against.
The dugout16 Nov 2026
“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
Uneasy
Market2 Nov 2026
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad2 Nov 2026
Andrey Khityaev 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 Nov 2026
Alexey Pogudin 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 dugout2 Nov 2026
The manager makes an example of Maxim Maltsev
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
Somebody else is better right now than Alexey Pogudin
The team sheet says it in public every week until it changes. The only version of being dropped a footballer cannot argue with, and the one he takes hardest.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
Daniil Grada 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 ahead2 Nov 2026
Rodina M next, and one man in the Rotor 2 dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
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.
Squad2 Nov 2026
Nothing is announced when this happens and everybody knows. He is a bigger part of the plan at Rotor 2 than he was a month ago, and the training ground worked that out before the team sheet said so.