Marked for Laszlo Varga
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad16 Oct 2028
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Market16 Oct 2028
Iago Arévalo 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 Haladas can pretend not to have heard.
Player ratings16 Oct 2028
Successful dribbles: 25. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad16 Oct 2028
The medical room confirms 22 days on the sidelines for Norbert Szélpál, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad16 Oct 2028
Ilias Chatzitheodoridis 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 ratings16 Oct 2028
A performance of 8.35 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad16 Oct 2028
Laszlo Varga 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.
Loan watch16 Oct 2028
“I watch every Haladas game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Ujpest runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Match14 Oct 2028
A 1‑1 draw with Vasas leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings9 Oct 2028
Successful dribbles: 32. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Market9 Oct 2028
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Haladas, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad9 Oct 2028
“The easiest signature of my career.” Norbert Szélpál and Haladas agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad9 Oct 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 Haladas this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match7 Oct 2028
Beaten 2‑3, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad9 Oct 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.
Player ratings9 Oct 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.43, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings9 Oct 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.33, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad9 Oct 2028
The medical room confirms 27 days on the sidelines for Adam Sallai, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match11 Sep 2028
Every point is an argument now for Haladas
Position 10 and 5 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.
Squad11 Sep 2028
Ilias Chatzitheodoridis 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 ratings11 Sep 2028
Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Match9 Sep 2028
Beaten 1‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad11 Sep 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Nicolás Caprio, and the manager let it.
Squad11 Sep 2028
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Adam Lisztes commits to Haladas for another 3 years.
Loan watch11 Sep 2028
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Haladas, and 0 appearances in 9 say he has earned the hearing.
Player ratings11 Sep 2028
The one thing Mate Orban could not do
Shots: 6, enough of them from close enough that a striker in form scores two. He is not a striker in form.
Market11 Sep 2028
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Ilias Chatzitheodoridis signs something — a contract at Haladas or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad4 Sep 2028
Gustavo Merino decides it from twelve yards
3 kept out in the shoot-out, and a stadium that will still be describing them in twenty years. A goalkeeper only needs one of these to be remembered forever.
Match30 Aug 2028
Haladas march on in the cup
Vasas are out and Haladas go through, 1‑1 the final word. The bracket opens up a little, and everyone allows themselves a look at it.
Market4 Sep 2028
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Market4 Sep 2028
“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Haladas heard it as anything else.
Squad4 Sep 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Andras Nikolic and Haladas agree another 4 years.
Squad4 Sep 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 Haladas this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings4 Sep 2028
Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Market4 Sep 2028
Debrecen pay $6.0K, and the deal is done. The number reads well on a balance sheet; whether it reads well on the pitch is next season's question.
Match2 Sep 2028
It finished 2‑1, and it was Daniel Dibusz’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Haladas.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Player ratings28 Aug 2028
Successful dribbles: 28. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Match26 Aug 2028
The wait goes on for Haladas
5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Squad28 Aug 2028
The medical room confirms 60 days on the sidelines for Hugo Ahl, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad28 Aug 2028
Ilias Chatzitheodoridis 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 Aug 2028
30 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Match26 Aug 2028
1‑2 to Puskas Akademia, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Player ratings28 Aug 2028
A performance of 8.03 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad28 Aug 2028
The manager makes an example of Csanád Fehér
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings28 Aug 2028
Mate Orban leaves them behind him
Shots: 6. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market24 Jul 2028
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad24 Jul 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 Haladas this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad24 Jul 2028
“The easiest signature of my career.” Tamás Batai and Haladas agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market5 Jun 2028
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
Squad5 Jun 2028
Ilias Chatzitheodoridis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad5 Jun 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Laszlo Varga and Haladas agree another 2 years.
Market5 Jun 2028
Everyone has stopped pretending: Diosgyor will make the call about Gerónimo Tomasetti this week. Haladas have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.
Market5 Jun 2028
He is 20, and the scouting reports agree on the only line that matters: the ceiling. Signings like this are lottery tickets written by professionals.
Market5 Jun 2028
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Zoltan Sallai has his answer from Haladas; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad8 May 2028
Ilias Chatzitheodoridis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad8 May 2028
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Haladas are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Squad8 May 2028
The manager makes an example of Benedek Murka
“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.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad10 Apr 2028
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Daniel Lisztes commits to Haladas for another 5 years.
Squad10 Apr 2028
Ilias Chatzitheodoridis 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.
Squad10 Apr 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Krisztián Tamás, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad13 Mar 2028
Ilias Chatzitheodoridis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad13 Mar 2028
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Haladas are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Squad13 Mar 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.
Loan watch13 Mar 2028
“I watch every Haladas game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Minsk runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Market13 Mar 2028
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Haladas know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Loan watch13 Mar 2028
27 appearances at Metalist and the goals keep coming. Haladas are watching this more closely than the borrowing club would like.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad14 Feb 2028
“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.
Squad14 Feb 2028
Ilias Chatzitheodoridis was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad14 Feb 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Adam Ryczkowski, and the manager let it.
Loan watch14 Feb 2028
“I did not go to Minsk to sit and watch. I want to come back to Haladas and fight for my place.” 11 appearances in 33 matches say the rest.
Squad14 Feb 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Sameer Kovácz and Haladas agree another 4 years.
Market14 Feb 2028
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Haladas know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match14 Feb 2028
Metalist sink to position 15
15 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Market14 Feb 2028
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Metalist, and it is not being withdrawn.
Match12 Feb 2028
The wait goes on for Metalist
5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Squad14 Feb 2028
Artem Kozak 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 Metalist this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings14 Feb 2028
Successful dribbles: 21. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad14 Feb 2028
The medical room confirms 26 days on the sidelines for Pavlo Pletnov, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad14 Feb 2028
A player who expected to start watched it instead. The manager will call it a decision for the team; Vladyslav Ostrovskyi will call it something else in private.
Squad14 Feb 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.
Match12 Feb 2028
A 1‑1 draw with Karpaty leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market7 Feb 2028
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Haladas, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad7 Feb 2028
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Haladas may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad7 Feb 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Haladas this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad7 Feb 2028
Gilberto signs on for more
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Gilberto and Haladas agree another 2 years.
Squad7 Feb 2028
The manager makes an example of Jakub Pira
“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.
Market7 Feb 2028
Tommaso Buonafede is 20, and Haladas have signed him for the player he will be rather than the one he is. The first team can wait; the point of a deal like this is the years it buys.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad7 Feb 2028
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 13 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Market7 Feb 2028
Petro Lutsiv 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 Metalist can pretend not to have heard.
Market7 Feb 2028
Metalist say no — this time
The offer from Obolon for Lucas Villagra 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.
Match5 Feb 2028
No end in sight to Metalist's wait for a win
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Metalist has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad7 Feb 2028
Artem Kozak 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.
Match5 Feb 2028
Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad7 Feb 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.
Market7 Feb 2028
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Víctor Guajardo has his answer from Metalist; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
Player ratings7 Feb 2028
The one thing Vasyl Lutsiv could not do
Shots: 5, enough of them from close enough that a striker in form scores two. He is not a striker in form.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market10 Jan 2028
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Haladas can pretend not to have heard.
Squad10 Jan 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Haladas this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad10 Jan 2028
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Haladas know it.
Squad10 Jan 2028
Gilberto 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.
Market10 Jan 2028
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Ilias Chatzitheodoridis’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
Loan watch10 Jan 2028
11 appearances at Minsk and the goals keep coming. Haladas are watching this more closely than the borrowing club would like.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad13 Dec 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Haladas may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad13 Dec 2027
Ignacio Sosa 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 Haladas this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match11 Dec 2027
Bekescsaba made Haladas work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Player ratings13 Dec 2027
Nobody could get near Mate Orban
Successful dribbles: 19. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings13 Dec 2027
Marked 8.69 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Player ratings13 Dec 2027
A performance of 8.39 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad13 Dec 2027
Bence Bárdos has had enough of the bench
“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and Haladas will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.
Squad13 Dec 2027
The manager makes an example of Zoltan Sallai
“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.
Market13 Dec 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Ilias Chatzitheodoridis signs something — a contract at Haladas or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Player ratings15 Nov 2027
Successful dribbles: 23. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad15 Nov 2027
Ignacio Sosa 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 Haladas this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match13 Nov 2027
Puskas Akademia left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad15 Nov 2027
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Haladas are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Squad15 Nov 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Gustavo Merino, and the manager let it.
Player ratings15 Nov 2027
The one thing Daniel Dibusz could not do
Shots: 6, enough of them from close enough that a striker in form scores two. He is not a striker in form.
Squad15 Nov 2027
A year in and the language has not come, the city has not opened up, and he eats alone more often than anybody at Haladas would like to admit. It is showing on Saturdays.
Market15 Nov 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Ilias Chatzitheodoridis signs something — a contract at Haladas or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Loan watch15 Nov 2027
The goals keep arriving from Daniel Lisztes’s exile
6 goals in 11 games at Minsk — numbers that travel home faster than he does. Somebody at Haladas updates a spreadsheet every Monday, and it makes better reading each week.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match3 Nov 2027
Cup progress for Metalist
A 2‑1 win over Nyva, a place in the next round, and the quiet arithmetic every supporter does on the walk home: how many more until a final?
Player ratings8 Nov 2027
Successful dribbles: 28. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad8 Nov 2027
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Squad8 Nov 2027
Artem Kozak 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.
Match6 Nov 2027
Veres left with the points after a 2‑3 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad8 Nov 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Orest Kuzyk and Metalist agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Player ratings8 Nov 2027
A performance of 8.57 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Player ratings8 Nov 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.54, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings8 Nov 2027
A performance of 8.39 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad1 Nov 2027
Ignacio Sosa 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 Haladas this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings1 Nov 2027
Marked 9.49 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Player ratings1 Nov 2027
A performance of 9.25 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Match30 Oct 2027
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Mate Orban. 2‑0 against Honved, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Player ratings1 Nov 2027
A performance of 8.26 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad1 Nov 2027
18 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Squad1 Nov 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Adam Ryczkowski, and the manager let it.
Player ratings1 Nov 2027
Defensive actions: 17, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad1 Nov 2027
4 goals and a season average of 7.28. Form like that gets noticed well beyond this town.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match25 Oct 2027
Metalist sink to position 16
4 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Match23 Oct 2027
The wait goes on for Metalist
9 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Squad25 Oct 2027
Artem Kozak 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.
Squad25 Oct 2027
The manager makes an example of Vasyl Kravets
“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.
Match23 Oct 2027
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Player ratings25 Oct 2027
Shots: 6. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
Squad25 Oct 2027
Vasyl Lutsiv asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Player ratings25 Oct 2027
A mark of 5.61 tells the story without any need for embellishment. He will want the tape of this one quietly lost.
Market25 Oct 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Metalist know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match16 Oct 2027
No end in sight to Metalist's wait for a win
8 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Metalist has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Artem Kozak 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 Metalist this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad18 Oct 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Match16 Oct 2027
Chornomorets left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad18 Oct 2027
The medical room confirms 17 days on the sidelines for Bohdan Malynovskyi, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Player ratings18 Oct 2027
Successful dribbles: 14. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
The terraces18 Oct 2027
Everybody has an opinion about Orest Kuzyk
He is the name in every column and on every phone-in, which is a heavy thing to carry at any age. Some footballers thrive on it; others are quietly finished by it.
Player ratings18 Oct 2027
A mark of 5.14 tells the story without any need for embellishment. He will want the tape of this one quietly lost.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Every debut is a small story about the future: Daniil Prykhodko, 21 years old, off the academy pitches and into the first team. The parents in the stand will keep the programme.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market11 Oct 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Metalist, and it is not being withdrawn.
Match9 Oct 2027
No end in sight to Metalist's wait for a win
7 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Metalist has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad11 Oct 2027
There were 7 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Squad11 Oct 2027
Artem Kozak 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 ratings11 Oct 2027
Successful dribbles: 18. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad11 Oct 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Petro Lutsiv, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match2 Oct 2027
No end in sight to Haladas's wait for a win
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Haladas has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad4 Oct 2027
Ignacio Sosa 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 Haladas this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match2 Oct 2027
Daniel Dibusz scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑2 to Debrecen, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.
Squad4 Oct 2027
The medical room confirms 49 days on the sidelines for Zoltan Gulacsi, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad4 Oct 2027
The manager makes an example of Andras Nikolic
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings4 Oct 2027
Mate Orban runs at them all day
Successful dribbles: 18. 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
Squad6 Sep 2027
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Market6 Sep 2027
The name of Daniel Vernattus has come up in conversations Metalist were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Squad6 Sep 2027
Artem Kozak 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 Metalist this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match4 Sep 2027
Dynamo Kyiv left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad6 Sep 2027
The manager makes an example of Vasyl Lutsiv
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings6 Sep 2027
Shots: 8. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
Squad6 Sep 2027
“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and Metalist will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.
Player ratings6 Sep 2027
Shots: 8. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
Market6 Sep 2027
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Artem Kozak’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market16 Aug 2027
Metalist say no — this time
The offer from Chernihiv for Kyrylo Dihtiar 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.
Match14 Aug 2027
5 matches without a win for Metalist
The run now stands at 5, and the questions being asked around Metalist are no longer polite ones.
Squad16 Aug 2027
Artem Kozak 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.
Squad16 Aug 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings16 Aug 2027
Some games turn on a moment; this one turned on a man. 7.65 on the card, and the Metalist support went home talking about one name.
Match14 Aug 2027
Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Epicentr came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.
Squad16 Aug 2027
Petro Lutsiv 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 Metalist, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Market16 Aug 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Vasyl Kravets signs something — a contract at Metalist or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Player ratings16 Aug 2027
Successful dribbles: 11. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market12 Jul 2027
The paperwork is done: Tamás Batai joins from Debrecen in a deal worth $210.0K. Now comes the harder part.
Squad12 Jul 2027
Ignacio Sosa 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 Haladas this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market12 Jul 2027
The chase for Zsolt Doktor ended with $110.0K changing hands and Debrecen out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.
Squad12 Jul 2027
A season on the outside for Gilberto
He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at Haladas has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.
Squad12 Jul 2027
A new face in his position, and Gerónimo Tomasetti suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Haladas have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Market12 Jul 2027
The best deals are the ones the accountants never notice. Gilberto arrives at Haladas with his wages the only cost and something to prove the only clause.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market12 Jul 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Metalist, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad12 Jul 2027
Artem Kozak 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 Metalist this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market12 Jul 2027
Everyone has stopped pretending: Probiy will make the call about Daniel Vernattus this week. Metalist have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.
Squad12 Jul 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Boardroom12 Jul 2027
86% of the income goes out in wages at Metalist
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.
Market12 Jul 2027
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Artem Kozak’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market5 Jul 2027
The interest is real enough to have reached print. Haladas have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.
Squad5 Jul 2027
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Haladas know it.
Squad5 Jul 2027
Ignacio Sosa was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market14 Jun 2027
Haladas say no — this time
The offer from Beroe for Daniel Lisztes 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.
Market14 Jun 2027
Ujpest pay $1.2M, and the deal is done. The number reads well on a balance sheet; whether it reads well on the pitch is next season's question.
Market14 Jun 2027
The fee is $380.0K, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Fehervar drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
Squad14 Jun 2027
Ignacio Sosa 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 Haladas this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad14 Jun 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Laszlo Varga and Haladas agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad14 Jun 2027
Laszlo Varga 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 Laszlo Varga trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market7 Jun 2027
Szabolcs Lang 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 Haladas can pretend not to have heard.
Market7 Jun 2027
Debrecen come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and Haladas did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Squad7 Jun 2027
Ignacio Sosa 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.
Market7 Jun 2027
Attila Sallai is free to find somewhere else
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Haladas has been clear about where Attila Sallai stands, which is more than many ever get.
Squad7 Jun 2027
Laszlo Varga 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.
Market7 Jun 2027
The name of Laszlo Szalai keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Haladas say nothing, which says plenty.