The Irkutsk Courier
Squad29 Mar 2027
Tempers go at Irkutsk
Yakov Zarutskiy 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.
Squad29 Mar 2027
Time is catching up with Dmitry Pytlev
Everybody at Irkutsk saw it before anybody said it, which is how this always goes. At 40 the decline is real and measurable — 3 points — and the only question left is how the club handles somebody it owes a great deal to.
Boardroom29 Mar 2027
115% of the income goes out in wages at Irkutsk
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.
Squad29 Mar 2027
Ilya Leskov out for 28 days
The medical room confirms 28 days on the sidelines for Ilya Leskov, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
Yakov Zarutskiy 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.
Market29 Mar 2027
The Yakov Zarutskiy talk will not go away
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Irkutsk know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
In brief
- Market Andrey Lomash runs his contract down
- The dugout The manager comes out for Andrey Lomash