Marked for Misael
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad31 May 2027
17 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Ufa lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Squad31 May 2027
149 days out for Misael after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Ufa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Squad31 May 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ufa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout31 May 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.
Squad31 May 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Vyacheslav Shataev and Ufa agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
The dugout31 May 2027
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Ufa, and both men came out saying it was fine.
In brief
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The dugout
David Ozmanov gets picked when it counts
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Market
Ufa shop where it costs nothing
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The dugout
The manager makes Shamil Isaev a promise
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad24 May 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Matías Ballini
24 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Ufa lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Squad24 May 2027
A fracture rules Misael out for 156 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Ufa will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Squad24 May 2027
Tempers go at Ufa
Viktor Baier 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 dugout24 May 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.
The dugout24 May 2027
Danil Akhatov has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Ufa will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
The dugout24 May 2027
He asked about his future and was given an answer with minutes in it. The manager has now made a promise in a building where promises are remembered, and the clock on it has started.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad17 May 2027
32 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Ufa lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Squad17 May 2027
A fracture rules Misael out for 163 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Ufa will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
The dugout17 May 2027
Denis Kutin: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Ufa have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad17 May 2027
Kirill Kravtsov 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 May 2027
The manager makes an example of Ivan Khomukha
“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 dugout17 May 2027
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad10 May 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Matías Ballini
40 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Ufa lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Squad10 May 2027
170 days out for Misael after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Ufa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
The dugout10 May 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Ufa may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Market10 May 2027
Only the photograph left for Shamil Isaev
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Shamil Isaev will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Ufa the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad10 May 2027
A falling-out at Ufa
Viktor Baier and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad10 May 2027
A row about effort at Ufa
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Kirill Kravtsov was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad3 May 2027
Matías Ballini damages knee ligaments — 47 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 47 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Squad3 May 2027
177 days out for Misael after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Ufa will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Squad3 May 2027
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at Ufa can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
Squad3 May 2027
Viktor Baier 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 Ufa this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout3 May 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.
Market3 May 2027
“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
Steady
Squad22 Mar 2027
Matías Ballini damages knee ligaments — 92 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 92 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Squad22 Mar 2027
6 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Squad22 Mar 2027
Tempers go at Ufa
Viktor Baier 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.
Match20 Mar 2027
Sokol take the points off Ufa
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Market22 Mar 2027
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Migran Ageyan has his answer from Ufa; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Nil Gorshkov after 0‑1, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
Matías Ballini 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 Ufa, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Squad22 Mar 2027
One booking too many, and Vasily Cherov sits out. Ufa lose him for the sort of avoidable reason that makes a manager's week longer.
The dugout22 Mar 2027
The manager makes an example of Misael
“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
Crisis
Squad14 Dec 2026
7 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
Misael says Ufa went back on their word
“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 Dec 2026
A falling-out at Ufa
Viktor Baier and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad14 Dec 2026
A row about effort at Ufa
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Kirill Kravtsov was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Match12 Dec 2026
Rotor take the points off Ufa
Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
Dilan Ortíz 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.
Match14 Dec 2026
Halfway: Ufa sit in position 7
24 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 dugout14 Dec 2026
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Nil Gorshkov after 0‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
Matías Ballini 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 Ufa, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Steady
The dugout12 Oct 2026
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Ufa may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Words exchanged at Ufa
Viktor Baier 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
At 20 he is doing things this season that he could not do last season, and doing them every week. Form comes and goes; this has stayed long enough to be called something else.
Squad12 Oct 2026
A row about effort at Ufa
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Kirill Kravtsov was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Misael is not the player he was
It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph a local paper has to write. 39 years old, 3 points down on where he was, and a body that has started charging interest on a career.
The dugout12 Oct 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.
Market12 Oct 2026
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Zalimkhan Yusupov has his answer from Ufa; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
Market12 Oct 2026
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
The dugout12 Oct 2026
A promise honoured at Ufa
Something was said to Igor Andreev and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings5 Oct 2026
Successful dribbles: 40. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Match30 Sep 2026
Ufa through in the cup
A 1‑0 win over Ryazan, and the draw for the next round can be watched with some interest for once.
Player ratings5 Oct 2026
2 goals, and the second was the one that settled it. Marked 9.38, and he could have had a third with better luck at the near post.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Tempers go at Ufa
Viktor Baier 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.
Match3 Oct 2026
It finished 3‑1, and it was Dilan Ortíz’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Ufa.
Boardroom5 Oct 2026
Wages swallow 175% of the Ufa income
Every club 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 it has been tried.
The terraces5 Oct 2026
He is 22 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
Match3 Oct 2026
Rodina blown away early
There is a particular helplessness in conceding 2 times before the twentieth minute. Rodina tried to reorganise, Ufa did not allow it, and the result was written long before it was confirmed.
The dugout5 Oct 2026
No hiding place for Misael
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Misael, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad14 Sep 2026
6 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Boardroom14 Sep 2026
Ufa close the window on a squad of their own making
14 in and 3 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.
Transfer targets14 Sep 2026
The deal with Viktoria Plzen is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
The dugout14 Sep 2026
The manager makes an example of Denis Kutin
“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 dugout14 Sep 2026
Half-satisfied: Nil Gorshkov on the draw
“There are things I liked and things we will be doing on Tuesday until they are right.” 0‑0, and a manager who had already decided what Tuesday looked like.
Match12 Sep 2026
Point won or two lost for Ufa?
Ninety minutes, no goals, and the argument started before the car park emptied: a point gained, or two thrown away against Shinnik? Both sides of it will still be going on Thursday.
Looking ahead14 Sep 2026
Every squad has one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Georgy Gongadze’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and Ufa needing him to play as if none of it matters.
The dugout14 Sep 2026
Misael left out for tactical reasons at Ufa
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
Squad14 Sep 2026
He is doing things on a Saturday afternoon that nobody around him can answer, which is flattering for about one season and a problem after that. Ufa will not keep him by pretending otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market7 Sep 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.
Transfer targets7 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.
Squad7 Sep 2026
A row about effort at Ufa
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Konstantin Troyanov was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Misael is a square peg at Ufa
The system has changed and his position has not. A footballer can improve his form; he cannot improve the manager’s formation, and that is the whole of the problem.
Transfer targets7 Sep 2026
Viktoria Plzen 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.
Squad7 Sep 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.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Not a new contract, not a new number: a new place in the manager’s thinking, which is the only promotion in football that actually matters. Alexandr Belenov has moved up it.
Market7 Sep 2026
Experience through the door at Ufa
Misael arrives at 39 with nothing left to prove and plenty left to pass on. Legs are a young man's currency; knowing where to stand never ages.
Looking ahead7 Sep 2026
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Shinnik in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.