A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Dinamo Makhachkala will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Dinamo Makhachkala have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Andrés Alarcón was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑1, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
In brief
The dugoutHazem Mastouri asks for a word with the manager
Houssem Mrezigue 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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mohammad Javad Hosseinnejad was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑3, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
The one version of being left out a player cannot argue with, and the one he takes worst. Somebody else has been better and the team sheet says so, in public, every week until it changes.
In brief
The dugoutThe plan did not have a place for Gamid Agalarov
The terracesEverybody has an opinion about David Volk
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 7 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
6 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.
“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 Dinamo Makhachkala know it.
Houssem Mrezigue 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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Andrés Alarcón was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Nikita Glushkov has his answer from Dinamo Makhachkala; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Dinamo Makhachkala have lost him in all but the paperwork.
“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 Dinamo Makhachkala, and it is not being withdrawn.
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 15 arrived, 4 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mohammad Javad Hosseinnejad was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
3 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Dinamo Makhachkala offered $2.6M; Lokomotiv Moscow said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.
The number the board signed off was not enough. It has been asked again and raised its own offer to $341.2K — a club that wants Ilja Moseichuk enough to be asked twice.
Houssem Mrezigue 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.
$74.0K on the table at Rodina. The manager wanted him, the board agreed a number, and the only voices still to be heard are the ones at the other club.
Dinamo Makhachkala asked and Sochi said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mohammad Javad Hosseinnejad was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 6 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Every footballer has an answer to the question about his boyhood club, and most of them never get to act on it. Leon Musaev has, at Dinamo Makhachkala, and the first month will show what that does to a man.
Dinamo Makhachkala have gone to Lokomotiv Moscow with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Krylya Sovetov have kept their man, and Dinamo Makhachkala go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Centre-halves are allowed forward twice a season and are judged on what they do when they get there. Andrés Alarcón scored, was marked 7.79, and got back before anybody noticed he had gone.
The number the board signed off was not enough. It has been asked again and raised its own offer to $2.8M — a club that wants Lucas Vera enough to be asked twice.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at Atlético Tucumán is saying, and nobody at Dinamo Makhachkala is enjoying the guessing.
Sochi will want this one forgotten quickly: 3‑0, every duel lost, and a long ride home. Dinamo Makhachkala were ruthless in the way good sides are ruthless.
Every footballer has an answer to the question about his boyhood club, and most of them never get to act on it. Alexander Eckmayr has, at Dinamo Makhachkala, and the first month will show what that does to a man.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
A defender on the scoresheet, which happens rarely enough that everybody in the ground remembers who took the corner. 1 for him, and a mark of 7.73 for the rest of it.
Everything agreed with Atlético Tucumán, everything agreed with the player; a doctor is the only person left to persuade. The photograph is a day or two away.
Houssem Mrezigue 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.