From our football correspondent
Steady
Loan watch15 Nov 2027
“I did not go to Okzhetpes to sit and watch. I want to come back to Aktobe and fight for my place.” 0 appearances in 9 matches say the rest.
Squad15 Nov 2027
The manager makes an example of Bağdat Qaiyrov
“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.
Squad15 Nov 2027
A window away with the national side, and a shirt at Aktobe that briefly doubles as an advertisement. A call-up flatters the player and the club that built him in the same breath.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market8 Nov 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aktobe know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad8 Nov 2027
Temirlan Erlanov 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.
Squad8 Nov 2027
Public backing, and the sort that costs a manager something if it turns out to be wrong. Alexandr Zarutskii has been told in front of everybody that the shirt is his.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad1 Nov 2027
88 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Market1 Nov 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aktobe know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad1 Nov 2027
Vitalii Laturnus 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.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market25 Oct 2027
The name of Georgii Zhukov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad25 Oct 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 Aktobe, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Squad25 Oct 2027
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Pablo Álvarez plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Loan watch18 Oct 2027
“I did not go to Okzhetpes to sit and watch. I want to come back to Aktobe and fight for my place.” 0 appearances in 5 matches say the rest.
Squad18 Oct 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 Aktobe, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Market18 Oct 2027
The name of Dmytro Topalov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad11 Oct 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.
Market11 Oct 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aktobe know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad11 Oct 2027
“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
Steady
Squad4 Oct 2027
Clinton N'jie: 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.” Aktobe have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad4 Oct 2027
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Ivan Ordets commits to Aktobe for another 2 years.
Squad4 Oct 2027
The medical room confirms 117 days on the sidelines for Temirlan Erlanov, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad27 Sep 2027
Älisher Süleimen: 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.” Aktobe have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad27 Sep 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.
Market27 Sep 2027
The name of Georgii Zhukov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad20 Sep 2027
The manager makes an example of Ken Krolicki
“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.
Market20 Sep 2027
The name of Dmytro Topalov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad20 Sep 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 Aktobe, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market13 Sep 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aktobe know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad13 Sep 2027
Ivan Ordets has company in his position
The competition arrived without a word said to him about it. Ivan Ordets keeps the shirt for now, at Aktobe's convenience rather than his own.
Market13 Sep 2027
The best deals are the ones the accountants never notice. Abdulvohid G'ulomov arrives at Aktobe with his wages the only cost and something to prove the only clause.
Squad13 Sep 2027
Ken Krolicki 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.
Market13 Sep 2027
Aktobe spent the window trying to move Temirlan Erlanov on and nobody came. He trains with a squad that has already told him he is not part of it, and both sides now wait for the next one.
Squad13 Sep 2027
Public backing, and the sort that costs a manager something if it turns out to be wrong. Danilo Mitrović has been told in front of everybody that the shirt is his.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad6 Sep 2027
148 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Market6 Sep 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aktobe know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad6 Sep 2027
A window away with the national side, and a shirt at Aktobe that briefly doubles as an advertisement. A call-up flatters the player and the club that built him in the same breath.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market30 Aug 2027
“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.
Squad30 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.
Market30 Aug 2027
The name of Georgii Zhukov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market23 Aug 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aktobe can pretend not to have heard.
Market23 Aug 2027
The name of Clinton N'jie has come up in conversations Aktobe were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Squad23 Aug 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 Aktobe, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Steady
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.
Market16 Aug 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aktobe know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad16 Aug 2027
Clinton N'jie 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.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market9 Aug 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aktobe can pretend not to have heard.
Market9 Aug 2027
Neftchi come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and Aktobe did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Market9 Aug 2027
Ken Krolicki is free to find somewhere else
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Aktobe has been clear about where Ken Krolicki stands, which is more than many ever get.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match31 Jul 2027
Still nobody has beaten Aktobe
The unbeaten run reaches 9. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Match31 Jul 2027
4 matches without a win for Aktobe
The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Aktobe are no longer polite ones.
Squad2 Aug 2027
Tempers went at Aktobe this week. Nothing a hard session and a quiet word cannot repair, though the story got out all the same.
Squad2 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.
Match31 Jul 2027
It finished 1-1, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
Market2 Aug 2027
“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Karam Sūltanov has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Aktobe.
Squad2 Aug 2027
2 goals and a season average of 7.20. Form like that gets noticed well beyond this town.
Market2 Aug 2027
The name of Georgii Zhukov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad2 Aug 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 Aktobe, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match24 Jul 2027
Still nobody has beaten Aktobe
The unbeaten run reaches 8. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Squad26 Jul 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.
Squad26 Jul 2027
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
Match24 Jul 2027
Honours even between Aktobe and Tobol
1-1, and both dressing rooms will call it two points lost. A draw that asked plenty of questions and answered none of them.
Market26 Jul 2027
The name of Dmytro Topalov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad26 Jul 2027
Bağdat Qaiyrov 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 Aktobe, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad19 Jul 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.
Match17 Jul 2027
Still nobody has beaten Aktobe
The unbeaten run reaches 7. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Squad19 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.
Match17 Jul 2027
A 1-1 draw with Atyrau leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
The terraces19 Jul 2027
Every touch is being weighed now, in print and everywhere else. Some players grow into that and some are quietly ruined by it, and nobody knows which in advance.
Market19 Jul 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aktobe know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market12 Jul 2027
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Match10 Jul 2027
Still nobody has beaten Aktobe
The unbeaten run reaches 6. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Squad12 Jul 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.
Boardroom12 Jul 2027
94% of the income goes out in wages at Aktobe
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
Experience through the door at Aktobe
Ülan Konysbaev arrives at 38 with nothing left to prove and plenty left to pass on. Legs are a young man's currency; knowing where to stand never ages.
Match10 Jul 2027
Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Akzhaiyk came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.
Market12 Jul 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aktobe know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Market12 Jul 2027
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Karam Sūltanov may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
Squad12 Jul 2027
Clinton N'jie has company in his position
The competition arrived without a word said to him about it. Clinton N'jie keeps the shirt for now, at Aktobe's convenience rather than his own.
From our football correspondent
Triumph
Match3 Jul 2027
Aktobe cannot stop winning
5 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
Market5 Jul 2027
Taraz pay $600.0K, 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.
Match3 Jul 2027
Three points for Aktobe, 2-1 the final word against Ordabasy in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Market5 Jul 2027
Sūltan Shymyrkhan is 20, and Aktobe 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.
Squad5 Jul 2027
“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.
Squad5 Jul 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.
Squad5 Jul 2027
Ivan Ordets has company in his position
The competition arrived without a word said to him about it. Ivan Ordets keeps the shirt for now, at Aktobe's convenience rather than his own.
Market5 Jul 2027
The name of Georgii Zhukov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad5 Jul 2027
At 29 he has made the position his own, and the man he took it from has to find something to say about it. Aktobe have a decision that made itself.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match26 Jun 2027
Aktobe cannot stop winning
4 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
Market28 Jun 2027
The fee is $170.0K, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Taraz drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
Match26 Jun 2027
Three points for Aktobe, 2-0 the final word against Shakhter in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Squad28 Jun 2027
The manager makes an example of Bağdat Qaiyrov
“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.
Squad28 Jun 2027
The competition arrived without a word said to him about it. Alexandr Zarutskii keeps the shirt for now, at Aktobe's convenience rather than his own.
Market28 Jun 2027
The name of Dmytro Topalov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match19 Jun 2027
Aktobe cannot stop winning
3 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
Match19 Jun 2027
Okzhetpes made Aktobe work for it, but the scoreboard read 2-1 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Market21 Jun 2027
The name of Talğat Kusiapov has come up in conversations Aktobe were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Squad21 Jun 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.
Market21 Jun 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aktobe know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad21 Jun 2027
A new face in his position, and Alexandr Zarutskii suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Aktobe have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Market21 Jun 2027
Aktobe have made Ken Krolicki available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.
Squad21 Jun 2027
Karam Sūltanov 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.
Squad21 Jun 2027
The manager comes out for Marc Gual
Public backing, and the sort that costs a manager something if it turns out to be wrong. Marc Gual has been told in front of everybody that the shirt is his.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad14 Jun 2027
17 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Match12 Jun 2027
Three points for Aktobe, 1-0 the final word against Taraz in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Boardroom14 Jun 2027
Wages eat 105% of everything Aktobe earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
Squad14 Jun 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.
Squad14 Jun 2027
One booking too many, and Georgii Zhukov sits out. Aktobe lose him for the sort of avoidable reason that makes a manager's week longer.
Market14 Jun 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aktobe know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match5 Jun 2027
Irtysh made Aktobe work for it, but the scoreboard read 2-1 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Squad7 Jun 2027
The manager makes an example of Dmytro Topalov
“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 Jun 2027
The first one is the one every signing is asked about until it arrives. It has arrived, and he can stop being asked.
Market7 Jun 2027
The name of Georgii Zhukov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad7 Jun 2027
Bağdat Qaiyrov 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.
Squad7 Jun 2027
It went in off him and he did not care in the slightest. 1 for the season now, and a forward who has scored is a different footballer by Tuesday.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad31 May 2027
Talğat Kusiapov: 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.” Aktobe have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad31 May 2027
The manager makes an example of Danilo Mitrović
“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 medical room confirms 23 days on the sidelines for Temirlan Erlanov, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match22 May 2027
Still nobody has beaten Aktobe
The unbeaten run reaches 7. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Squad24 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.
Match22 May 2027
Aktobe and Kairat take a point apiece
It finished 1-1, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
The terraces24 May 2027
Every touch is being weighed now, in print and everywhere else. Some players grow into that and some are quietly ruined by it, and nobody knows which in advance.
Squad24 May 2027
The first one is the one every signing is asked about until it arrives. It has arrived, and he can stop being asked.
Market24 May 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Aktobe know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad17 May 2027
Karam Sūltanov: 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.” Aktobe have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Match15 May 2027
Still nobody has beaten Aktobe
The unbeaten run reaches 6. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Squad17 May 2027
The medical room confirms 46 days on the sidelines for Timur Dosmağambetov, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Match15 May 2027
A 1-0 win over Zhetysu, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Boardroom17 May 2027
108% of the income goes out in wages at Aktobe
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.
Squad17 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match8 May 2027
4 matches without a win for Aktobe
The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Aktobe are no longer polite ones.
Squad10 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.
Match8 May 2027
Aktobe and Tobol take a point apiece
It finished 1-1, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad3 May 2027
Ken Krolicki: 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.” Aktobe have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad3 May 2027
52 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Match1 May 2027
Ninety minutes, two goalkeepers with clean gloves, and not one finish worth keeping. Atyrau will be the happier side with the point.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad26 Apr 2027
The manager makes an example of Dmytro Topalov
“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.
Match24 Apr 2027
It finished 1-1, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
Squad26 Apr 2027
Ivan Ordets finally opens his account
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Aktobe have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad19 Apr 2027
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.
Squad19 Apr 2027
74 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Squad19 Apr 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.
Boardroom19 Apr 2027
87% of the income goes out in wages at Aktobe
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.
Squad19 Apr 2027
Pablo Álvarez 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 Aktobe, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Match17 Apr 2027
Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Ordabasy came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match7 Apr 2027
The cup run ends for Aktobe
0-1 against Akzhaiyk, and the road stops here. Cup exits are quick deaths — no second leg, no next week, just the league from now until May.
Squad12 Apr 2027
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Aktobe have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad12 Apr 2027
The manager makes an example of Daniel Sosah
“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.
Match10 Apr 2027
A 1-0 win over Shakhter, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Squad12 Apr 2027
Pablo Álvarez 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.
Squad12 Apr 2027
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Aktobe have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad5 Apr 2027
81 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Match3 Apr 2027
A 2-1 win over Okzhetpes, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Squad5 Apr 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.
Squad5 Apr 2027
The captaincy has been taken off Alexandr Zarutskii. Aktobe will call it a decision about the team; a dressing room reads it as a verdict on a man.
Squad5 Apr 2027
The first one is the one every signing is asked about until it arrives. It has arrived, and he can stop being asked.
Market5 Apr 2027
The name of Talğat Kusiapov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match27 Mar 2027
Aktobe get the job done against Taraz
A 1-0 win over Taraz, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Squad29 Mar 2027
The manager makes an example of Karam Sūltanov
“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.
Squad29 Mar 2027
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Aktobe have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match20 Mar 2027
No end in sight to Aktobe's wait for a win
5 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Aktobe has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad22 Mar 2027
102 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Squad22 Mar 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.
Boardroom22 Mar 2027
89% of the income goes out in wages at Aktobe
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.
Match20 Mar 2027
Ninety minutes, two goalkeepers with clean gloves, and not one finish worth keeping. Irtysh will be the happier side with the point.
Squad22 Mar 2027
Every debut is a small story about the future: Samat Vorogovskiy, 15 years old, off the academy pitches and into the first team. The parents in the stand will keep the programme.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match13 Mar 2027
No end in sight to Aktobe's wait for a win
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Aktobe has to find a result from somewhere.
Match13 Mar 2027
Beaten 0-2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad15 Mar 2027
The manager makes an example of Clinton N'jie
“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
Squad8 Mar 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Ivan Ordets and Aktobe agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Market8 Mar 2027
The shirt still fits. Rinat Tagybergen is back at Aktobe, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
Market8 Mar 2027
He left as a boy and has come back still knowing where the away end is. Most signings have to be explained to a town; this one needed a photograph and nothing else.
Market8 Mar 2027
He left as a boy and has come back still knowing where the away end is. Most signings have to be explained to a town; this one needed a photograph and nothing else.
Market8 Mar 2027
The shirt still fits. Abzal Kuat is back at Aktobe, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
Squad8 Mar 2027
111 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market1 Mar 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aktobe can pretend not to have heard.
Market1 Mar 2027
The name of Pablo Álvarez keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad1 Mar 2027
Marc Gual keeps his manager's vote
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Marc Gual plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market22 Feb 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aktobe can pretend not to have heard.
Market22 Feb 2027
Artur Shushenachev has left for Akzhaiyk in a $1.2M deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.
Squad22 Feb 2027
The medical room confirms 131 days on the sidelines for Timur Dosmağambetov, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market15 Feb 2027
“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.
Market15 Feb 2027
The name of Dmytro Topalov keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Market15 Feb 2027
36 months left and silence from upstairs — no offer, no talks, nothing for his people to answer. Clubs that let a calendar do their negotiating usually end up negotiating with the calendar.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market8 Feb 2027
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Squad8 Feb 2027
139 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Squad8 Feb 2027
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Khaled Al-Jaberi commits to Aktobe for another 3 years.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market1 Feb 2027
“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.
Market1 Feb 2027
The name of Artur Shushenachev has come up in conversations Aktobe were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Market1 Feb 2027
“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Timur Dosmağambetov has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Aktobe.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom25 Jan 2027
137% of the income goes out in wages at Aktobe
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.
Squad25 Jan 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.
Market25 Jan 2027
Nikita Korzun is free to find somewhere else
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Aktobe has been clear about where Nikita Korzun stands, which is more than many ever get.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market18 Jan 2027
The name of Artur Shushenachev keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad18 Jan 2027
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Alexandr Zarutskii plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad11 Jan 2027
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Dmytro Topalov plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market4 Jan 2027
The name of Pablo Álvarez keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad4 Jan 2027
Daniel Sosah keeps his manager's vote
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Daniel Sosah plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom28 Dec 2026
239% of the income goes out in wages at Aktobe
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.
Squad28 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.
Squad28 Dec 2026
Public backing, and the sort that costs a manager something if it turns out to be wrong. Georgii Zhukov has been told in front of everybody that the shirt is his.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market21 Dec 2026
The name of Artur Shushenachev keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad21 Dec 2026
Marc Gual keeps his manager's vote
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Marc Gual plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad14 Dec 2026
Public backing, and the sort that costs a manager something if it turns out to be wrong. Danilo Mitrović has been told in front of everybody that the shirt is his.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market7 Dec 2026
The name of Pablo Álvarez keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad7 Dec 2026
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Alexandr Zarutskii plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom30 Nov 2026
300% of the income goes out in wages at Aktobe
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.
Squad30 Nov 2026
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Artur Shushenachev plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad23 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.
Market23 Nov 2026
The name of Artur Shushenachev keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Marc Gual keeps his manager's vote
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Marc Gual plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad16 Nov 2026
A window away with the national side, and a shirt at Aktobe that briefly doubles as an advertisement. A call-up flatters the player and the club that built him in the same breath.
Squad16 Nov 2026
Public backing, and the sort that costs a manager something if it turns out to be wrong. Danilo Mitrović has been told in front of everybody that the shirt is his.
Squad16 Nov 2026
A welcome sight on the training pitch: Alexandr Zarutskii has come through recovery and is pushing for a place again.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market9 Nov 2026
The name of Pablo Álvarez keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad9 Nov 2026
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Alexandr Zarutskii plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
Loan watch9 Nov 2026
11 days of the agreement remain and 0 appearances sit behind him. Somebody has to decide what happens next.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad2 Nov 2026
The medical room confirms 14 days on the sidelines for Alexandr Zarutskii, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Boardroom2 Nov 2026
300% of the income goes out in wages at Aktobe
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.
Squad2 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad26 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.
Squad26 Oct 2026
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Aktobe, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Market26 Oct 2026
The name of Artur Shushenachev keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad19 Oct 2026
The medical room confirms 14 days on the sidelines for Igor' Trofimets, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad19 Oct 2026
Public backing, and the sort that costs a manager something if it turns out to be wrong. Igor' Trofimets has been told in front of everybody that the shirt is his.
Loan watch19 Oct 2026
32 days of the agreement remain and 0 appearances sit behind him. Somebody has to decide what happens next.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market12 Oct 2026
The name of Pablo Álvarez keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Artur Shushenachev joins up with his country. Aktobe lose him for the window and would like him back in one piece.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Marc Gual keeps his manager's vote
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Marc Gual plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom5 Oct 2026
494% of the income goes out in wages at Aktobe
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.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Public backing, and the sort that costs a manager something if it turns out to be wrong. Arman Keńesov has been told in front of everybody that the shirt is his.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad28 Sep 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.
Market28 Sep 2026
The name of Artur Shushenachev keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad28 Sep 2026
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Alexandr Zarutskii plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad21 Sep 2026
The medical room confirms 44 days on the sidelines for Igor' Trofimets, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad21 Sep 2026
Public backing, and the sort that costs a manager something if it turns out to be wrong. Danilo Mitrović has been told in front of everybody that the shirt is his.
Squad21 Sep 2026
A welcome sight on the training pitch: Bağdat Qaiyrov has come through recovery and is pushing for a place again.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad14 Sep 2026
The manager makes an example of Danilo Mitrović
“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.
Market14 Sep 2026
The name of Pablo Álvarez keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Market14 Sep 2026
Aktobe spent the window trying to move Artur Shushenachev on and nobody came. He trains with a squad that has already told him he is not part of it, and both sides now wait for the next one.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom7 Sep 2026
498% of the income goes out in wages at Aktobe
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.
Squad7 Sep 2026
The captaincy has been taken off Danilo Mitrović. Aktobe will call it a decision about the team; a dressing room reads it as a verdict on a man.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Danilo Mitrović 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad31 Aug 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.
Market31 Aug 2026
The name of Artur Shushenachev keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad31 Aug 2026
The message was aimed at the stands as much as the dressing room: Alexandr Zarutskii plays, and the argument is closed until the manager decides otherwise.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match19 Aug 2026
Aktobe bow out of the cup
Tobol go through and Aktobe go home, 0-1 the scoreline that did it. The dressing room will call the league the priority now, because that is what dressing rooms say.
Market24 Aug 2026
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aktobe can pretend not to have heard.
Market24 Aug 2026
The fee is $1.6M, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Kairat drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market17 Aug 2026
The name of Pablo Álvarez keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aktobe say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Somebody is after Ivan Ordets’s shirt
A new face in his position, and Ivan Ordets suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Aktobe have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Market17 Aug 2026
The best deals are the ones the accountants never notice. Ken Krolicki arrives at Aktobe with his wages the only cost and something to prove the only clause.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market10 Aug 2026
Shakhter come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and Aktobe did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Market10 Aug 2026
The clock runs on Pablo Álvarez's contract
48 months left and silence from upstairs — no offer, no talks, nothing for his people to answer. Clubs that let a calendar do their negotiating usually end up negotiating with the calendar.
Market10 Aug 2026
Experience through the door at Aktobe
Clinton N'jie arrives at 33 with nothing left to prove and plenty left to pass on. Legs are a young man's currency; knowing where to stand never ages.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad3 Aug 2026
“The easiest signature of my career.” Ivan Ordets and Aktobe agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Market3 Aug 2026
The interest is real enough to have reached print. Aktobe have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.
Squad3 Aug 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.
Market3 Aug 2026
24 months left and silence from upstairs — no offer, no talks, nothing for his people to answer. Clubs that let a calendar do their negotiating usually end up negotiating with the calendar.
Market3 Aug 2026
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Artur Shushenachev may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
Match1 Aug 2026
Aktobe and Zhetysu cancel each other out
Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Zhetysu came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.