Dimitrije Stevanović 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 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.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Bence Gergényi signs something — a contract at BVSC-Zugló or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nicolas Isimat-Mirin was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
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.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Péter Törőcsik is on it.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Igor Jeličić signs something — a contract at BVSC-Zugló or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
5 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee BVSC-Zugló could ask drops and the wages Nicolas Isimat-Mirin can ask rise.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Vinícius trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Ákos Király has written the date down.
In brief
MatchNothing left to play for but pride at BVSC-Zugló
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.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Kristóf Sarkadi is on it.
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Nicolas Isimat-Mirin has written the date down.
In brief
The dugoutPéter Törőcsik asks for a word with the manager
The board have said in public what they had been saying in private. Results between now and the next meeting decide it, and everybody in the building knows the arithmetic.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at BVSC-Zugló this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.
Squad3 May 2027
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nicolas Isimat-Mirin is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at BVSC-Zugló. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at BVSC-Zugló is running low.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at BVSC-Zugló this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
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.
Kristóf Tóth-Gábor 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.
Squad19 Apr 2027
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Norbert Szélpál is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
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.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at BVSC-Zugló has been clear about where Keve Tóth stands, which is more than many ever get.
Nobody at BVSC-Zugló 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.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at BVSC-Zugló, and both men came out saying it was fine.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at BVSC-Zugló this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
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.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Milán Májer signs something — a contract at BVSC-Zugló or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Nobody at BVSC-Zugló 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.
In brief
The dugoutDarko Lazić asks for a word with the manager
The board have said in public what they had been saying in private. Results between now and the next meeting decide it, and everybody in the building knows the arithmetic.
Norbert Szélpál 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.
Not a run of form — an actual step up, held for months. At 19 he is doing things at this level he could not do at the start of the season, and the coaching staff will tell you exactly which of them.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nicolas Isimat-Mirin was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Everybody at BVSC-Zugló saw it before anybody said it, which is how this always goes. At 34 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.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at BVSC-Zugló, another week without a signature from Nicolas Isimat-Mirin.
Every squad has men who were signed by a particular manager and men who were merely inherited. Igor Jeličić is in the first group, and the man who wanted him here is no longer in the building.
Kristóf Tóth-Gábor 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.
Squad29 Mar 2027
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Norbert Szélpál is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Nobody at BVSC-Zugló 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.
Dimitrije Stevanović 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.
Squad22 Mar 2027
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nicolas Isimat-Mirin is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
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.
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
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.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Roland Lehoczky trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” BVSC-Zugló have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Norbert Szélpál 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.
Squad15 Mar 2027
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Nicolas Isimat-Mirin is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
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.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Zoltán Vasvári. 1‑0 against Bekescsaba, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
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.
Kornél Csernik scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑3 to Honved, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.
Squad8 Mar 2027
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Norbert Szélpál is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Szabolcs Nikolic after 1‑3, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” BVSC-Zugló have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Dimitrije Stevanović 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.
Squad1 Mar 2027
Igor Jeličić 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 chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 3 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
“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 BVSC-Zugló know it.
A player who expected to start watched it instead. The manager will call it a decision for the team; Nicolas Isimat-Mirin will call it something else in private.
“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 BVSC-Zugló, and it is not being withdrawn.
There is no worse way to lose a footballer. Zsombor Petroff has pre-agreed a move away, which means every appearance between now and June is made by a man the club can no longer sell, and somebody upstairs will be asked why the contract was allowed to get here.
Kristóf Tóth-Gábor 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.
It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph a local paper has to write. 36 years old, 3 points down on where he was, and a body that has started charging interest on a career.
Squad22 Feb 2027
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Dimitrije Stevanović is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Boardroom22 Feb 2027
180% of the income goes out in wages at BVSC-Zugló
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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at BVSC-Zugló this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
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.
27 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
The dugout15 Feb 2027
The view from the dugout
“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑2 defeat, delivered by Szabolcs Nikolic to a room that had heard them before.
He is not being dropped. There is simply nowhere in the formation BVSC-Zugló are playing to put a man who does what he does, which is a harder thing to be told than any team sheet.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Nicolas Isimat-Mirin trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The words a physio says slowly. 17 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.
Player ratings8 Feb 2027
Up for the corner, and Gergő Ominger delivers — 7.30
Centre-halves are allowed forward twice a season and are judged on what they do when they get there. Gergő Ominger scored, was marked 7.30, and got back before anybody noticed he had gone.
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.
Minute 94, against Ajka, and a goal that felt like a win to everybody who had stayed. It was a draw. Nobody leaving the ground will describe it as one.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at BVSC-Zugló can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
The words a physio says slowly. 24 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.
The offer from MFK Zvolen for Gábor Tóth 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.
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 7.54 for the rest of it.
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
BVSC-Zugló close the window on a squad of their own making
3 in and 0 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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Dimitrije Stevanović was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
31 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. BVSC-Zugló lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
“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 BVSC-Zugló, and it is not being withdrawn.
The offer from Csákvár for Martin Palincsár 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.
Dimitrije Stevanović 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.
It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph a local paper has to write. 36 years old, 3 points down on where he was, and a body that has started charging interest on a career.
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.
At 22 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.
39 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. BVSC-Zugló lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. BVSC-Zugló have done the hard part with ETO Győr, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Norbert Szélpál 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.
BVSC-Zugló asked and Debrecen said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad18 Jan 2027
Mateja Dukić 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.
Something was said to Roland Lehoczky and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.
47 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. BVSC-Zugló lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Igor Jeličić 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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Dimitrije Stevanović was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
BVSC-Zugló asked and Ujpest said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Everybody at BVSC-Zugló saw it before anybody said it, which is how this always goes. At 34 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.
58 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. BVSC-Zugló lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what BVSC-Zugló can pretend not to have heard.
Dimitrije Stevanović 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.
Squad4 Jan 2027
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Norbert Szélpál is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at BVSC-Zugló can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.
67 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. BVSC-Zugló lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
“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 BVSC-Zugló, and it is not being withdrawn.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at BVSC-Zugló this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph a local paper has to write. 36 years old, 3 points down on where he was, and a body that has started charging interest on a career.
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.
At 22 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.
75 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. BVSC-Zugló lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Two goals and a mark of 8.84 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
4 wins in a row changes how opponents warm up: quieter, more glances across. Runs end, everybody knows that — but nobody in this dressing room is planning for it.
Norbert Szélpál 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.
Squad21 Dec 2026
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Dimitrije Stevanović is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
It finished 2‑0, and it was Zoltán Vasvári’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to BVSC-Zugló.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
The manager’s verdict
“I am not going to get carried away and I will not let them either. It was a good day. There will be harder ones.” Szabolcs Nikolic kept it short after the 2‑0 win, which is what managers do when they are happy.
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
The words a physio says slowly. 84 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.
Two goals and a mark of 9.24 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
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.
It finished 3‑2, and it was Zoltán Vasvári’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to BVSC-Zugló.
Squad14 Dec 2026
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Norbert Szélpál is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Marked 8.47 — 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.
The words a physio says slowly. 91 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.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Milán Májer. 1‑0 against Kecskeméti TE, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Squad7 Dec 2026
Mateja Dukić 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.
99 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. BVSC-Zugló lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Ninety minutes of very little, and then everything at once. The winner arrived in the 89th, and Bekescsaba spent what remained of the match appealing to the referee rather than chasing the ball.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at BVSC-Zugló this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
At 35, 3 points below where he was, and a body that has started charging interest. It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph on this page.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Dimitrije Stevanović was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
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.
106 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. BVSC-Zugló lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Igor Jeličić 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.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Norbert Szélpál is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout23 Nov 2026
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑1 Szabolcs Nikolic left the room before anybody could ask which.
113 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. BVSC-Zugló lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Norbert Szélpál was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at BVSC-Zugló, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Péter Törőcsik is on it.
Honved next, and one man in the BVSC-Zugló dressing room knows their training ground better than his own. The reception will tell him what they thought of him.
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Igor Jeličić’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
The terraces16 Nov 2026
Supporters make their feelings known about Milán Májer
The speculation has reached the stands, and the stands have answered. BVSC-Zugló would like this settled before it becomes the only thing anybody asks about.
121 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. BVSC-Zugló lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
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.
Successful dribbles: 16. 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.
8 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 1‑3, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.
A shoot-out is remembered by its ending, and this one ends with Gábor Megyeri: 4 kept out, and a set of supporters who will describe every one of them for the next twenty years.
128 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. BVSC-Zugló lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” BVSC-Zugló have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Dimitrije Stevanović 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.
At 35, 3 points below where he was, and a body that has started charging interest. It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph on this page.
1‑2 to Vasas, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Boardroom2 Nov 2026
201% of the income goes out in wages at BVSC-Zugló
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.
In brief
Player ratingsThe kick that got away from Patrik Bacsa
The words a physio says slowly. 135 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.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” BVSC-Zugló have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Norbert Szélpál 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 Mateja Dukić was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
100 games in the shirt. Nobody sets out to build a record like that; it happens to a certain kind of player at a certain kind of club, and this town knows what it has.
Minute 96, against Soroksár, and a goal that felt like a win to everybody who had stayed. It was a draw. Nobody leaving the ground will describe it as one.
143 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. BVSC-Zugló lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Norbert Szélpál 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.
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.
Careers are supposed to plateau and then decline, and the players who ignore that are always the ones who were listening on the training ground. 3 points of it, over months, at an age where the direction normally only goes one way.
“It is not the end of the world and it is not good enough. Both of those are true.” The manager, after a 1‑1 draw, said the honest thing and then went to say it again inside.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Soroksár in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
150 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. BVSC-Zugló lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” BVSC-Zugló have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Igor Jeličić and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Norbert Szélpál is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
He is doing things every Saturday that nobody around him can answer. It is flattering for a season and a problem after that, and BVSC-Zugló know which stage they are at.
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at BVSC-Zugló, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Péter Törőcsik is on it.
Every squad has one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Roland Lehoczky’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and BVSC-Zugló needing him to play as if none of it matters.
The words a physio says slowly. 55 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at BVSC-Zugló this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
At 35, 3 points below where he was, and a body that has started charging interest. It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph on this page.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nicolas Isimat-Mirin was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
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.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at BVSC-Zugló, another week without a signature from Nicolas Isimat-Mirin.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at BVSC-Zugló this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
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.
Successful dribbles: 15. 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.
“We earned that. I asked them for a reaction and I got one, and now I want the same again on Saturday.” Szabolcs Nikolic on a 1‑0 afternoon that pleased him more than he was prepared to show.
Marked 6.85 on 16 actions at both ends of the pitch. Midfielders like this get described as unspectacular by people who have never tried to play against one.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Norbert Szélpál was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Dimitrije Stevanović, and the manager let it.
The dugout21 Sep 2026
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 1‑2 Szabolcs Nikolic left the room before anybody could ask which.
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.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Szentlőrinc in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
The deal that would have taken Zsombor Petroff to Kozármisleny has collapsed at the last stage, and he reports back to BVSC-Zugló with a summer to forget and a season still to play. Nobody is saying which side walked away.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. HNK Rijeka have kept their man, and BVSC-Zugló go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 22-year-old it feels ownership of. Zoltán Vasvári has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mateja Dukić was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Squad14 Sep 2026
17 new faces, and BVSC-Zugló are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
The offer from Szentlőrinc for Kornél Csernik 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.
Boardroom7 Sep 2026
Deadline passes with 25 signed and 1 gone
That is the business done at BVSC-Zugló until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Everything was agreed until it was not, and Patrik Bacsa reports back to BVSC-Zugló with a summer to forget. Neither club is saying who walked away from the table.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at BVSC-Zugló this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
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 demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Máté Katona is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around BVSC-Zugló people have started saying his name in the past tense.
The offer from Petržalka for Gábor Tóth 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.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what BVSC-Zugló can pretend not to have heard.
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 7.70 for the rest of it.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at PAS Giannina is saying, and nobody at BVSC-Zugló is enjoying the guessing.
Roland Lehoczky 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.
Igor Jeličić 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.
The terraces24 Aug 2026
BVSC-Zugló spend $1.4M on the signing the town wanted
It is the rarest sequence in football: supporters ask for something, and the club goes and does it. $1.4M for Victor Gey, and for one week nobody is complaining about anything.
BVSC-Zugló asked and Nyíregyháza said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
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. BVSC-Zugló will not keep him by pretending otherwise.
1‑1, and both dressing rooms will call it two points lost. A draw that asked plenty of questions and answered none of them.
Squad24 Aug 2026
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Vinícius is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The deal with Vasas 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.
Boards get told what they have done wrong for years and hear nothing on the days they get it right. This is one of those days: Milán Májer from Nyíregyháza for $1.4M, and a ticket office having a very good morning.
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. BVSC-Zugló will not keep him by pretending otherwise.
13 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.
Every shape has positions in it and this one does not have his. BVSC-Zugló will either change the shape, change his job, or change his club, and he is waiting to hear which.
In brief
Transfer targetsA loan move for Karel Mustmaa is in the works
The offer went to Nyíregyháza this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. MTK Budapest have kept their man, and BVSC-Zugló go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Roland Lehoczky 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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Norbert Szélpál was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Gabor Botka has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Krisztian Nikolic is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Peter Kleinheisler has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Janos Gazdag has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
There is a version of every career where the player ends up somewhere he chose rather than somewhere that chose him. Kristóf Tóth-Gábor is living that version at BVSC-Zugló, and it tends to show in the first month.
Roland Lehoczky and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad3 Aug 2026
Words at BVSC-Zugló training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Norbert Szélpál is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
At 22 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.