A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Cherno More will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
A performance of 8.42 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Player ratings10 Nov 2031
Preslav Borukov was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.28. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
A 2‑2 draw with Septemvri leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
Boardroom10 Nov 2031
87% of the income goes out in wages at Cherno More
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.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Cherno More will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Preslav Borukov 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 goal that put Arda ahead was still being replayed on the concourse when Cherno More equalised, 4 minutes later. Leads are only worth what you do with them.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Cherno More will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
“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 The request is on a desk at Cherno More, and it is not being withdrawn.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Preslav Borukov 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.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Cherno More will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Plamen Iliev 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.
11 goals and a season average of 7.24 will do that. The space he used to find has gone; he keeps scoring anyway, which is the mark of the real thing.
Squad20 Oct 2031
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ventsislav Kerchev 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 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.
He is the name in every column and on every phone-in, which is a heavy thing to carry at any age. Some footballers thrive on it; others are quietly finished by it.
In brief
Looking aheadCherno More take on the side everybody is chasing
Player ratingsThe chances came and went for Georgi Lazarov
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.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Squad13 Oct 2031
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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 8.03 — 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.
1‑5 against Levski, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
Match4 Oct 2031
After 12 games, Cherno More finally taste it again
The first defeat in 12 matches. The manager will say it had to come; the dressing room will say it did not have to come against Levski; the supporters will say both, in that order, all week.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
6 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Cherno More and Levski in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
Squad6 Oct 2031
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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.
“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 Cherno More, and it is not being withdrawn.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Preslav Borukov 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.
Levski next, and the two sides the division is watching meet each other. Whoever wins will be told nothing is decided in the same breath as being congratulated.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ventsislav Kerchev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Plamen Iliev 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 Sep 2031
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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 8.13 — 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.
A point taken on 96 minutes is worth exactly one point and considerably more than that to a dressing room. This side does not stop, which is a reputation worth more than the result.
“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.
Some goals win a match and some take one off somebody else. Georgi Lazarov scored in the 85th minute, Beroe had already begun thinking about the journey home, and Cherno More took the lot.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Cherno More asked and Ludogorets said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Successful dribbles: 21. 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.
Squad15 Sep 2031
David Teles 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.
264 appearances across 12 seasons in one shirt. Nobody builds a career like that on purpose any more; it happens to a certain kind of footballer at a certain kind of club.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Kristian Mihaylov will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Preslav Borukov 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.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Michele De Rossi and Cherno More agree another 3 years.
Cherno More asked and Crvena Zvezda said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ventsislav Kerchev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Player ratings8 Sep 2031
Petar Andreev was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.11. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
12 seasons and 264 appearances, all of them here. Careers like this are not designed; they happen to a certain kind of man at a certain kind of club, and this town has one.
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 13 arrived, 5 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cherno More can pretend not to have heard.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Antoan Manasiev will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
200 games in this shirt, through managers and relegations and everything else. Service like it is disappearing from the game and the crowd knows what it is watching.
Marked 7.79 on 9 actions at both ends of the pitch. Midfielders like this get described as unspectacular by people who have never tried to play against one.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Slavia Sofia waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Squad25 Aug 2031
David Teles 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 club looked outside for a month, found nothing it preferred, and handed the job to the man who had been doing it anyway. He knows the building; now he has to prove he knows the rest.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Cherno More have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Cherno More asked and Ludogorets said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Plamen Iliev 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 23 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.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Cherno More have lost him in all but the paperwork.
There is a version of every career where the player ends up somewhere he chose rather than somewhere that chose him. Hristo Bodurov is living that version at Cherno More, and it tends to show in the first month.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Kristian Mihaylov will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Form comes and goes; this has not gone. Emanuil Nyagolov is 22, and the version of him training now would not have got into the side he was in a year ago.
Preslav Borukov 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.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cherno More can pretend not to have heard.
Successful dribbles: 22. 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 9.42 — 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.
A 3‑1 win over Montana, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Squad4 Aug 2031
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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.
“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 Cherno More, and it is not being withdrawn.
The offer from Gomel for Kristian Mihaylov 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.
Plamen Iliev 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.
13 days since the seat came open, a list of names doing the rounds, and nobody has signed anything. Every week this drags on the shortlist gets shorter.
The phone has started ringing about Rafael Pereira again, and this time the name on the line is Beroe. Cherno More are listening politely and promising nothing.
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.
Not an interim appointment — an institution with an empty coaching office. Somebody unfamiliar will run the sessions this week, and the question of how a club gets into this state is one the board will be asked and will not answer.
“Somebody picks the team on Saturday. This week it is me, and that is as far as I have thought.” No promises were made in either direction, which is how these usually begin.
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.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Ludogorets have kept their man, and Cherno More go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Form comes and goes; this has not gone. Petar Krastev is 23, and the version of him training now would not have got into the side he was in a year ago.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Form comes and goes; this has not gone. Emanuil Nyagolov is 22, and the version of him training now would not have got into the side he was in a year ago.
At 26 the improving is meant to be over. It is not: 3 points better than the mark taken at the start of the year, which is the sort of thing that happens to players who take the boring parts of the job seriously.
Squad14 Jul 2031
David Teles 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.
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
What was said behind closed doors has now been said in front of a microphone. Everybody at Cherno More can do the arithmetic, including the man it is aimed at.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Beroe waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cherno More can pretend not to have heard.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ventsislav Kerchev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Cherno More people have started saying his name in the past tense.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Squad30 Jun 2031
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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 easiest signature of my career.” Nikolay Kostadinov and Cherno More agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Nobody at Cherno More will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
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 Emanuil Nyagolov is on it.
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Cherno More. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Cherno More people have started saying his name in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Cherno More asked and Crvena Zvezda said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ventsislav Kerchev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
With 5 players away on international duty the sessions are small and the manager can actually hear himself. It is the one break in the season, and it never quite feels like one.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Cherno More know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Nobody at Cherno More 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.
A window away with the national side, and a shirt at Cherno More that briefly doubles as an advertisement. A call-up flatters the player and the club that built him in the same breath.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Cherno More people have started saying his name in the past tense.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
“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 Cherno More, and it is not being withdrawn.
Plamen Iliev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad9 Jun 2031
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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 no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Simeon Georgiev 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.
Cherno More have made the call to Crvena Zvezda. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
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.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cherno More can pretend not to have heard.
Preslav Borukov and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad2 Jun 2031
David Teles 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 name of Antoan Manasiev has come up in conversations Cherno More were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
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.
The window is open, and with it the only month of the year when a supporter’s hopes are limited by nothing but arithmetic. The board know the arithmetic; the supporters know the hopes.
In brief
The dugoutStanislav Tonev loses the manager who believed in him
“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 Cherno More, and it is not being withdrawn.
The kind of year that ends with a name being read out in a hall. Cherno More had the benefit of it every week and now have the problem of everybody else knowing.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Plamen Iliev 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.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad19 May 2031
David Teles 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.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Jorge Padilla signs something — a contract at Cherno More or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Antoan Manasiev trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
In brief
The dugoutThe manager plants his flag on Petar Andreev
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Berk Beyhan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Plamen Iliev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad12 May 2031
David Teles 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.
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
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.
Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at Cherno More is running low.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cherno More can pretend not to have heard.
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 Plamen Iliev is on it.
It will be explained as a change for the team and it may even be one. Nobody who has worn one believes that, and neither does the man who has just had it taken away.
A new partner, a signature and a photograph nobody will remember. It funds a fortnight of wages, which is more than most headlines on this page can say for themselves.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Antoan Manasiev will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Plamen Iliev 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 David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Nobody at Cherno More 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.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Cherno More have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Kristian Mihaylov will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad21 Apr 2031
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Georgi Lazarov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Preslav Borukov 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.
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Squad7 Apr 2031
David Teles 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 manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Ventsislav Kerchev has his answer from Cherno More; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
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 Plamen Iliev is on it.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cherno More can pretend not to have heard.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Squad31 Mar 2031
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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 Cherno More 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.
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Cherno More. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Kristian Mihaylov will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More 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 Jorge Padilla signs something — a contract at Cherno More or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Ivan Paskov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
In brief
The dugoutThe manager plants his flag on Plamen Iliev
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Preslav Borukov 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 easiest signature of my career.” Agustin Colmegna and Cherno More agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad17 Mar 2031
David Teles 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 manager has not finished forgetting Vlatko Drobarov's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
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 Kristian Mihaylov is on it.
Plamen Iliev 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 David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
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.
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 Antoan Manasiev has written the date down.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Cherno More, and both men came out saying it was fine.
“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 Cherno More, and it is not being withdrawn.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Plamen Iliev 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.
The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Gustavo Henriques is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
It will be explained as a change for the team and it may even be one. Nobody who has worn one believes that, and neither does the man who has just had it taken away.
Nobody at Cherno More 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.
CSKA Sofia go through and Cherno More go home, 0‑2 the scoreline that did it. The dressing room will call the league the priority now, because that is what dressing rooms say.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Cherno More have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Preslav Borukov 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.
Squad24 Feb 2031
David Teles 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.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Berk Beyhan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
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 Berk Beyhan is on it.
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Cherno More, and both men came out saying it was fine.
0‑4 to Ludogorets, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
Position 12 on 30 points. Every season is a story and this is the last line of it, and now the club has three months to decide what the next one is about.
Two or more conceded in each of the last 7 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Plamen Iliev 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 Ventsislav Kerchev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The music was off and the showers ran late. What was said in that dressing room stays there, but Saturday will publish the minutes.
The dugout10 Feb 2031
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 0‑4 Petar Nedelev left the room before anybody could ask which.
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Boardroom3 Feb 2031
Deadline passes with 0 signed and 3 gone
That is the business done at Cherno More 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.
8 without a win is the sort of run that changes how a town talks about its club, and Botev Plovdiv were the afternoon it stopped. Nothing is fixed by one result and everything feels different by one.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Antoan Manasiev will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
The phone has started ringing about Berk Beyhan again, and this time the name on the line is Levski. Cherno More are listening politely and promising nothing.
Preslav Borukov 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.
Two or more conceded in each of the last 5 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
0‑2 to CSKA Sofia, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
The dugout27 Jan 2031
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 0‑2 Petar Nedelev left the room before anybody could ask which.
The dugout27 Jan 2031
Asen Donchev is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cherno More can pretend not to have heard.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Two or more conceded in each of the last 4 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
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 last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Cherno More have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Plamen Iliev 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 David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Successful dribbles: 17. 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.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Slavia Sofia waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
“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 Cherno More, 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 Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Ventsislav Kerchev and Cherno More agree another 2 years.
Squad6 Jan 2031
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Berk Beyhan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More 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 dugout30 Dec 2030
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 Petar Nedelev left the room before anybody could ask which.
“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 Cherno More, and it is not being withdrawn.
Plamen Iliev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad23 Dec 2030
David Teles 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.
16 defensive actions and a clean sheet at the end of them. A defender's afternoon can only be told by what did not happen, which is why nobody makes a highlights package out of one and every manager in the division would take it.
“A point is a point and I will take it, but we should have had all three.” Petar Nedelev after the 0‑0 draw, and the sentence every manager in the country said at some stage this weekend.
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 Berk Beyhan is on it.
Something was said to Michele De Rossi and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.
3 in front and in complete control, and it finished with Dobrudzha the happier side. There is no version of this afternoon that Cherno More will enjoy reviewing.
Plamen Iliev 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 David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
2 goals to the good, and then a slow surrender of everything that had been earned. Georgi Lazarov will not be the one blamed for it, but nobody at Cherno More escapes the conversation that follows a collapse like this.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
1 error, one goal, and a night in front of the same three seconds. He will see it tonight, tomorrow and probably in February, and everybody who has played knows exactly which frame he keeps stopping on.
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 Plamen Iliev is on it.
The 2-goal deficit was real and so was the recovery. Georgi Lazarov was at the centre of it, CSKA 1948 were at the end of it, and everybody who left early will hear about this one for years.
Two goals and a mark of 8.63 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
There is an age at which every good afternoon gets described as a throwback, which is unfair and also accurate. 8.08 at 35, and nobody on the pitch was better.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Georgi Lazarov. 4‑3 against CSKA 1948, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
2 kept out in the shoot-out, and a stadium that will still be describing them in twenty years. A goalkeeper only needs one of these to be remembered forever.
“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 Cherno More, and it is not being withdrawn.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Successful dribbles: 19. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Player ratings25 Nov 2030
Nikolay Zlatev was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.18. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
9 without a win is the sort of run that changes how a town talks about its club, and Montana were the afternoon it stopped. Nothing is fixed by one result and everything feels different by one.
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.29, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad18 Nov 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ventsislav Kerchev 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 no complaint available here and everybody involved knows it, which does not make the walk to the bench any shorter. Form is the only currency in football that cannot be borrowed against.
In brief
The dugoutBerk Beyhan knocks on the manager’s door
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 8 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Successful dribbles: 21. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad11 Nov 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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.
Player ratings11 Nov 2030
Jorge Padilla was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.05. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
Behind, and beaten by any honest reading, until minute 94. Septemvri had the points in their pocket and a corner of the ground still believed, which is generally when it happens.
It needed Jorge Padilla to find the net to bring anything home at all: 2‑2 against Septemvri, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
The dugout11 Nov 2030
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Petar Nedelev was not hiding it after 2‑2, and nobody in the Cherno More dressing room was either.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Berk Beyhan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and David Teles 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 Gustavo Henriques, and the manager let it.
The dugout4 Nov 2030
The view from the dugout
“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Petar Nedelev chose the glass-half-full version of 1‑1; the supporters left with the other one.
Jorge Padilla scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑2 to Ludogorets, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.
Squad28 Oct 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ventsislav Kerchev 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.
Position 11, 15 points, and every result so far reduced to one line. The second half of the season starts with the same squad and a different set of expectations.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Kristian Mihaylov and Cherno More agree another 4 years.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 1‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
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.
6 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Preslav Borukov 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 David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Stanislav Tonev and Cherno More agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
0‑1 to CSKA Sofia, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
The dugout14 Oct 2030
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 0‑1 defeat, delivered by Petar Nedelev to a room that had heard them before.
He used to wear the other shirt. On Saturday he plays against Botev Plovdiv in this one, and whatever he says this week about it being just another game will be untrue.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Cherno More know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Plamen Iliev 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 Ventsislav Kerchev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.
The dugout7 Oct 2030
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 Petar Nedelev left the room before anybody could ask which.
The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Miguel Vieira is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
In brief
The terracesThe spotlight tightens on Plamen Iliev
“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 Cherno More, and it is not being withdrawn.
Preslav Borukov and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad30 Sep 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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 squad has one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Preslav Borukov’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and Cherno More needing him to play as if none of it matters.
“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 Cherno More, and it is not being withdrawn.
Plamen Iliev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad23 Sep 2030
David Teles 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.
200 games in this shirt, through managers and relegations and everything else. Service like it is disappearing from the game and the crowd knows what it is watching.
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 Emanuil Nyagolov is on it.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Kristian Mihaylov will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Milko Petrov 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. Svetoslav Slavchev 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.
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Vladimir Delev 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.
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.
Two goals and a mark of 9.98 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
Footballers are asked about their boyhood club so often that nobody listens to the answer. Miguel Vieira has just signed for Cherno More, and for once the answer mattered.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Berk Beyhan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
At 35 he is supposed to be managing his minutes. Instead he was marked 8.26 and looked, for ninety minutes, exactly like the player everybody remembers.
Everything was agreed until it was not, and Aleksandar Lyubenov reports back to Cherno More with a summer to forget. Neither club is saying who walked away from the table.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Two goals and a mark of 9.58 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
“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 Cherno More, and it is not being withdrawn.
235 appearances across 11 seasons in one shirt. Careers like that are not built on purpose any more, and Cherno More know exactly what they have.
Boardroom2 Sep 2030
Cherno More close the window on a squad of their own making
11 in and 16 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 David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Marked 9.08 — 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.
In brief
Player ratingsBoth jobs done by Stefano Sensi — 7.53
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
14 combined actions and 7.76. The job he did is the one that shows up as other people looking good, and the only reliable way to notice it is to watch what happens on the afternoons he is missing.
Marked 7.06 on 11 actions at both ends of the pitch. Midfielders like this get described as unspectacular by people who have never tried to play against one.
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.
Level with 90 minutes on the clock, after an afternoon Cherno More had all but put away. Spartak 1918 will call it a point earned; the home dressing room will call it two given away, and both of them are right.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Antoan Manasiev and Cherno More agree another 3 years.
2 kept out from twelve yards, and a stadium that will describe each of them for twenty years. A goalkeeper needs one night like this in a career, and this was it.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Cherno More have lost him in all but the paperwork.
The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Kristian Mihaylov did not need any: 7.90, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad19 Aug 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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 particular warmth a ground reserves for a 21-year-old it feels ownership of. Kristian Mihaylov 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.
4 goals to the good, and then a slow surrender of everything that had been earned. Nikolay Zlatev will not be the one blamed for it, but nobody at Cherno More escapes the conversation that follows a collapse like this.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Cherno More people have started saying his name in the past tense.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Berk Beyhan will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Successful dribbles: 33. 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.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Cherno More people have started saying his name in the past tense.
385 appearances across 9 seasons in one shirt. Nobody builds a career like that on purpose any more; it happens to a certain kind of footballer at a certain kind of club.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Cherno More asked and Slavia Prague said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad5 Aug 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ventsislav Kerchev 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.
Behind, and beaten by any honest reading, until minute 89. Montana had the points in their pocket and a corner of the ground still believed, which is generally when it happens.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Cherno More people have started saying his name in the past tense.
The terraces29 Jul 2030
The mood at Cherno More has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Two goals and a mark of 9.41 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
6 matches without a win, and then this, against Septemvri. Relief is a strange noise in a football ground and it was the only noise at the end.
Squad29 Jul 2030
David Teles 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 words a physio says slowly. 18 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 clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Cherno More people have started saying his name in the past tense.
6 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
The phone has started ringing about Berk Beyhan again, and this time the name on the line is Levski. Cherno More are listening politely and promising nothing.
Cherno More had done everything except persuade the man himself. He stays at Ludogorets, and the manager goes back to the drawing board with the money still in the bank.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
25 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Cherno More lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
The deal with Ludogorets 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad15 Jul 2030
Petar Marinov has improved at 24, which nobody expected
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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ventsislav Kerchev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Every squad has one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Preslav Borukov’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and Cherno More needing him to play as if none of it matters.
2 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee Cherno More could ask drops and the wages Vasil Panayotov can ask rise.
In brief
BoardroomThe Cherno More production line keeps running
32 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Cherno More lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Lokomotiv Sofia waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cherno More can pretend not to have heard.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Plamen Iliev 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 21 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.
Squad8 Jul 2030
David Teles 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.
40 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Cherno More lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Not a run of form — an actual step up, held for months. At 23 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.
Plamen Iliev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad1 Jul 2030
David Teles 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.
48 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Cherno More lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Cherno More people have started saying his name in the past tense.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Preslav Borukov 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.
Cherno More asked and Slavia Prague said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
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.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Cherno More know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
56 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Cherno More lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Cherno More have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Squad17 Jun 2030
David Teles 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 name of Antoan Manasiev has come up in conversations Cherno More were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Slavia Prague have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Agustin Colmegna trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
64 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Cherno More lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Beroe waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Squad10 Jun 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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 has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Preslav Borukov signs something — a contract at Cherno More or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
74 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Cherno More lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Ventsislav Kerchev and Cherno More agree another 2 years.
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.
Crvena Zvezda have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Cherno More know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
82 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Cherno More lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Preslav Borukov 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.
Squad27 May 2030
David Teles 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.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Cherno More know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
89 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Cherno More lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Squad20 May 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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.
96 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Cherno More lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Squad13 May 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ventsislav Kerchev 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 has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Preslav Borukov signs something — a contract at Cherno More or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Numbers do not stay secret in a dressing room. He is not asking for more than he is worth; he is asking why somebody beside him is worth more, and Cherno More have no good answer.
4 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee Cherno More could ask drops and the wages Vasil Panayotov can ask rise.
The words a physio says slowly. 103 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.
Preslav Borukov 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.
In brief
SquadWords at Cherno More training over how hard people work
The words a physio says slowly. 110 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.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Antoan Manasiev will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad29 Apr 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Emanuil Nyagolov 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 had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Cherno More, and both men came out saying it was fine.
118 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Cherno More lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Plamen Iliev 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 Ventsislav Kerchev 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 Cherno More, and both men came out saying it was fine.
125 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Cherno More lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Cherno More they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Plamen Iliev 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.
Squad15 Apr 2030
David Teles 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.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Preslav Borukov signs something — a contract at Cherno More or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
A year in and the city has not opened up, the language has not come, and lunch is eaten alone more often than anybody at Cherno More would admit. It shows on Saturdays.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Aleksandar Lyubenov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
5 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee Cherno More could ask drops and the wages Vasil Panayotov can ask rise.
132 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Cherno More lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Preslav Borukov 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.
In brief
SquadDavid Teles falls out with a teammate over standards
140 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Cherno More lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Antoan Manasiev will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Cherno More has been clear about where Vasil Panayotov stands, which is more than many ever get.
Somebody has moved past him. It is not a dropping and it is worse than one, because a dropping is about a Saturday and this is about where he stands.
Squad1 Apr 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Emanuele Granziera 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.
148 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Cherno More lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Plamen Iliev 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 David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The words a physio says slowly. 155 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 clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Preslav Borukov signs something — a contract at Cherno More or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
42 graduates, from a department now rated 9 out of 20. Nothing about the academy appears in a result, and nothing about the club’s future exists without it.
6 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee Cherno More could ask drops and the wages Vasil Panayotov can ask rise.
“Judge me on him.” Managers do not say that kind of thing by accident — it moves the pressure from Plamen Iliev’s shoulders onto his own, and both of them know it.
A manager forgives a bad Saturday far more readily than a bad Tuesday, because one of them he can explain and the other one he chose. The reports this week have not been good.
163 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Cherno More 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 Ventsislav Kerchev 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 Cherno More, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Antoan Manasiev will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad4 Mar 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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.
A month is long enough that nobody gets in by accident. Emanuil Nyagolov is in the division's best eleven for it, which is a quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.
Plamen Iliev 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 David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The system has changed and his position has not. A footballer can improve his form; he cannot improve the manager’s formation, and that is the whole of the problem.
He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at Cherno More has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Cherno More, and both men came out saying it was fine.
The injury that keeps coming back, keeps being rushed back from, and quietly costs more careers than the dramatic ones. 14 days is the estimate; the honest figure depends on whether anybody is patient.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Kristian Mihaylov will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
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 easiest signature of my career.” Michele De Rossi and Cherno More agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Preslav Borukov signs something — a contract at Cherno More or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 11 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
0‑8 against Ludogorets, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
The last league game has been played and the table has stopped moving: 44 points. The summer begins on Monday, and so does the argument about what it all meant.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
5 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
Match9 Feb 2030
Nobody could stop scoring
8 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Cherno More and Ludogorets in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
Squad11 Feb 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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 clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Cherno More people have started saying his name in the past tense.
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 4 arrived, 6 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Antoan Manasiev will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Cherno More the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Every footballer has an answer to the question about his boyhood club, and most of them never get to act on it. Agustin Colmegna has, at Cherno More, and the first month will show what that does to a man.
Squad4 Feb 2030
David Teles 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.
Cherno More asked and Lumezzane said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Cherno More have done the hard part with CSKA 1948, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cherno More can pretend not to have heard.
Add another name to the list: Abia Warriors have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Kristian Mihaylov. The answer from Cherno More has not changed — yet.
Successful dribbles: 18. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
Squad28 Jan 2030
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ventsislav Kerchev 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 easiest signature of my career.” Emanuele Granziera and Cherno More agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Cherno More people have started saying his name in the past tense.
The deal with Montana 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.
Plamen Iliev 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.
8 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Cherno More and Levski in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nikolay Zlatev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Beroe will keep picking him until June and will get nothing for him after it. Gustavo Henriques has pre-agreed a move to Cherno More, and the only people who lose in that arrangement are the ones who let the contract run down.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Racing Genk have kept their man, and Cherno More go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
In brief
SquadDefences have started doubling up on Jorge Padilla
“It was not right for me. I am not going to explain why to anybody except the people I owe an explanation to.” A deal agreed between two clubs, and a player who declined to be part of it.
0‑3 to Lokomotiv Sofia, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
Cherno More have gone to CSKA 1948 with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.
Terms were offered and declined. Whether it was the wages, the role or the town, nobody at NK Varazdin is saying, and nobody at Cherno More is enjoying the guessing.
Successful dribbles: 22. 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More 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.
Cherno More asked and Club Brugge said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Spartak 1918 waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Cherno More is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Ufa have kept their man, and Cherno More go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Successful dribbles: 19. 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.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Preslav Borukov. 1‑0 against Slavia Sofia, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Preslav Borukov provided it, and the 9.19 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad31 Dec 2029
Words at Cherno More training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. David Teles 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.
A brace, and Jorge Padilla takes the afternoon — 9.46
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Jorge Padilla provided it, and the 9.46 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Successful dribbles: 25. 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.
Plamen Iliev 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 David Teles was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Preslav Borukov provided it, and the 9.19 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cherno More this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.24 — 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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ventsislav Kerchev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“The players deserve the credit. My job was easy today.” It was not, and everybody in the room knew it; after 3‑1, Petar Nedelev could afford to be generous.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and David Teles trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.