6 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 26 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Ferencvaros hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Balazs Gulacsi. 2‑0 against Haladas, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
5 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 Ferencvaros 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: Balazs Gulacsi. 2‑1 against MTK Budapest, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
“I am grateful for the games, but I did not become a footballer to be somebody else's spare part.” He wants to be at Ferencvaros, and 4 appearances in 15 say he has earned the hearing.
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.
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.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Position 3, 21 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 9.22 — 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.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 18 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Jonathan Levi 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.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Ferencvaros can pretend not to have heard.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.96 — 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.
“I watch every Ferencvaros game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at CFR Cluj runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Jonathan Levi 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.
He left as a boy and has come back still knowing where the away end is. Most signings have to be explained to a town; this one needed a photograph and nothing else.
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.
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Ferencvaros have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Shots: 15. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ferencvaros are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Cadu signs something — a contract at Ferencvaros or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Everyone has stopped pretending: Vojvodina will make the call about Marcos Gómez this week. Ferencvaros have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.
Marked 8.54 — 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
An error at the back is a moment; an error in goal is a goal. Dénes Dibusz knows it, the crowd knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Ferencvaros know it.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Marked 8.42 — 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.
Marked 8.00 — 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.
“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 Ferencvaros, and it is not being withdrawn.
The name of Benjámin Gólik has come up in conversations Ferencvaros were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
The offer from Vojvodina for Marcos Gómez 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.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Marked 9.28 — 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.
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Ferencvaros have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Ferencvaros hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 22 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Jonathan Levi 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 shirt still fits. Balazs Nagy is back at Ferencvaros, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
The shirt still fits. Szabolcs Nagy is back at Ferencvaros, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
He left as a boy and has come back still knowing where the away end is. Most signings have to be explained to a town; this one needed a photograph and nothing else.
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Balazs Gulacsi is a Ferencvaros player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Daniel Arzani will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Ferencvaros 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ferencvaros are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
He is doing things on a Saturday afternoon that nobody around him can answer, which is flattering for about one season and a problem after that. Ferencvaros will not keep him by pretending otherwise.
Jonathan Levi 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.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ferencvaros are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Ferencvaros know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Ferencvaros can pretend not to have heard.
Add another name to the list: Besiktas have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Benjámin Gólik. The answer from Ferencvaros has not changed — yet.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Georgy Arutyunyan has done the arithmetic and does not like the answer. Nothing corrodes a squad faster, and no club has ever solved it by explaining the wage structure to a footballer.
The terraces9 Jul 2029
Supporters make their feelings known about Benjámin Gólik
The speculation has reached the stands, and the stands have answered. Ferencvaros would like this settled before it becomes the only thing anybody asks about.
“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 Ferencvaros, and it is not being withdrawn.
Jonathan Levi 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.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ferencvaros are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Ferencvaros can pretend not to have heard.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Daniel Arzani will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Ferencvaros 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The phone has started ringing about Yeison Moreno again, and this time the name on the line is Puskas Akademia. Ferencvaros are listening politely and promising nothing.
The fee is $1.8M, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. MTK Budapest drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
The chase for Cristo Lozada Echenique ended with $570.0K changing hands and All Boys out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.
Jonathan Levi was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Everyone has stopped pretending: Honved will make the call about Yeison Moreno this week. Ferencvaros have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.
He is doing things on a Saturday afternoon that nobody around him can answer, which is flattering for about one season and a problem after that. Ferencvaros will not keep him by pretending otherwise.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Ferencvaros has been clear about where Toon Raemaekers stands, which is more than many ever get.
Every touch is being weighed now, in print and everywhere else. Some players grow into that and some are quietly ruined by it, and nobody knows which in advance.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Add another name to the list: Honved have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Yeison Moreno. The answer from Ferencvaros has not changed — yet.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Ferencvaros has been clear about where Yeison Moreno stands, which is more than many ever get.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Naby Keïta signs something — a contract at Ferencvaros or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Arbenit Xhemajli may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
This is the season the town will measure the next twenty against. The trophy travels home with the squad, and the route through the streets was agreed days ago.
There are footballers who have a good season and footballers a season is remembered for, and the second kind get their names read out in a hall in the summer. Ferencvaros will be quietly delighted and privately nervous.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Jonathan Levi 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.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ferencvaros are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Ferencvaros hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Jonathan Levi was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Jonathan Levi signs something — a contract at Ferencvaros or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Franko Kovačević has done the arithmetic and does not like the answer. Nothing corrodes a squad faster, and no club has ever solved it by explaining the wage structure to a footballer.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Yeison Moreno trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
In brief
BoardroomThe Ferencvaros production line keeps running
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Elvin Cəfərquliyev and Ferencvaros agree another 4 years.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros 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.” Elvin Cəfərquliyev and Ferencvaros agree another 4 years.
Jonathan Levi 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.
“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 Ferencvaros, 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Jonathan Levi 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.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ferencvaros are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Jonathan Levi 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.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Ferencvaros know it.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Jonathan Levi signs something — a contract at Ferencvaros or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Position 1, 53 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking it.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ferencvaros 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Ferencvaros have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Everyone has stopped pretending: Panserraikos will make the call about Yeison Moreno this week. Ferencvaros have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.
Benjámin Gólik has done the arithmetic and does not like the answer. Nothing corrodes a squad faster, and no club has ever solved it by explaining the wage structure to a footballer.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Numbers do not stay secret in a dressing room and never have. He is not asking for more than he is worth; he is asking why somebody beside him is worth more, and at Ferencvaros that is a harder question to answer.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Ferencvaros have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Ferencvaros can pretend not to have heard.
“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Ferencvaros heard it as anything else.
Jonathan Levi was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Jonathan Levi signs something — a contract at Ferencvaros or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Ferencvaros 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Ferencvaros have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Jonathan Levi was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Ferencvaros, and both men came out saying it was fine.
There is a level at which a footballer stops being tested and starts being contained, and he reached it some time ago. Ferencvaros know it, and so does everybody who watches him.
The fee is $2.5M, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Hrvatski Dragovoljac drove a hard bargain; time will say who won 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
There is a level at which a footballer stops being tested and starts being contained, and he reached it some time ago. Ferencvaros know it, and so does everybody who watches him.
The offer from Honved for Aleksandar Ćirković 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.
The chase for Bálint Geiger ended with $2.0M changing hands and Ujpest out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.
Jonathan Levi 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.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ferencvaros are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Ferencvaros can pretend not to have heard.
An individual honour is a strange thing in a team game, and the best of them are never argued with. He has had the sort of year that ends with his name being read out, and Ferencvaros have had the benefit of it.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ferencvaros is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Mariano Gómez 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.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ferencvaros are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
10 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.
Jonathan Levi 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 2‑1 win over Puskas Akademia, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Benjámin Gólik trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
9 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
Mariano Gómez 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.
Marked 8.28 — 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.
8 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.88 — 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.
7 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ferencvaros is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Mariano Gómez 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.
Marked 9.18 — 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.
Cup ties wait for somebody to seize them, and Zsombor Gruber obliged against Haladas. 1‑0 on the night, and the name in the next round’s hat is Ferencvaros.
6 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
“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 Ferencvaros, and it is not being withdrawn.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Ferencvaros have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
4 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 26 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ferencvaros are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
3 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.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Marked 8.05 — 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.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 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 Ferencvaros 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Marked 9.94 — 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.
Marked 9.41 — 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Shots: 6. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
A year in and the language has not come, the city has not opened up, and he eats alone more often than anybody at Ferencvaros would like to admit. It is showing on Saturdays.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 28 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
3 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 22 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ferencvaros 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
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.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Kristoffer Zachariassen. 2‑1 against Puskas Akademia, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Marked 9.62 — 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.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Ferencvaros know 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 8.79 — 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.
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.
A year in and the language has not come, the city has not opened up, and he eats alone more often than anybody at Ferencvaros would like to admit. It is showing on Saturdays.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Marked 9.10 — 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.
Marked 9.09 — 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.
There is a level at which a footballer stops being tested and starts being contained, and he reached it some time ago. Ferencvaros know it, and so does everybody who watches him.
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Ferencvaros have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
Jonathan Levi 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.
Marked 9.15 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
The offer from Debrecen for Zétény Varga 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Ferencvaros have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
“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 Ferencvaros, and it is not being withdrawn.
Jonathan Levi 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 name of Zétény Varga has come up in conversations Ferencvaros were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Shots: 9. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
In brief
Player ratingsThe one thing Jonathan Levi could not do
3 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 Ferencvaros 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: Ismaïl Aaneba. 1‑0 against Haladas, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Ferencvaros have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 9.28 — 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.
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Ferencvaros have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
Mariano Gómez 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 clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ferencvaros is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Ferencvaros moved before anybody else could: a new deal for Szabolcs Nikolic, agreed quietly and announced loudly. Boards extend managers for many reasons; the good one is the one this looks like.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Istvan Lisztes is a Ferencvaros player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Attila Fiola is a Ferencvaros player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ferencvaros is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Mariano Gómez 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 phone has started ringing about Gábor Szalai again, and this time the name on the line is Bekescsaba. Ferencvaros are listening politely and promising nothing.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Ferencvaros know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Position 2, 45 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Ferencvaros know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Habib Maïga trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Mariano Gómez was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The offer from Paksi for Zsombor Gruber 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.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ferencvaros is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Mariano Gómez 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 phone has started ringing about Gábor Szalai again, and this time the name on the line is Bekescsaba. Ferencvaros are listening politely and promising nothing.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Ferencvaros, and both men came out saying it was fine.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros 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 Ferencvaros has been clear about where Jerson Malagón stands, which is more than many ever get.
Puskas Akademia pay $3.8M, and the deal is done. The number reads well on a balance sheet; whether it reads well on the pitch is next season's question.
Mariano Gómez 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 name of Toon Raemaekers has come up in conversations Ferencvaros were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Everyone has stopped pretending: Bekescsaba will make the call about Jerson Malagón this week. Ferencvaros have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Add another name to the list: Ujpest have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Kenan Kodro. The answer from Ferencvaros has not changed — yet.
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Elton Acolatse has his answer from Ferencvaros; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
Qualification is secured, and next season the big floodlit nights are continental ones. For the players it is a stage; for the accounts it is a lifeline; for the supporters it is passports.
There are footballers who have a good season and footballers a season is remembered for, and the second kind get their names read out in a hall in the summer. Ferencvaros will be quietly delighted and privately nervous.
Callum O'Dowda was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Ferencvaros, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Ferencvaros know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
“Judge me on him.” Managers do not say that kind of thing by accident — it moves the pressure from Jonathan Levi’s shoulders onto his own, and both of them know 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Ferencvaros can pretend not to have heard.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Ferencvaros they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Mariano Gómez 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.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Kenan Kodro will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Ferencvaros 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Mariano Gómez 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.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ferencvaros are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Ferencvaros know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Position 2, 45 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I watch every Ferencvaros game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Honved runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
“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 Ferencvaros, and it is not being withdrawn.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Gábor Szalai will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Ferencvaros the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Mariano Gómez 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.
6 goals in 22 games at Debrecen — numbers that travel home faster than he does. Somebody at Ferencvaros updates a spreadsheet every Monday, and it makes better reading each week.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Habib Maïga signs something — a contract at Ferencvaros or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ferencvaros 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Mariano Gómez was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Gábor Szalai will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Ferencvaros the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Mariano Gómez 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 clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Ferencvaros 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Mariano Gómez was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and Ferencvaros know it.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Gábor Szalai will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Ferencvaros the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Mariano Gómez was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Ferencvaros, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Kenan Kodro will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Ferencvaros 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The chase for Zalán Kerezsi ended with $1.8M changing hands and Puskas Akademia out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.
Mariano Gómez 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 new face in his position, and Jonathan Levi suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Ferencvaros have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Ferencvaros know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Ferencvaros, and both men came out saying it was fine.
The offer from Bekescsaba for Gábor Szalai 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I watch every Ferencvaros game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Haladas runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Ferencvaros know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
“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 Ferencvaros, and it is not being withdrawn.
The deal that would have taken Ibrahim Cissé to Bekescsaba has collapsed at the last stage, and he reports back to Ferencvaros with a summer to forget and a season still to play. Nobody is saying which side walked away.
Mariano Gómez 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 phone has started ringing about Kenan Kodro again, and this time the name on the line is Ujpest. Ferencvaros are listening politely and promising nothing.
“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 Ferencvaros, 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 Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The shirt still fits. Ismaïl Aaneba is back at Ferencvaros, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
Mariano Gómez 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.
Everyone has stopped pretending: Ujpest will make the call about Toon Raemaekers this week. Ferencvaros have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Ferencvaros know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Position 2, 45 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking it.
There are footballers who have a good season and footballers a season is remembered for, and the second kind get their names read out in a hall in the summer. Ferencvaros will be quietly delighted and privately nervous.
“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 Ferencvaros, and it is not being withdrawn.
Callum O'Dowda 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 phone has started ringing about Toon Raemaekers again, and this time the name on the line is Ujpest. Ferencvaros are listening politely and promising nothing.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Ferencvaros are dealing with a man who wants a different country.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Jonathan Levi signs something — a contract at Ferencvaros or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
In brief
Loan watchThe goals keep arriving from Bamidele Yusuf’s exile
The terracesThe press have found their man in Callum O'Dowda
“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 Ferencvaros, and it is not being withdrawn.
Mariano Gómez 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.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 20 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 40 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 27 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Ferencvaros this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Marked 9.38 — 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.