From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad19 Mar 2029
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.
Squad19 Mar 2029
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Player ratings19 Mar 2029
A performance of 9.30 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Match17 Mar 2029
Nasaf get the job done against Andijon
A 2‑0 win over Andijon, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Player ratings19 Mar 2029
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 ratings19 Mar 2029
Marked 8.68 — 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.
Squad19 Mar 2029
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings19 Mar 2029
Marked 8.10 — 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.
Squad19 Mar 2029
“The easiest signature of my career.” Shahriar Shojaei and Nasaf agree another 1 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings12 Mar 2029
Successful dribbles: 23. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad12 Mar 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad12 Mar 2029
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Sardorbek Bahromov commits to Nasaf for another 4 years.
Squad12 Mar 2029
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings12 Mar 2029
Some games turn on a moment; this one turned on a man. 7.70 on the card, and the Nasaf support went home talking about one name.
Player ratings12 Mar 2029
Defensive actions: 15. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings12 Mar 2029
Defensive actions: 14, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad12 Mar 2029
“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and Nasaf will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.
Match10 Mar 2029
The crowd waited for a goal that never came. Qizilqum defended in numbers and left with what they came for, and the two sides could be playing still without troubling a scorer.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad5 Mar 2029
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Adenis Shala and Nasaf agree another 3 years.
Squad5 Mar 2029
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Market5 Mar 2029
The shirt still fits. Jamshidbek Toshmuhammadov is back at Nasaf, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
Market5 Mar 2029
The shirt still fits. Shahriar Shojaei is back at Nasaf, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
Market5 Mar 2029
The shirt still fits. Islom Tukhtasinov is back at Nasaf, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
Market5 Mar 2029
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Jaloliddin Nematov is a Nasaf player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
Match3 Mar 2029
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Vlatko Stojanovski. 2‑1 against Kokand 1912, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Player ratings5 Mar 2029
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.70, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad5 Mar 2029
The medical room confirms 83 days on the sidelines for Shahriar Shojaei, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market26 Feb 2029
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Nasaf they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad26 Feb 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad26 Feb 2029
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to G'iyosjon Rizaqulov, and the manager let it.
Squad26 Feb 2029
A new face in his position, and Yusuf Otubanjo suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Nasaf have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Market26 Feb 2029
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Sharof Muhiddinov signs something — a contract at Nasaf or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Squad26 Feb 2029
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Nasaf, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market19 Feb 2029
Shakhtar arrived with $7.6M and left with the best player in the building. The board will call it business; the queue at the ticket office will use other words.
Squad19 Feb 2029
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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.
Market19 Feb 2029
The name of Kingsley Sokari keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Nasaf say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad19 Feb 2029
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Shammasu Muhammed trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Market19 Feb 2029
Nasaf shop where it costs nothing
Bill Rufer signs, and the fee column stays empty. Deals like this look small in July and clever by March — or they are never mentioned again.
Market19 Feb 2029
Nasaf shop where it costs nothing
Ryan Sutton signs, and the fee column stays empty. Deals like this look small in July and clever by March — or they are never mentioned again.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad12 Feb 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market12 Feb 2029
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Älibek Qasym’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
Squad12 Feb 2029
A new face in his position, and Vlatko Stojanovski suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Nasaf have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Market12 Feb 2029
The best deals are the ones the accountants never notice. Dane Lockyer arrives at Nasaf with his wages the only cost and something to prove the only clause.
Market12 Feb 2029
The clock does Murodbek Rahmatov’s negotiating for him
6 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee Nasaf could ask drops and the wages Murodbek Rahmatov can ask rise.
Squad12 Feb 2029
A season on the outside for Dane Lockyer
He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at Nasaf has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match5 Feb 2029
Nasaf are in among the leaders
Position 3 and 47 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.
Market5 Feb 2029
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Nasaf can pretend not to have heard.
Squad5 Feb 2029
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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.
Market5 Feb 2029
A conversation is coming this week. Nasaf will put a number on him, and from there it stops being football and becomes arithmetic.
Boardroom5 Feb 2029
The numbers do not look good at Nasaf
Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.
Market5 Feb 2029
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
Market5 Feb 2029
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Zafarmurod Abdurahmatov signs something — a contract at Nasaf or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Boardroom5 Feb 2029
$98.1K a year onto the Nasaf books
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.
Squad5 Feb 2029
The manager plants his flag on Yusuf Otubanjo
“Judge me on him.” Managers do not say that kind of thing by accident — it moves the pressure from Yusuf Otubanjo’s shoulders onto his own, and both of them know it.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market29 Jan 2029
“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 Nasaf, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad29 Jan 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad29 Jan 2029
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Davronbek Usmonov, and the manager let it.
Market29 Jan 2029
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Sharof Muhiddinov signs something — a contract at Nasaf or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Squad29 Jan 2029
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Bahodir Halilov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market22 Jan 2029
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Nasaf can pretend not to have heard.
Market22 Jan 2029
Nasaf say no — this time
The offer from Bnei Yehuda for Samandar Muratboyev 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.
Squad22 Jan 2029
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad15 Jan 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market15 Jan 2029
“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” G'iyosjon Rizaqulov has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Nasaf.
Squad15 Jan 2029
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match8 Jan 2029
Nasaf are in among the leaders
Position 3 and 47 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.
Squad8 Jan 2029
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Market8 Jan 2029
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Nasaf has been clear about where Shammasu Muhammed stands, which is more than many ever get.
Boardroom8 Jan 2029
The numbers do not look good at Nasaf
Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.
Market8 Jan 2029
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Zafarmurod Abdurahmatov signs something — a contract at Nasaf or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Market8 Jan 2029
“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.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad1 Jan 2029
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 Nasaf have had the benefit of it.
Squad1 Jan 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market1 Jan 2029
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Bahodir Halilov has his answer from Nasaf; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad25 Dec 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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 Dec 2028
The manager makes an example of Deruo Wisdom
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Market25 Dec 2028
The name of Kingsley Sokari keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Nasaf say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad18 Dec 2028
Älibek Qasym in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market18 Dec 2028
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Älibek Qasym’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
Squad18 Dec 2028
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Nasaf, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match11 Dec 2028
Nasaf refuse to drop out of the race
Position 3, 47 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.
Squad11 Dec 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Boardroom11 Dec 2028
Wages eat 87% of everything Nasaf earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
Boardroom11 Dec 2028
The numbers do not look good at Nasaf
Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.
Squad11 Dec 2028
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Market11 Dec 2028
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Zafarmurod Abdurahmatov signs something — a contract at Nasaf or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad4 Dec 2028
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Yusuf Otubanjo commits to Nasaf for another 2 years.
Squad4 Dec 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market4 Dec 2028
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad27 Nov 2028
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Nasaf may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad27 Nov 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Loan watch27 Nov 2028
“I watch every Nasaf game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Atyrau runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad20 Nov 2028
There were 12 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Squad20 Nov 2028
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 Nasaf have had the benefit of it.
Squad20 Nov 2028
20 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Squad20 Nov 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Loan watch20 Nov 2028
“I watch every Nasaf game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Lokomotiv runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Player ratings20 Nov 2028
Successful dribbles: 15. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match13 Nov 2028
Nasaf refuse to drop out of the race
Position 3, 47 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.
Squad13 Nov 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Abduvohid Ne'matov 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.
Boardroom13 Nov 2028
Wages eat 95% of everything Nasaf earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
Squad13 Nov 2028
The manager makes an example of Abrorjon Aliyev
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Boardroom13 Nov 2028
The numbers do not look good at Nasaf
Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.
Market13 Nov 2028
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Zafarmurod Abdurahmatov signs something — a contract at Nasaf or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad6 Nov 2028
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Squad6 Nov 2028
Älibek Qasym in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad6 Nov 2028
The medical room confirms 138 days on the sidelines for Eldorbek Suyunov, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Loan watch6 Nov 2028
“I did not go to Andijon to sit and watch. I want to come back to Nasaf and fight for my place.” 6 appearances in 12 matches say the rest.
Squad6 Nov 2028
The manager makes an example of Deruo Wisdom
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Market6 Nov 2028
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Sharof Muhiddinov signs something — a contract at Nasaf or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad30 Oct 2028
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Nasaf may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad30 Oct 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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.
Loan watch30 Oct 2028
“I did not go to Atyrau to sit and watch. I want to come back to Nasaf and fight for my place.” 0 appearances in 10 matches say the rest.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad23 Oct 2028
The medical room confirms 54 days on the sidelines for Yusuf Otubanjo, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad23 Oct 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Loan watch23 Oct 2028
“I did not go to Lokomotiv to sit and watch. I want to come back to Nasaf and fight for my place.” 6 appearances in 41 matches say the rest.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match16 Oct 2028
Nasaf refuse to drop out of the race
Position 3, 47 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.
Squad16 Oct 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Squad16 Oct 2028
An error at the back is a moment; an error in goal is a goal. Abduvohid Ne'matov knows it, the crowd knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
Player ratings16 Oct 2028
Marked 8.87 — 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.
Boardroom16 Oct 2028
106% of the income goes out in wages at Nasaf
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.
Boardroom16 Oct 2028
The numbers do not look good at Nasaf
Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad9 Oct 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad9 Oct 2028
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Kingsley Sokari commits to Nasaf for another 2 years.
Squad9 Oct 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to G'iyosjon Rizaqulov, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad2 Oct 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Squad2 Oct 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Kingsley Sokari and Nasaf agree another 2 years.
Squad2 Oct 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad25 Sep 2028
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.
Squad25 Sep 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings25 Sep 2028
Successful dribbles: 22. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Player ratings25 Sep 2028
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 21 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Player ratings25 Sep 2028
A defender's afternoon for Älibek Qasym
Defensive actions: 18. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Loan watch25 Sep 2028
“I did not go to Lokomotiv to sit and watch. I want to come back to Nasaf and fight for my place.” 6 appearances in 37 matches say the rest.
Squad25 Sep 2028
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Match23 Sep 2028
Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Lokomotiv came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.
Player ratings25 Sep 2028
Shots: 7. 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.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match18 Sep 2028
Nasaf refuse to drop out of the race
Position 3, 46 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.
Squad18 Sep 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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.
Match16 Sep 2028
Three points for Nasaf, 1‑0 the final word against AGMK in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Player ratings18 Sep 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.08, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad18 Sep 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Boardroom18 Sep 2028
Wages eat 105% of everything Nasaf earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
Player ratings18 Sep 2028
Defensive actions: 17. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings18 Sep 2028
Successful dribbles: 15. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Boardroom18 Sep 2028
The numbers do not look good at Nasaf
Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad11 Sep 2028
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 16 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Squad11 Sep 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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.
Player ratings11 Sep 2028
Successful dribbles: 17. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad11 Sep 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Stefan Čolović, and the manager let it.
Squad11 Sep 2028
He found out with everybody else, an hour before kick-off, from a sheet of paper on a wall. Nobody at Nasaf pretended it was anything other than a decision about him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match30 Aug 2028
Nasaf out of the cup
Shortan ended it 1‑1. The season narrows to the league now, and everyone in the ground knew it before the final whistle.
Squad4 Sep 2028
1 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.
Player ratings4 Sep 2028
Defensive actions: 29. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings4 Sep 2028
Successful dribbles: 25. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad4 Sep 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings4 Sep 2028
Defensive actions: 23, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Player ratings4 Sep 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.96, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Match2 Sep 2028
It finished 2‑0, and it was Vlatko Stojanovski’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Nasaf.
Squad4 Sep 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Umarbek Eshmurodov, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Player ratings28 Aug 2028
Successful dribbles: 25. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad28 Aug 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Squad28 Aug 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Match26 Aug 2028
Sogdiana left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Loan watch28 Aug 2028
“I watch every Nasaf game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Lokomotiv runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Player ratings28 Aug 2028
Shots: 10. 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.
Market28 Aug 2028
The Älibek Qasym talk will not go away
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Nasaf know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Player ratings28 Aug 2028
A mark of 5.60 tells the story without any need for embellishment. He will want the tape of this one quietly lost.
Player ratings28 Aug 2028
A mark of 5.73 tells the story without any need for embellishment. He will want the tape of this one quietly lost.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad21 Aug 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match19 Aug 2028
Ilias Takidine scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑2 to Pakhtakor, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.
Squad21 Aug 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Vlatko Stojanovski, and the manager let it.
Player ratings21 Aug 2028
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 ratings21 Aug 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.12, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Boardroom21 Aug 2028
95% of the income goes out in wages at Nasaf
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.
Squad21 Aug 2028
A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.
Boardroom21 Aug 2028
Nasaf counting the cost
The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Nasaf now.
Squad21 Aug 2028
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Nasaf have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match14 Aug 2028
Nasaf are in among the leaders
Position 3 and 40 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.
Match12 Aug 2028
Still nobody has beaten Nasaf
The unbeaten run reaches 8. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Player ratings14 Aug 2028
Successful dribbles: 23. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad14 Aug 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Loan watch14 Aug 2028
“I did not go to Neftchi to sit and watch. I want to come back to Nasaf and fight for my place.” 6 appearances in 29 matches say the rest.
Squad14 Aug 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings14 Aug 2028
Defensive actions: 17, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Player ratings14 Aug 2028
Some games turn on a moment; this one turned on a man. 7.76 on the card, and the Nasaf support went home talking about one name.
Player ratings14 Aug 2028
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 16 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad7 Aug 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Vlatko Stojanovski and Nasaf agree another 3 years.
Match5 Aug 2028
Whatever happens, Nasaf do not lose
7 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.
Squad7 Aug 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings7 Aug 2028
Successful dribbles: 21. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Player ratings7 Aug 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.46, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Match5 Aug 2028
Mashal made Nasaf work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Market7 Aug 2028
Add another name to the list: Atyrau have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Bogdan Odinayev. The answer from Nasaf has not changed — yet.
Player ratings7 Aug 2028
Marked 8.30 — 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.
Player ratings7 Aug 2028
Marked 8.15 — 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.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad31 Jul 2028
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Nasaf may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad31 Jul 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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.
Match29 Jul 2028
6 unbeaten for Nasaf
Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 6 matches without defeat is a foundation Nasaf did not have in the autumn.
Player ratings31 Jul 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.31, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Match29 Jul 2028
Nasaf get the job done against Shortan
A 2‑0 win over Shortan, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Player ratings31 Jul 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.35, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad31 Jul 2028
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Loan watch31 Jul 2028
“I did not go to Lokomotiv to sit and watch. I want to come back to Nasaf and fight for my place.” 5 appearances in 29 matches say the rest.
Player ratings31 Jul 2028
Successful dribbles: 15. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings24 Jul 2028
Successful dribbles: 28. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad24 Jul 2028
Älibek Qasym in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad24 Jul 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings24 Jul 2028
A performance of 8.24 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Boardroom24 Jul 2028
Wages eat 110% of everything Nasaf earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
Match22 Jul 2028
Honours even between Nasaf and Obod
1‑1, and both dressing rooms will call it two points lost. A draw that asked plenty of questions and answered none of them.
Boardroom24 Jul 2028
Nasaf counting the cost
The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Nasaf now.
The terraces24 Jul 2028
Every touch is being weighed now, in print and everywhere else. Some players grow into that and some are quietly ruined by it, and nobody knows which in advance.
Squad24 Jul 2028
Kingsley Sokari asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match17 Jul 2028
Nasaf are in among the leaders
Position 3 and 32 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.
Squad17 Jul 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Player ratings17 Jul 2028
Marked 9.01 — 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.
Player ratings17 Jul 2028
A performance of 8.84 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Match15 Jul 2028
Navbahor made Nasaf work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Player ratings17 Jul 2028
Defensive actions: 20. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings17 Jul 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.48, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad17 Jul 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Loan watch17 Jul 2028
“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 Nasaf, and 6 appearances in 25 say he has earned the hearing.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad10 Jul 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings10 Jul 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.86, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings10 Jul 2028
Marked 8.69 — 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.
Squad10 Jul 2028
The medical room confirms 51 days on the sidelines for Mirshod Suyunov, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Match8 Jul 2028
Honours even between Nasaf and Bukhara
2‑2, and both dressing rooms will call it two points lost. A draw that asked plenty of questions and answered none of them.
Player ratings10 Jul 2028
Successful dribbles: 15. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad10 Jul 2028
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad10 Jul 2028
The first one is the one every signing is asked about until it arrives. It has arrived, and he can stop being asked.
Player ratings10 Jul 2028
Shots: 10, enough of them from close enough that a striker in form scores two. He is not a striker in form.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market3 Jul 2028
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Player ratings3 Jul 2028
Successful dribbles: 26. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad3 Jul 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Player ratings3 Jul 2028
A performance of 8.33 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Loan watch3 Jul 2028
“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 Nasaf, and 5 appearances in 25 say he has earned the hearing.
Match1 Jul 2028
Honours even between Nasaf and Andijon
1‑1, and both dressing rooms will call it two points lost. A draw that asked plenty of questions and answered none of them.
Squad3 Jul 2028
The manager makes an example of Bogdan Odinayev
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Market3 Jul 2028
The Älibek Qasym talk will not go away
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Nasaf know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad3 Jul 2028
Yusuf Otubanjo wants a proper job in this side
Shifted about, taken off before the hour, asked to do somebody else's running — Yusuf Otubanjo has had enough of being useful and would like to be picked. Nasaf know, and have known for weeks.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Player ratings26 Jun 2028
Successful dribbles: 28. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad26 Jun 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings26 Jun 2028
Marked 9.88 — 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.
Match24 Jun 2028
It finished 1‑0, and it was Älibek Qasym’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Nasaf.
Player ratings26 Jun 2028
Defensive actions: 19. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Squad26 Jun 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Boardroom26 Jun 2028
Wages eat 106% of everything Nasaf earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
Boardroom26 Jun 2028
Nasaf counting the cost
The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Nasaf now.
Player ratings26 Jun 2028
Shots: 8, not one of them in. A centre forward is paid for one thing, and on this evidence he has forgotten which thing it is.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match14 Jun 2028
Nasaf through in the cup
A 3‑2 win over Bukhara, and the draw for the next round can be watched with some interest for once.
Squad19 Jun 2028
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Nasaf have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Player ratings19 Jun 2028
Successful dribbles: 27. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad19 Jun 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Abduvohid Ne'matov 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.
Player ratings19 Jun 2028
A performance of 9.05 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Player ratings19 Jun 2028
Marked 8.80 — 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.
Match17 Jun 2028
0‑1 to Kokand 1912, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad19 Jun 2028
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Loan watch19 Jun 2028
“I did not go to Neftchi to sit and watch. I want to come back to Nasaf and fight for my place.” 2 appearances in 21 matches say the rest.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Player ratings12 Jun 2028
Defensive actions: 27, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad12 Jun 2028
Älibek Qasym in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings12 Jun 2028
Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings12 Jun 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.15, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Match10 Jun 2028
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Oybek Rustamov. 1‑0 against Lokomotiv, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Player ratings12 Jun 2028
A performance of 8.03 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad12 Jun 2028
The manager makes an example of Oybek Rustamov
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Market12 Jun 2028
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Nasaf has been clear about where Issa Fadyl Ousmanou stands, which is more than many ever get.
Squad12 Jun 2028
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Kingsley Sokari trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad5 Jun 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match3 Jun 2028
Nasaf come up short against AGMK
AGMK left with the points after a 1‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad5 Jun 2028
Älibek Qasym gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings5 Jun 2028
Successful dribbles: 17. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Loan watch5 Jun 2028
“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 Nasaf, and 5 appearances in 21 say he has earned the hearing.
The terraces5 Jun 2028
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.
Squad5 Jun 2028
Kingsley Sokari asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Market5 Jun 2028
The Älibek Qasym talk will not go away
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Nasaf know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Player ratings5 Jun 2028
A mark of 5.74 tells the story without any need for embellishment. He will want the tape of this one quietly lost.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad29 May 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad29 May 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Abduvohid Ne'matov, and the manager let it.
Match27 May 2028
A bad afternoon for Nasaf against Bunyodkor
0‑1 to Bunyodkor, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Player ratings29 May 2028
Successful dribbles: 18. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Boardroom29 May 2028
101% of the income goes out in wages at Nasaf
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.
Boardroom29 May 2028
Nasaf counting the cost
The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Nasaf now.
Player ratings29 May 2028
Shots: 10, not one of them in. A centre forward is paid for one thing, and on this evidence he has forgotten which thing it is.
Squad29 May 2028
Oybek Rustamov knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Nasaf, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Market29 May 2028
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Oybek Rustamov’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad22 May 2028
There were 10 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Player ratings22 May 2028
Defensive actions: 27, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Player ratings22 May 2028
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.
Squad22 May 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Player ratings22 May 2028
Marked 9.13 — 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.
Player ratings22 May 2028
A performance of 8.77 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Match20 May 2028
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Älibek Qasym. 1‑0 against Neftchi, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Squad22 May 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Loan watch22 May 2028
“I watch every Nasaf game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Neftchi runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Player ratings15 May 2028
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 30 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Player ratings15 May 2028
Successful dribbles: 23. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad15 May 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings15 May 2028
A defender's afternoon for Älibek Qasym
Defensive actions: 20. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Match13 May 2028
Sogdiana made Nasaf work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Player ratings15 May 2028
Marked 8.44 — 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.
Squad15 May 2028
The manager makes an example of Deruo Wisdom
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad15 May 2028
Ilias Takidine asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Market15 May 2028
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Zafarmurod Abdurahmatov’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad8 May 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Yusuf Otubanjo and Nasaf agree another 2 years.
Squad8 May 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Player ratings8 May 2028
Defensive actions: 23. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings8 May 2028
A defender's afternoon for Älibek Qasym
Defensive actions: 18. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Loan watch8 May 2028
“I watch every Nasaf game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Lokomotiv runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Player ratings8 May 2028
A mark of 7.65, and nobody in the ground would argue with it. He was involved in everything that mattered and most of what did not.
Squad8 May 2028
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings8 May 2028
Successful dribbles: 14. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Match6 May 2028
Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Pakhtakor came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Player ratings1 May 2028
Defensive actions: 34. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Squad1 May 2028
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.
Squad1 May 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings1 May 2028
Defensive actions: 22, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Match29 Apr 2028
Metallurg made Nasaf work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Player ratings1 May 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.40, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad1 May 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Boardroom1 May 2028
Wages eat 94% of everything Nasaf earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
Player ratings1 May 2028
A defender's afternoon for Älibek Qasym
Defensive actions: 16. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad24 Apr 2028
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Nasaf have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad24 Apr 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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 Apr 2028
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Match22 Apr 2028
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Player ratings24 Apr 2028
Successful dribbles: 18. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Boardroom24 Apr 2028
Nobody left the Nasaf dressing room in a hurry
The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.
Loan watch24 Apr 2028
“I watch every Nasaf game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Neftchi runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Player ratings24 Apr 2028
Shots: 11. 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.
Squad24 Apr 2028
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Davronbek Usmonov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match15 Apr 2028
Whatever happens, Nasaf do not lose
11 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.
Player ratings17 Apr 2028
Defensive actions: 25, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Player ratings17 Apr 2028
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 21 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Squad17 Apr 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Kingsley Sokari 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.
Match15 Apr 2028
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Vlatko Stojanovski. 2‑0 against Shortan, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Player ratings17 Apr 2028
A defender's afternoon for Älibek Qasym
Defensive actions: 20. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings17 Apr 2028
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.
Squad17 Apr 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Kingsley Sokari, and the manager let it.
Squad17 Apr 2028
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Vlatko Stojanovski trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match5 Apr 2028
Nasaf through in the cup
A 1‑0 win over Qizilqum, and the draw for the next round can be watched with some interest for once.
Match8 Apr 2028
Still nobody has beaten Nasaf
The unbeaten run reaches 10. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Player ratings10 Apr 2028
Successful dribbles: 27. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings10 Apr 2028
Defensive actions: 25, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad10 Apr 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Player ratings10 Apr 2028
A defender's afternoon for Älibek Qasym
Defensive actions: 20. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Squad10 Apr 2028
Älibek Qasym gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings10 Apr 2028
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 19 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Loan watch10 Apr 2028
“I did not go to Lokomotiv to sit and watch. I want to come back to Nasaf and fight for my place.” 3 appearances in 13 matches say the rest.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match1 Apr 2028
Whatever happens, Nasaf do not lose
8 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.
Squad3 Apr 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings3 Apr 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.49, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings3 Apr 2028
Successful dribbles: 17. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Match1 Apr 2028
A 1‑1 draw with Navbahor leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
Squad3 Apr 2028
The manager makes an example of Abrorjon Aliyev
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Boardroom3 Apr 2028
Nasaf counting the cost
The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Nasaf now.
Squad3 Apr 2028
Nasaf will explain it as a decision about the team, and it may well be one. A dressing room has never once read it that way.
Squad3 Apr 2028
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Carlos Martínez trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match25 Mar 2028
Still nobody has beaten Nasaf
The unbeaten run reaches 7. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Squad27 Mar 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Player ratings27 Mar 2028
Successful dribbles: 22. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Player ratings27 Mar 2028
Marked 9.12 — 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.
Match25 Mar 2028
Bukhara made Nasaf work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑1 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Player ratings27 Mar 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.48, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Loan watch27 Mar 2028
“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 Nasaf, and 0 appearances in 9 say he has earned the hearing.
Squad27 Mar 2028
Adenis Shala finally opens his account
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Nasaf have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
Squad27 Mar 2028
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Nasaf have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match18 Mar 2028
9 matches without a win for Nasaf
The run now stands at 9, and the questions being asked around Nasaf are no longer polite ones.
Player ratings20 Mar 2028
Successful dribbles: 31. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad20 Mar 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match18 Mar 2028
Whatever happens, Nasaf do not lose
6 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.
Squad20 Mar 2028
16 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Player ratings20 Mar 2028
Defensive actions: 19, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad20 Mar 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Umarbek Eshmurodov, and the manager let it.
Player ratings20 Mar 2028
Defensive actions: 16. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings20 Mar 2028
Defensive actions: 13. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match11 Mar 2028
No end in sight to Nasaf's wait for a win
8 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Nasaf has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad13 Mar 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Abduvohid Ne'matov 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.
Squad13 Mar 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Player ratings13 Mar 2028
Successful dribbles: 16. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Loan watch13 Mar 2028
“I did not go to Lokomotiv to sit and watch. I want to come back to Nasaf and fight for my place.” 1 appearances in 9 matches say the rest.
Match11 Mar 2028
A 1‑1 draw with Qizilqum leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match4 Mar 2028
7 matches without a win for Nasaf
The run now stands at 7, and the questions being asked around Nasaf are no longer polite ones.
Player ratings6 Mar 2028
Defensive actions: 28, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad6 Mar 2028
Eldorbek Suyunov: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Nasaf have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad6 Mar 2028
Älibek Qasym in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market6 Mar 2028
The shirt still fits. Jaloliddin Ahmedov is back at Nasaf, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
Market6 Mar 2028
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.
Market6 Mar 2028
The shirt still fits. Eldor Tukhtasinov is back at Nasaf, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
Market6 Mar 2028
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Jasur Masharipov is a Nasaf player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
Squad6 Mar 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Kingsley Sokari and Nasaf agree another 2 years.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad28 Feb 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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.
Squad28 Feb 2028
17 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Loan watch28 Feb 2028
“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 Nasaf, and 0 appearances in 5 say he has earned the hearing.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Boardroom21 Feb 2028
The silence upstairs is getting loud at Nasaf
Nobody on the board has said anything against the manager, which is the point — they have stopped saying anything for him either.
Squad21 Feb 2028
14 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Squad21 Feb 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad14 Feb 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Squad14 Feb 2028
30 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Loan watch14 Feb 2028
“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 Nasaf, and 0 appearances in 5 say he has earned the hearing.
Squad14 Feb 2028
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Abduvohid Ne'matov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Market14 Feb 2028
The Älibek Qasym talk will not go away
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Nasaf know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Market14 Feb 2028
Nasaf have let the market know Murodbek Rahmatov can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Boardroom7 Feb 2028
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.
Squad7 Feb 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market7 Feb 2028
He is 20, and the scouting reports agree on the only line that matters: the ceiling. Signings like this are lottery tickets written by professionals.
Boardroom7 Feb 2028
Nasaf counting the cost
The accounts make uncomfortable reading. Wages first and ambition second is the order of business at Nasaf now.
Squad7 Feb 2028
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Nasaf, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Boardroom7 Feb 2028
Nasaf pull $33.5K back off the table
The money that was there in the summer is not there now. Nobody upstairs calls this a change of ambition, and everybody downstairs reads it as one.
Squad7 Feb 2028
A new face in his position, and Abduvohid Ne'matov suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Nasaf have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Market7 Feb 2028
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Oybek Rustamov’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
Market7 Feb 2028
Nasaf have made Carlos Martínez available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad31 Jan 2028
The medical room confirms 48 days on the sidelines for Sardorbek Bahromov, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad31 Jan 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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 Jan 2028
The competition arrived without a word said to him about it. Abduvohid Ne'matov keeps the shirt for now, at Nasaf's convenience rather than his own.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Boardroom24 Jan 2028
Pressure builds in the Nasaf boardroom
The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.
Market24 Jan 2028
“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 Nasaf, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad24 Jan 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad24 Jan 2028
14 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Squad24 Jan 2028
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Market24 Jan 2028
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Zafarmurod Abdurahmatov’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad17 Jan 2028
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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.
Market17 Jan 2028
The Älibek Qasym talk will not go away
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Nasaf know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad17 Jan 2028
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Davronbek Usmonov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Market10 Jan 2028
Nasaf say no — this time
The offer from Neftchi for Samandar Muratboyev 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.
Squad10 Jan 2028
Älibek Qasym in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market10 Jan 2028
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Oybek Rustamov’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
Squad10 Jan 2028
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Diyor Abdunazarov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Squad10 Jan 2028
A new face in his position, and Umarbek Eshmurodov suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Nasaf have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Market10 Jan 2028
Nasaf shop where it costs nothing
Abrorjon Aliyev signs, and the fee column stays empty. Deals like this look small in July and clever by March — or they are never mentioned again.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Boardroom3 Jan 2028
Shohruh Komilov has until the next board meeting
What was said behind closed doors has now been said in front of a microphone. Everybody at Nasaf can do the arithmetic, including the man it is aimed at.
Squad3 Jan 2028
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 Nasaf have had the benefit of it.
Squad3 Jan 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad3 Jan 2028
There is a level at which a footballer stops being tested and starts being contained, and he reached it some time ago. Nasaf know it, and so does everybody who watches him.
Boardroom3 Jan 2028
85% of the income goes out in wages at Nasaf
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.
Market3 Jan 2028
“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Tohirbek To'xtasinov has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Nasaf.
Boardroom3 Jan 2028
Nasaf pull $33.5K back off the table
The money that was there in the summer is not there now. Nobody upstairs calls this a change of ambition, and everybody downstairs reads it as one.
Squad3 Jan 2028
Somebody is after Älibek Qasym’s shirt
A new face in his position, and Älibek Qasym suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Nasaf have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Market3 Jan 2028
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Nasaf know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Boardroom27 Dec 2027
Pressure builds in the Nasaf boardroom
The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.
Squad27 Dec 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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 Dec 2027
18 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad20 Dec 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad20 Dec 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Market20 Dec 2027
The name of Älibek Qasym keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Nasaf say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad13 Dec 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Squad13 Dec 2027
Adenis Shala has company in his position
The competition arrived without a word said to him about it. Adenis Shala keeps the shirt for now, at Nasaf's convenience rather than his own.
Market13 Dec 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Oybek Rustamov signs something — a contract at Nasaf or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Boardroom6 Dec 2027
The board’s statement ran to three sentences and one of them mentioned results. Shohruh Komilov has managed long enough to translate: win soon, or the next statement is shorter.
Market6 Dec 2027
Nasaf say no — this time
The offer from Libertad for Abduvohid Ne'matov 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.
Squad6 Dec 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad6 Dec 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Davronbek Usmonov, and the manager let it.
Boardroom6 Dec 2027
93% of the income goes out in wages at Nasaf
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.
Boardroom6 Dec 2027
Nasaf pull $33.5K back off the table
The money that was there in the summer is not there now. Nobody upstairs calls this a change of ambition, and everybody downstairs reads it as one.
Squad6 Dec 2027
A new face in his position, and Yusuf Otubanjo suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Nasaf have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Market6 Dec 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Nasaf know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad6 Dec 2027
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Nasaf, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Boardroom29 Nov 2027
Pressure builds in the Nasaf boardroom
The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.
Squad29 Nov 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Nasaf may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad29 Nov 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad22 Nov 2027
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 Nasaf have had the benefit of it.
Squad22 Nov 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market22 Nov 2027
The name of Älibek Qasym keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Nasaf say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad15 Nov 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad15 Nov 2027
Älibek Qasym called up by his country
A window away with the national side, and a shirt at Nasaf that briefly doubles as an advertisement. A call-up flatters the player and the club that built him in the same breath.
Squad15 Nov 2027
A window away with the national side, and a shirt at Nasaf that briefly doubles as an advertisement. A call-up flatters the player and the club that built him in the same breath.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Boardroom8 Nov 2027
The board’s statement ran to three sentences and one of them mentioned results. Shohruh Komilov has managed long enough to translate: win soon, or the next statement is shorter.
Squad8 Nov 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Boardroom8 Nov 2027
95% of the income goes out in wages at Nasaf
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.
Loan watch8 Nov 2027
“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 Nasaf, and 5 appearances in 21 say he has earned the hearing.
Boardroom8 Nov 2027
Nasaf pull $33.5K back off the table
The money that was there in the summer is not there now. Nobody upstairs calls this a change of ambition, and everybody downstairs reads it as one.
Market8 Nov 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Nasaf know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Market8 Nov 2027
Contract settled, hands shaken, no fee changing hands. Rabiu Yusuf leaves Nasaf the quiet way, and the wage bill breathes a little easier.
Boardroom8 Nov 2027
Nasaf answer back
A squad written off a fortnight ago has closed ranks. Whatever was said behind that door, it has held so far.
Squad8 Nov 2027
He looks like a man who lives here now rather than one who is working here. It took most of a season, and at Nasaf the difference is visible from the back of the stand.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Boardroom1 Nov 2027
The silence upstairs is getting loud at Nasaf
Nobody on the board has said anything against the manager, which is the point — they have stopped saying anything for him either.
Squad1 Nov 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Squad1 Nov 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Market1 Nov 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Zafarmurod Abdurahmatov signs something — a contract at Nasaf or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Squad1 Nov 2027
A year in and the language has not come, the city has not opened up, and he eats alone more often than anybody at Nasaf would like to admit. It is showing on Saturdays.
Squad1 Nov 2027
“I respect the manager and I am not going to sit here and pretend I am happy.” It is the most common sentence in football and it has never once been the end of a story.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad25 Oct 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market25 Oct 2027
The name of Älibek Qasym keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Nasaf say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad25 Oct 2027
Eldorbek Suyunov asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad18 Oct 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Nasaf may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Loan watch18 Oct 2027
30 starts now, an average of 6.94, and the team sheet at Shortan has stopped being a question. Exactly what everybody signed up for.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad11 Oct 2027
Älibek Qasym in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Loan watch11 Oct 2027
“I watch every Nasaf game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Hapoel Haifa runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Squad11 Oct 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Tohirbek To'xtasinov, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Boardroom4 Oct 2027
The silence upstairs is getting loud at Nasaf
Nobody on the board has said anything against the manager, which is the point — they have stopped saying anything for him either.
Squad4 Oct 2027
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Yusuf Otubanjo commits to Nasaf for another 2 years.
Squad4 Oct 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Boardroom4 Oct 2027
Wages eat 99% of everything Nasaf earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
Boardroom4 Oct 2027
$33.5K taken back off the Nasaf table
What was available in the summer has quietly gone. Upstairs nobody will call it a change of ambition; downstairs nobody will call it anything else.
Market4 Oct 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Zafarmurod Abdurahmatov signs something — a contract at Nasaf or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Squad4 Oct 2027
“I respect the manager and I am not going to sit here and pretend I am happy.” It is the most common sentence in football and it has never once been the end of a story.
Squad4 Oct 2027
Carlos Martínez asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Loan watch4 Oct 2027
The goals keep arriving from Davronbek Usmonov’s exile
1 goals in 4 games at Hapoel Haifa — numbers that travel home faster than he does. Somebody at Nasaf updates a spreadsheet every Monday, and it makes better reading each week.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Player ratings27 Sep 2027
Successful dribbles: 29. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Match25 Sep 2027
The wait goes on for Nasaf
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.
Squad27 Sep 2027
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Squad27 Sep 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings27 Sep 2027
Defensive actions: 22. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings27 Sep 2027
Marked 7.82 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, Nasaf had the best player on the pitch.
Player ratings27 Sep 2027
A mark of 3.69 tells the story without any need for embellishment. He will want the tape of this one quietly lost.
Match25 Sep 2027
The crowd waited for a goal that never came. Lokomotiv defended in numbers and left with what they came for, and the two sides could be playing still without troubling a scorer.
Market27 Sep 2027
The name of Älibek Qasym keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Nasaf say nothing, which says plenty.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Player ratings20 Sep 2027
Successful dribbles: 27. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Match18 Sep 2027
The wait goes on for Nasaf
5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Squad20 Sep 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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 Sep 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Diyor Abdunazarov, and the manager let it.
Player ratings20 Sep 2027
A defender's afternoon for Älibek Qasym
Defensive actions: 14. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings20 Sep 2027
The one thing Yaad Gonen could not do
Shots: 8, enough of them from close enough that a striker in form scores two. He is not a striker in form.
Match18 Sep 2027
Point won or two lost for Nasaf?
Ninety minutes, no goals, and the argument started before the car park emptied: a point gained, or two thrown away against AGMK? Both sides of it will still be going on Thursday.
Loan watch20 Sep 2027
29 starts now, an average of 6.93, and the team sheet at Shortan has stopped being a question. Exactly what everybody signed up for.
Squad20 Sep 2027
Adenis Shala has company in his position
The competition arrived without a word said to him about it. Adenis Shala keeps the shirt for now, at Nasaf's convenience rather than his own.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match11 Sep 2027
The wait goes on for Nasaf
4 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.
Squad13 Sep 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings13 Sep 2027
Successful dribbles: 18. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Player ratings13 Sep 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.13, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Loan watch13 Sep 2027
“I did not go to Hapoel Haifa to sit and watch. I want to come back to Nasaf and fight for my place.” 1 appearances in 13 matches say the rest.
Match11 Sep 2027
A 1‑1 draw with Bunyodkor leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
Squad13 Sep 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Shammasu Muhammed, and the manager let it.
Squad13 Sep 2027
A new face in his position, and Yusuf Otubanjo suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Nasaf have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
Market13 Sep 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Nasaf know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Player ratings6 Sep 2027
Successful dribbles: 26. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad6 Sep 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Match4 Sep 2027
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad6 Sep 2027
The manager makes an example of Yaad Gonen
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Boardroom6 Sep 2027
86% of the income goes out in wages at Nasaf
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.
Market6 Sep 2027
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Zafarmurod Abdurahmatov signs something — a contract at Nasaf or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market30 Aug 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Market30 Aug 2027
Nasaf say no — this time
The offer from Obod for Alibek Davronov 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.
Squad30 Aug 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Nasaf may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad30 Aug 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings30 Aug 2027
Successful dribbles: 21. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Match28 Aug 2027
Sogdiana left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad30 Aug 2027
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings30 Aug 2027
Yaad Gonen leaves them behind him
Shots: 10. 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.
Squad30 Aug 2027
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Nasaf, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match21 Aug 2027
Nowhere to hide for Nasaf
1‑4 against Pakhtakor, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
Squad23 Aug 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Nasaf may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad23 Aug 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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.
Player ratings23 Aug 2027
Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad23 Aug 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Zafarmurod Abdurahmatov, and the manager let it.
Player ratings23 Aug 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.20, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Boardroom23 Aug 2027
Nobody left the Nasaf dressing room in a hurry
The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.
Squad23 Aug 2027
The team sheet said everything about Umarbek Eshmurodov
Warm-up bib, ninety minutes of watching, and a handshake at the end that fooled nobody. Big matches tell you who a manager trusts; this one told Umarbek Eshmurodov.
The terraces23 Aug 2027
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.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Player ratings16 Aug 2027
A defender's afternoon for Älibek Qasym
Defensive actions: 28. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings16 Aug 2027
Successful dribbles: 27. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Match14 Aug 2027
Still nobody has beaten Nasaf
The unbeaten run reaches 9. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Squad16 Aug 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings16 Aug 2027
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.
Match14 Aug 2027
A 2‑0 win over Metallurg, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Player ratings16 Aug 2027
A performance of 8.16 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad16 Aug 2027
Getting past Abduvohid Ne'matov has become the hardest job in the division
11 clean sheets and counting. Forwards used to back themselves here; now they shoot early, shoot wide, and look for somebody to blame.
Loan watch16 Aug 2027
“I did not go to Hapoel Haifa to sit and watch. I want to come back to Nasaf and fight for my place.” 0 appearances in 9 matches say the rest.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match7 Aug 2027
Whatever happens, Nasaf do not lose
8 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.
Squad9 Aug 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Player ratings9 Aug 2027
Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Market9 Aug 2027
Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Nasaf will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.
Player ratings9 Aug 2027
A performance of 8.64 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad9 Aug 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Yaad Gonen, and the manager let it.
Match7 Aug 2027
It needed Bauyrzhan Islamkhan to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Mashal, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
Player ratings9 Aug 2027
Shots: 6, enough of them from close enough that a striker in form scores two. He is not a striker in form.
Squad9 Aug 2027
A first senior shirt for Yaad Gonen
Every debut is a small story about the future: Yaad Gonen, 21 years old, off the academy pitches and into the first team. The parents in the stand will keep the programme.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Player ratings2 Aug 2027
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 33 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Player ratings2 Aug 2027
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.
Match31 Jul 2027
Nobody wants to play Nasaf right now
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.
Squad2 Aug 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings2 Aug 2027
Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings2 Aug 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.00, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Match31 Jul 2027
Three points for Nasaf, 1‑0 the final word against Shortan in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Squad2 Aug 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Squad2 Aug 2027
10 shut-outs and counting. Goalkeepers are only noticed when they fail, and Abduvohid Ne'matov has given nobody the chance.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Player ratings26 Jul 2027
Successful dribbles: 25. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings26 Jul 2027
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 25 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Player ratings26 Jul 2027
Defensive actions: 23. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Squad26 Jul 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Abduvohid Ne'matov 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.
Match24 Jul 2027
6 unbeaten for Nasaf
Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 6 matches without defeat is a foundation Nasaf did not have in the autumn.
Player ratings26 Jul 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.40, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad26 Jul 2027
The manager makes an example of Alibek Davronov
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Match24 Jul 2027
Nasaf get the job done against Obod
A 1‑0 win over Obod, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Squad26 Jul 2027
9 clean sheets and counting. Strikers leave this ground muttering his name, which is exactly how a goalkeeper measures a good season.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market19 Jul 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad19 Jul 2027
There were 8 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Squad19 Jul 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match17 Jul 2027
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Yusuf Otubanjo. 2‑1 against Navbahor, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Player ratings19 Jul 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.81, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings19 Jul 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.24, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings19 Jul 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.05, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad19 Jul 2027
The manager makes an example of Kingsley Sokari
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Loan watch19 Jul 2027
“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 Nasaf, and 0 appearances in 5 say he has earned the hearing.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad12 Jul 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Player ratings12 Jul 2027
Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Market12 Jul 2027
Everyone has stopped pretending: Obod will make the call about Alibek Davronov this week. Nasaf have a number in mind, and the number is not shy.
Player ratings12 Jul 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.00, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Boardroom12 Jul 2027
Wages eat 113% of everything Nasaf earn
There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.
Market12 Jul 2027
Rabiu Yusuf is 19, and Nasaf have signed him for the player he will be rather than the one he is. The first team can wait; the point of a deal like this is the years it buys.
Match10 Jul 2027
Nasaf and Bukhara take a point apiece
It finished 1‑1, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
Squad12 Jul 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Squad12 Jul 2027
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Nasaf have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market5 Jul 2027
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Alibek Davronov will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Nasaf the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Player ratings5 Jul 2027
Successful dribbles: 30. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad5 Jul 2027
Älibek Qasym in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings5 Jul 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.48, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad5 Jul 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Umarbek Eshmurodov, and the manager let it.
Squad5 Jul 2027
The award goes to Bahodir Halilov, and nobody around here is inclined to argue with the choice.
Squad5 Jul 2027
8 clean sheets and counting. Strikers leave this ground muttering his name, which is exactly how a goalkeeper measures a good season.
Market5 Jul 2027
Bukhara are about to pick up the phone
A conversation is coming this week. Nasaf will put a number on him, and from there it stops being football and becomes arithmetic.
Match3 Jul 2027
Nasaf and Andijon take a point apiece
It finished 1‑1, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad28 Jun 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Match26 Jun 2027
Qizilqum made Nasaf work for it, but the scoreboard read 3‑2 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Player ratings28 Jun 2027
Marked 8.99 — 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.
Player ratings28 Jun 2027
Successful dribbles: 19. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings28 Jun 2027
A performance of 8.17 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad28 Jun 2027
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Nasaf have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
Squad28 Jun 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Samandar Muratboyev, and the manager let it.
Market28 Jun 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Nasaf know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad28 Jun 2027
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Nasaf, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match16 Jun 2027
The small margins put Nasaf out
Out, 0‑1 to Navbahor, and the long argument about which of the small moments decided it. The league is all there is now, and everybody knows it.
Squad21 Jun 2027
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.
Player ratings21 Jun 2027
Successful dribbles: 26. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Match19 Jun 2027
The wait goes on for Nasaf
5 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Market21 Jun 2027
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Squad21 Jun 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market21 Jun 2027
Nasaf get their man
The chase for Muhammadbobur Karimov ended with $110.0K changing hands and Pakhtakor out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.
Squad21 Jun 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Match19 Jun 2027
It finished 1‑1, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Player ratings14 Jun 2027
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.
Player ratings14 Jun 2027
Successful dribbles: 25. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings14 Jun 2027
Defensive actions: 25, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad14 Jun 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Market14 Jun 2027
Obod are about to pick up the phone
A conversation is coming this week. Nasaf will put a number on him, and from there it stops being football and becomes arithmetic.
Market14 Jun 2027
Samandar Toirov has left for Metallurg in a $140.0K deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.
Player ratings14 Jun 2027
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.
Boardroom14 Jun 2027
122% of the income goes out in wages at Nasaf
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.
Squad14 Jun 2027
The manager makes an example of Carlos Martínez
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market7 Jun 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Market7 Jun 2027
Nasaf say no — this time
The offer from Hapoel Haifa for Davronbek Usmonov 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.
Player ratings7 Jun 2027
Defensive actions: 26, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Player ratings7 Jun 2027
Defensive actions: 26, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Player ratings7 Jun 2027
Successful dribbles: 24. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad7 Jun 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings7 Jun 2027
Some games turn on a moment; this one turned on a man. 7.74 on the card, and the Nasaf support went home talking about one name.
Squad7 Jun 2027
8 shut-outs and counting. Goalkeepers are only noticed when they fail, and Abduvohid Ne'matov has given nobody the chance.
Squad7 Jun 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Player ratings31 May 2027
Successful dribbles: 23. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad31 May 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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 May 2027
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Match29 May 2027
A bad afternoon for Nasaf against Bunyodkor
0‑1 to Bunyodkor, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Market31 May 2027
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Nasaf know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Player ratings31 May 2027
5.59 on the card. Some afternoons a footballer looks like a man who has only just been introduced to the game, and this was one of them.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad24 May 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match22 May 2027
Neftchi made Nasaf work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑1 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Squad24 May 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Yusuf Otubanjo, and the manager let it.
Player ratings24 May 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.64, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings24 May 2027
A performance of 8.11 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad24 May 2027
7 shut-outs and counting. Goalkeepers are only noticed when they fail, and Abduvohid Ne'matov has given nobody the chance.
Player ratings24 May 2027
Successful dribbles: 13. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad24 May 2027
Adenis Shala unhappy with how he is being used
Asked to play a role that is not his, or taken off before the hour once too often — Adenis Shala has let it be known that he does not like the way Nasaf are using him. Managers hear this long before the press does.
Market24 May 2027
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Oybek Rustamov’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Player ratings17 May 2027
Successful dribbles: 28. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Match15 May 2027
5 matches without a win for Nasaf
The run now stands at 5, and the questions being asked around Nasaf are no longer polite ones.
Squad17 May 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Älibek Qasym 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.
Boardroom17 May 2027
122% of the income goes out in wages at Nasaf
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.
Player ratings17 May 2027
A mark of 7.80, and nobody in the ground would argue with it. He was involved in everything that mattered and most of what did not.
Player ratings17 May 2027
Defensive actions: 16, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad17 May 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Diyor Abdunazarov, and the manager let it.
Squad17 May 2027
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Abzal Postnikov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Match15 May 2027
The crowd waited for a goal that never came. Sogdiana defended in numbers and left with what they came for, and the two sides could be playing still without troubling a scorer.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Player ratings10 May 2027
Successful dribbles: 26. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
The terraces10 May 2027
The ground has had enough
“We travel everywhere and we get this.” 4 of the 20 senior players heard it walking off, and the ones who did not hear it were not playing.
Match8 May 2027
4 matches without a win for Nasaf
The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Nasaf are no longer polite ones.
Squad10 May 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Alibek Davronov 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.
Squad10 May 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Umarbek Eshmurodov, and the manager let it.
Match8 May 2027
A bad afternoon for Nasaf against Pakhtakor
0‑1 to Pakhtakor, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Player ratings10 May 2027
Marked 4.29, and generously at that. Nothing came off, and by the end the crowd had stopped expecting it to.
Market10 May 2027
The name of Älibek Qasym keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Nasaf say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad10 May 2027
Samandar Toirov asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings3 May 2027
Successful dribbles: 30. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad3 May 2027
Tempers go at Nasaf
Yusuf Otubanjo 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.
Player ratings3 May 2027
A performance of 8.62 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad3 May 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Match1 May 2027
A 2‑2 draw with Metallurg leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
Squad3 May 2027
“I respect the manager and I am not going to sit here and pretend I am happy.” It is the most common sentence in football and it has never once been the end of a story.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings26 Apr 2027
Successful dribbles: 25. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Player ratings26 Apr 2027
Defensive actions: 24. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Squad26 Apr 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Nasaf this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad26 Apr 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Ilias Takidine, and the manager let it.
Player ratings26 Apr 2027
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 17 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Player ratings26 Apr 2027
The afternoon belonged to Älibek Qasym
A mark of 7.70, and nobody in the ground would argue with it. He was involved in everything that mattered and most of what did not.