From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match15 Feb 2027
Every point is an argument now for Shortan
Position 14 and 1 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Squad15 Feb 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 Shortan this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout15 Feb 2027
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad8 Feb 2027
A row about effort at Shortan
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout8 Feb 2027
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Shohruh Eshbo'tayev is on it.
The dugout8 Feb 2027
The manager has not finished forgetting Mirjalol Jumayev's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The terraces1 Feb 2027
Anger at Shortan spills outside the ground
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
Shortan close the window on a squad of their own making
1 in and 0 out, and no more changes for months. The manager has what he has, the supporters have their opinion of it, and the table will have the last word.
Squad1 Feb 2027
A row about effort at Shortan
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Roman Vegerya, and the manager let it.
Squad1 Feb 2027
“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 Shortan will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Sherzodbek Abduraimov has written the date down.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market25 Jan 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.
The dugout25 Jan 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.
Squad25 Jan 2027
15 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Squad25 Jan 2027
A falling-out at Shortan
Ulug'bek Xoliqov and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout25 Jan 2027
Nuriddin Xasanov has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Shortan will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
The dugout25 Jan 2027
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and G'anisher Qodirov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match18 Jan 2027
Shortan sink to position 14
1 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Squad18 Jan 2027
A row about effort at Shortan
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Market18 Jan 2027
The interest is real enough to have reached print. Shortan have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market11 Jan 2027
Andijon come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and Shortan did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Squad11 Jan 2027
A falling-out at Shortan
Shohruh Eshbo'tayev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad11 Jan 2027
A row about effort at Shortan
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Market11 Jan 2027
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Eldor Mirzaev has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
The dugout11 Jan 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Bahrom Abdurahimov, and the manager let it.
The dugout11 Jan 2027
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Shohruh Eshbo'tayev is on it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market4 Jan 2027
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Squad4 Jan 2027
Words exchanged at Shortan
Shohruh Eshbo'tayev and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Market4 Jan 2027
The phone has started ringing about Choriyor Tursunqulov again, and this time the name on the line is Andijon. Shortan are listening politely and promising nothing.
The dugout4 Jan 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.
The dugout4 Jan 2027
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Bahrom Abdurahimov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Boardroom4 Jan 2027
Open for business: Shortan enter the window
The registration window is open and the phone has started. Between now and the deadline this club will be linked with forty players and sign three, which is the usual ratio.
Market4 Jan 2027
Shortan have made Roman Vegerya available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.
Market4 Jan 2027
No fee, no negotiation, no argument: Mirkomil Abdurazzoqov moves on to AGMK with his contract settled and the wage bill a little lighter.
Squad4 Jan 2027
A manager forgives a bad Saturday far more readily than a bad Tuesday, because one of them he can explain and the other one he chose. The reports this week have not been good.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad28 Dec 2026
Shohruh Eshbo'tayev 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 Dec 2026
Words at Shortan training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Boardroom28 Dec 2026
143% of the income goes out in wages at Shortan
Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.
Squad28 Dec 2026
43 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Nuriddin Xasanov is on it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match21 Dec 2026
Shortan are in real trouble now
Position 14, 1 points, and a fixture list with fewer games left in it than excuses. The arithmetic is not cruel yet, but it has stopped being kind.
Market21 Dec 2026
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Mirkomil Abdurazzoqov will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Shortan the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad21 Dec 2026
Words at Shortan training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Roman Vegerya has written the date down.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Adhamjon Musulmonov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market14 Dec 2026
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Aziz Nematov has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market14 Dec 2026
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Bobur Mirzaev has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
The dugout14 Dec 2026
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Shohruh Eshbo'tayev is on it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market7 Dec 2026
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shortan can pretend not to have heard.
Squad7 Dec 2026
Words at Shortan training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Squad7 Dec 2026
Somebody has moved past him. It is not a dropping and it is worse than one, because a dropping is about a Saturday and this is about where he stands.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad30 Nov 2026
Words at Shortan training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Squad30 Nov 2026
A falling-out at Shortan
Abbos Ergashboyev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Boardroom30 Nov 2026
Wages eat 158% of everything Shortan 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.
The dugout30 Nov 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Abbos Ergashboyev, and the manager let it.
The dugout30 Nov 2026
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Nuriddin Xasanov is on it.
The dugout30 Nov 2026
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Roman Vegerya has written the date down.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match23 Nov 2026
Shortan sink to position 14
1 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Market23 Nov 2026
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Shortan they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad23 Nov 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Shortan this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad16 Nov 2026
Bekjon Rahmatov damages knee ligaments — 19 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 19 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
The dugout16 Nov 2026
“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.
Squad16 Nov 2026
A falling-out at Shortan
Shohruh Eshbo'tayev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad16 Nov 2026
Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout16 Nov 2026
Nobody at Shortan will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
The dugout16 Nov 2026
Mirjalol Jumayev is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad9 Nov 2026
26 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Shortan lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
“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.
Market9 Nov 2026
“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.
Market9 Nov 2026
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Shortan they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad9 Nov 2026
Words exchanged at Shortan
Shohruh Eshbo'tayev and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad9 Nov 2026
Words at Shortan training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Market9 Nov 2026
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Dostonbek Ismailov has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market9 Nov 2026
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Rustam Shomurodov has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
The dugout9 Nov 2026
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad2 Nov 2026
33 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Shortan lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Boardroom2 Nov 2026
Wages eat 158% of everything Shortan 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.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
Nuriddin Xasanov has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Shortan will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.
Market2 Nov 2026
“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.
The dugout2 Nov 2026
“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.
Squad2 Nov 2026
Og'abek Asadov is not doing himself any favours
A manager forgives a bad Saturday far more readily than a bad Tuesday, because one of them he can explain and the other one he chose. The reports this week have not been good.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad26 Oct 2026
40 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Shortan lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Match26 Oct 2026
Shortan sink to position 14
1 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Market26 Oct 2026
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Shortan they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Boardroom26 Oct 2026
The rules permit it and it stings anyway. Mirkomil Abdurazzoqov has agreed terms with AGMK for the summer, and until then he pulls on this shirt as a player who has already chosen his next one.
Squad26 Oct 2026
A row about effort at Shortan
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout26 Oct 2026
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad19 Oct 2026
48 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Shortan lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Squad19 Oct 2026
A row about effort at Shortan
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Squad19 Oct 2026
Ulug'bek Xoliqov was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The dugout19 Oct 2026
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
The dugout19 Oct 2026
The manager has not finished forgetting Mirjalol Jumayev's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
The dugout19 Oct 2026
The manager makes Roman Vegerya a promise
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Shortan. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad12 Oct 2026
Bekjon Rahmatov damages knee ligaments — 55 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 55 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Market12 Oct 2026
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Adhamjon Musulmonov will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Shortan the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad12 Oct 2026
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Roman Vegerya commits to Shortan for another 3 years.
Squad12 Oct 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Shortan this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market12 Oct 2026
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Nodir Shomurodov is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Market12 Oct 2026
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Otabek Suyunov is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad5 Oct 2026
A knee injury of the worst kind for Bekjon Rahmatov
63 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Shortan lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Market5 Oct 2026
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shortan can pretend not to have heard.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Shohruh Eshbo'tayev 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.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Boardroom5 Oct 2026
Wages eat 230% of everything Shortan 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.
Squad5 Oct 2026
14 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad28 Sep 2026
A knee injury of the worst kind for Bekjon Rahmatov
70 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Shortan lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Match26 Sep 2026
The wait goes on for Shortan
10 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.
Match28 Sep 2026
Every point is an argument now for Shortan
Position 14 and 1 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Match26 Sep 2026
Shortan are shipping goals every week
Two or more conceded in each of the last 8 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Squad28 Sep 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Shortan this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad28 Sep 2026
Words at Shortan training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Match26 Sep 2026
3 matches without a goal for Shortan
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 3 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Match26 Sep 2026
Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout28 Sep 2026
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Odil Ismailov after 0‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad21 Sep 2026
77 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Shortan lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
Match19 Sep 2026
No end in sight to Shortan's wait for a win
9 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Shortan has to find a result from somewhere.
Match19 Sep 2026
Nowhere to hide for Shortan
0‑3 against Qizilqum, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.
Match19 Sep 2026
Shortan leaking at the back
7 matches, two or more conceded in every one of them. Sides that create as much as this can live with it for a while. Nobody lives with it forever.
Squad21 Sep 2026
A falling-out at Shortan
Shohruh Eshbo'tayev and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Boardroom21 Sep 2026
Nobody left the Shortan 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.
Player ratings21 Sep 2026
Successful dribbles: 16. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
The dugout21 Sep 2026
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑3, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
Player ratings21 Sep 2026
There was no pressure on him and nowhere he had to be. Shortan lost a goal to a decision that took half a second and will be discussed all week.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad14 Sep 2026
A knee injury of the worst kind for Bekjon Rahmatov
84 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Shortan lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Match12 Sep 2026
8 matches without a win for Shortan
The run now stands at 8, and the questions being asked around Shortan are no longer polite ones.
Match12 Sep 2026
Shortan leaking at the back
6 matches, two or more conceded in every one of them. Sides that create as much as this can live with it for a while. Nobody lives with it forever.
Market14 Sep 2026
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Shortan is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad14 Sep 2026
Words at Shortan training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Match12 Sep 2026
Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Market14 Sep 2026
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Bobur Shomurodov has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market14 Sep 2026
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Jasur Masharipov has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
The dugout14 Sep 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Roman Vegerya, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad7 Sep 2026
Bekjon Rahmatov damages knee ligaments — 91 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 91 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Match5 Sep 2026
7 matches without a win for Shortan
The run now stands at 7, and the questions being asked around Shortan are no longer polite ones.
Market7 Sep 2026
“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 Shortan, and it is not being withdrawn.
Boardroom7 Sep 2026
Window shuts: 14 in, 1 out at Shortan
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 14 arrived, 1 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Match5 Sep 2026
Shortan are shipping goals every week
Two or more conceded in each of the last 5 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match5 Sep 2026
1‑2 to Lokomotiv, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Somebody has moved past him. It is not a dropping and it is worse than one, because a dropping is about a Saturday and this is about where he stands.
The dugout7 Sep 2026
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 1‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad31 Aug 2026
Bekjon Rahmatov damages knee ligaments — 98 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 98 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Player ratings31 Aug 2026
2 goals, and the second was the one that settled it. Marked 8.63, and he could have had a third with better luck at the near post.
Squad31 Aug 2026
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 7 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.
Match29 Aug 2026
The wait goes on for Shortan
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.
Market31 Aug 2026
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shortan can pretend not to have heard.
Match29 Aug 2026
Jasurbek Hakimov among the goals in a wild afternoon
6 goals in one match, Jasurbek Hakimov on the scoresheet, and a scoreline that will look like a misprint. Neutrals could not have asked more of Shortan and AGMK.
Match29 Aug 2026
Shortan come up short against AGMK
AGMK left with the points after a 2‑4 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Match29 Aug 2026
Shortan are shipping goals every week
Two or more conceded in each of the last 4 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Player ratings31 Aug 2026
Successful dribbles: 18. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad24 Aug 2026
Bekjon Rahmatov damages knee ligaments — 105 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 105 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Player ratings24 Aug 2026
Successful dribbles: 34. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Market24 Aug 2026
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shortan can pretend not to have heard.
Match22 Aug 2026
No end in sight to Shortan's wait for a win
5 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Shortan has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad24 Aug 2026
A row about effort at Shortan
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Match22 Aug 2026
Beaten 1‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
The dugout24 Aug 2026
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
The dugout24 Aug 2026
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 1‑2 Odil Ismailov left the room before anybody could ask which.
Squad24 Aug 2026
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Bobur Hasanov and Shortan agree another 3 years.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad17 Aug 2026
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 18 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Match15 Aug 2026
0‑4 to Neftchi, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
Match12 Aug 2026
Shortan bow out of the cup
Bunyodkor go through and Shortan go home, 1‑2 the scoreline that did it. The dressing room will call the league the priority now, because that is what dressing rooms say.
Market17 Aug 2026
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Adhamjon Musulmonov will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Shortan the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Match15 Aug 2026
4 matches without a win for Shortan
The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Shortan are no longer polite ones.
Boardroom17 Aug 2026
There is no worse way to lose a footballer. Adhamjon Musulmonov has pre-agreed a move away, which means every appearance between now and June is made by a man the club can no longer sell, and somebody upstairs will be asked why the contract was allowed to get here.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Words exchanged at Shortan
Shohruh Eshbo'tayev and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Words at Shortan training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Player ratings17 Aug 2026
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.09, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market10 Aug 2026
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Shortan can pretend not to have heard.
Squad10 Aug 2026
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Shortan this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Transfer targets10 Aug 2026
Shortan asked and Andijon said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Market10 Aug 2026
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Ulugbek Fayzullaev is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
Market10 Aug 2026
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Bobur Hasanov has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market10 Aug 2026
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Farhod Tukhtasinov has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Player ratings10 Aug 2026
Marked 7.49. Ask anyone leaving the ground what settled it and you will get one name, which is the only award that has ever really counted.
The dugout10 Aug 2026
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The dugout10 Aug 2026
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Odil Ismailov was not hiding it after 0‑0, and nobody in the Shortan dressing room was either.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad3 Aug 2026
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 11 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Squad3 Aug 2026
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Iskandar Shayqulov and Shortan agree another 2 years.
Squad3 Aug 2026
Shohruh Eshbo'tayev 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.
Squad3 Aug 2026
Abrorbek Toshqo'ziev falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match1 Aug 2026
Nasaf left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
The dugout3 Aug 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Iskandar Shayqulov, and the manager let it.
Market3 Aug 2026
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Shortan, another week without a signature from Shohruh Eshbo'tayev.
Market3 Aug 2026
24 months left and silence from upstairs — no offer, no talks, nothing for his people to answer. Clubs that let a calendar do their negotiating usually end up negotiating with the calendar.
The dugout3 Aug 2026
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Odil Ismailov after 0‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.