16 Jan 2027
Saturday
Process
24 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

11 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Market

Eldar Bliev puts it in writing

“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 The request is on a desk at Spartak Nalchik, and it is not being withdrawn.

Player ratings

Amur Khatsukov runs at them all day

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.

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

Andemir Goguzokov 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.

Match

A bad afternoon for Spartak Nalchik against Dinamo Stavropol

0‑1 to Dinamo Stavropol, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

Squad

Khakim Kadykoev 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 ratings

Off the pace: Artem Anoshin

A mark of 5.31 tells the story without any need for embellishment. He will want the tape of this one quietly lost.

In brief

Back issues
23 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

4 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Player ratings

Eldar Bliev runs at them all day

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.

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

Alan Khachirov 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.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Khachim Mashukov

“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.

Match

Point won or two lost for Spartak Nalchik?

Ninety minutes, no goals, and the argument started before the car park emptied: a point gained, or two thrown away against Druzhba? Both sides of it will still be going on Thursday.

Market

The Aslanbek Kumykov question follows Spartak Nalchik around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Aslanbek Kumykov’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

Player ratings

A defender's afternoon for Andemir Goguzokov

Defensive actions: 10. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.

In brief

22 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

28 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

The terraces

The boos come down from three sides

“We pay for this every fortnight. The least we want is somebody who looks like he cares.” 5 of the 24 senior players walked off into it; the rest were not playing.

Market

Eldar Luev puts it in writing

“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 Spartak Nalchik, and it is not being withdrawn.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Amirkhan Selyaev

Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Alan Khachirov 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 Spartak Nalchik this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Boardroom

Wages eat 363% of everything Spartak Nalchik 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.

Match

Spartak Nalchik come up short against Rostov 2

Rostov 2 left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Islam Tlupov

“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 ratings

Artem Anoshin leaves them behind him

Shots: 6. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.

Player ratings

Off the pace: Islam Pekov

A mark of 5.66 tells the story without any need for embellishment. He will want the tape of this one quietly lost.

In brief

21 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

21 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Eduardo Ramírez hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Spartak Nalchik can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Khachim Mashukov says Spartak Nalchik went back on their word

“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.

Match

Spartak Nalchik see off Dinamo Makhachkala 2

Three points for Spartak Nalchik, 1‑0 the final word against Dinamo Makhachkala 2 in a contest settled by the finer margins.

Player ratings

Islam Tlupov in the eights

A performance of 8.32 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

Squad

Malik Kenzhev stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Malik Kenzhev and Spartak Nalchik agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

David Sarbashev 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 Spartak Nalchik this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

Nothing got past Amur Khatsukov

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 ratings

A defender's afternoon for Eldar Bliev

Defensive actions: 16. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.

Squad

No place for Eduardo Ramírez on the big day

He found out with everybody else, an hour before kick-off, from a sheet of paper on a wall. Nobody at Spartak Nalchik pretended it was anything other than a decision about him.

In brief

20 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

14 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

The wait goes on for Spartak Nalchik

11 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.

Market

Renat Balkizov asks to leave Spartak Nalchik

“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 ratings

Nobody could get near Eldar Bliev

Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

David Sarbashev 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.

Squad

Artem Anoshin 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 ratings

Andemir Goguzokov shuts the door

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 ratings

The afternoon belonged to Renat Balkizov

A mark of 7.68, and nobody in the ground would argue with it. He was involved in everything that mattered and most of what did not.

Squad

Aslanbek Kumykov 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 Spartak Nalchik, and both men came out saying it was fine.

Match

Point won or two lost for Spartak Nalchik?

Ninety minutes, no goals, and the argument started before the car park emptied: a point gained, or two thrown away against Sochi 2? Both sides of it will still be going on Thursday.

In brief

19 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

7 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

10 matches without a win for Spartak Nalchik

The run now stands at 10, and the questions being asked around Spartak Nalchik are no longer polite ones.

Market

Eldar Bliev hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Spartak Nalchik can pretend not to have heard.

Player ratings

Nothing got past Eldar Bliev

Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 23 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.

Player ratings

A defender's afternoon for Renat Balkizov

Defensive actions: 21. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.

Squad

No hiding place for Khakim Kadykoev

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Khakim Kadykoev, and the manager let it.

Squad

David Sarbashev 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 Spartak Nalchik this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Khusey Karkaev stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Khusey Karkaev and Spartak Nalchik agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Player ratings

A defender's afternoon for Amur Khatsukov

Defensive actions: 15. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.

Match

Spartak Nalchik and Rubin Yalta cancel each other out

Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Rubin Yalta came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.

In brief

18 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

30 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

No end in sight to Spartak Nalchik's wait for a win

9 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Spartak Nalchik has to find a result from somewhere.

Squad

Home is on Eduardo Ramírez's mind

“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Spartak Nalchik are dealing with a man who wants a different country.

Player ratings

Amur Khatsukov in the eights

A performance of 9.09 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

Boardroom

446% of the income goes out in wages at Spartak Nalchik

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.

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

Andemir Goguzokov 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.

Squad

No hiding place for Islam Tlupov

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Islam Tlupov, and the manager let it.

In brief

17 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

23 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

The wait goes on for Spartak Nalchik

8 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.

Squad

Andemir Goguzokov 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 Spartak Nalchik this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

A bad afternoon for Spartak Nalchik against Angusht

0‑1 to Angusht, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Eldar Bliev

“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 ratings

Amirkhan Selyaev runs at them all day

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.

Player ratings

Off the pace: Malik Kenzhev

A mark of 5.65 tells the story without any need for embellishment. He will want the tape of this one quietly lost.

In brief

16 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

16 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

7 matches without a win for Spartak Nalchik

The run now stands at 7, and the questions being asked around Spartak Nalchik are no longer polite ones.

Market

Eldar Luev asks to leave Spartak Nalchik

“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.

Squad

Alan Khachirov 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 Spartak Nalchik this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Soslan Lysenko

Successful dribbles: 19. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Kostas Lampsias

“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 ratings

A defender's afternoon for Amur Khatsukov

Defensive actions: 14. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.

In brief

15 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

9 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Eduardo Ramírez asks to leave Spartak Nalchik

“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.

Match

6 matches without a win for Spartak Nalchik

The run now stands at 6, and the questions being asked around Spartak Nalchik are no longer polite ones.

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

Alan Khachirov 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 ratings

A defender's afternoon for Eldar Bliev

Defensive actions: 18. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.

Player ratings

Amur Khatsukov takes the honours

Marked 7.52 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, Spartak Nalchik had the best player on the pitch.

Player ratings

Soslan Lysenko runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 14. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Islam Pekov 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.

Match

Spartak Nalchik draw a blank against Astrakhan

The crowd waited for a goal that never came. Astrakhan defended in numbers and left with what they came for, and the two sides could be playing still without troubling a scorer.

Market

The Aslanbek Kumykov question follows Spartak Nalchik around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Aslanbek Kumykov’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

In brief

14 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

2 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Amirkhan Selyaev asks to leave Spartak Nalchik

“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.

Match

No end in sight to Spartak Nalchik's wait for a win

5 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Spartak Nalchik has to find a result from somewhere.

Boardroom

446% of the income goes out in wages at Spartak Nalchik

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 ratings

Eldar Bliev shuts the door

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.

Squad

No hiding place for Artem Anoshin

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Artem Anoshin, and the manager let it.

Player ratings

A defender's afternoon for Amur Khatsukov

Defensive actions: 17. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.

Player ratings

Soslan Lysenko runs at them all day

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.

Match

Spartak Nalchik draw a blank against Legion

The crowd waited for a goal that never came. Legion defended in numbers and left with what they came for, and the two sides could be playing still without troubling a scorer.

Player ratings

Nothing got past Andemir Goguzokov

Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 12 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.

In brief

13 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

26 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

Khachim Mashukov says Spartak Nalchik went back on their word

“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.

Match

The wait goes on for Spartak Nalchik

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.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Soslan Lysenko

Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Aslanbek Kumykov 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 ratings

A masterclass from Islam Tlupov

Marked 8.20 — 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.

Squad

David Sarbashev 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 Spartak Nalchik this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

In brief

12 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

19 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Spartak Nalchik up to position 3

18 points on the board and a place in the leading group. Nobody at the ground is saying the word out loud yet.

Market

Eldar Luev puts it in writing

“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 Spartak Nalchik, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Zamir Knyazev says Spartak Nalchik went back on their word

“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.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Islam Tlupov

“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 ratings

A defender's afternoon for Andemir Goguzokov

Defensive actions: 18. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

David Sarbashev 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.

Squad

Spartak Nalchik lose Akhmed Kumyshev

14 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.

Player ratings

Eldar Bliev stands above it all

Some games turn on a moment; this one turned on a man. 7.79 on the card, and the Spartak Nalchik support went home talking about one name.

Player ratings

Amur Khatsukov shuts the door

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.

In brief

11 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

12 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Eduardo Ramírez puts it in writing

“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 Spartak Nalchik, and it is not being withdrawn.

The terraces

The ground has had enough

“We travel everywhere and we get this.” 5 of the 24 senior players heard it walking off, and the ones who did not hear it were not playing.

Squad

Andemir Goguzokov 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 Spartak Nalchik this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

Spartak Nalchik come up short against Dinamo Stavropol

Dinamo Stavropol left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Khakim Kadykoev

“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 ratings

Nobody could get near Soslan Lysenko

Successful dribbles: 17. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Renat Balkizov 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.

Market

The Aslanbek Kumykov question follows Spartak Nalchik around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Aslanbek Kumykov’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

Player ratings

A day to forget for Malik Kenzhev

Marked 5.73, and generously at that. Nothing came off, and by the end the crowd had stopped expecting it to.

In brief

10 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

5 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Amirkhan Selyaev puts it in writing

“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 Spartak Nalchik, and it is not being withdrawn.

Player ratings

Soslan Lysenko runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 20. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Home is on Eduardo Ramírez's mind

“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; Spartak Nalchik are dealing with a man who wants a different country.

Boardroom

Wages eat 760% of everything Spartak Nalchik 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.

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

Andemir Goguzokov 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 ratings

Nothing got past Eldar Bliev

Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 14 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.

In brief

9 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

28 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

Alan Khachirov 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.

Match

Islam Tlupov sends Spartak Nalchik past Rostov 2

It finished 1‑0, and it was Islam Tlupov’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Spartak Nalchik.

Player ratings

One of those days for Islam Tlupov

There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.11, and no argument anywhere in the ground.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Artem Anoshin

“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 ratings

A defender's afternoon for Eldar Bliev

Defensive actions: 17. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.

Player ratings

Amur Khatsukov shuts the door

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.

In brief

8 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

21 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

Spartak Nalchik are in among the leaders

Position 3 and 13 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.

Squad

Alan Khachirov 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 Spartak Nalchik this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

A bad afternoon for Spartak Nalchik against Dinamo Makhachkala 2

0‑1 to Dinamo Makhachkala 2, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

Squad

Spartak Nalchik count the cost of losing Akhmed Kumyshev

42 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.

Squad

Eduardo Ramírez 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 ratings

Nobody could get near Alan Khachirov

Successful dribbles: 16. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

In brief

7 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

14 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Market

Eldar Luev hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Spartak Nalchik can pretend not to have heard.

Player ratings

A defender's afternoon for Eldar Bliev

Defensive actions: 26. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.

Match

Spartak Nalchik get the job done against Sochi 2

A 1‑0 win over Sochi 2, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Kostas Lampsias

“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 ratings

One of those days for Islam Tlupov

There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.45, and no argument anywhere in the ground.

Player ratings

Amirkhan Selyaev runs at them all day

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.

Squad

David Sarbashev 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 Spartak Nalchik this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

A defender's afternoon for Amur Khatsukov

Defensive actions: 17. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.

Squad

“I want to play”: Eduardo Ramírez speaks

“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.

In brief

6 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

7 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Amirkhan Selyaev puts it in writing

“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 Spartak Nalchik, and it is not being withdrawn.

Market

Spartak Nalchik sell Mukhamed Mizaushev for $7.0K

Mukhamed Mizaushev has left for Avangard in a $7.0K deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Andemir Goguzokov

Marked 9.09 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

Boardroom

Wages eat 696% of everything Spartak Nalchik 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.

Match

Spartak Nalchik get the job done against Rubin Yalta

A 2‑0 win over Rubin Yalta, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

Player ratings

One of those days for Soslan Lysenko

There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.59, and no argument anywhere in the ground.

Player ratings

A masterclass from David Sarbashev

Marked 8.45 — 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 ratings

Eldar Bliev shuts the door

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.

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

David Sarbashev 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.

In brief

5 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

31 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Magomed Piriev hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Spartak Nalchik can pretend not to have heard.

Market

Amin Zhangurazov moves on

Volna pay $2.0K, and the deal is done. The number reads well on a balance sheet; whether it reads well on the pitch is next season's question.

Squad

Andemir Goguzokov 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 Spartak Nalchik this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Player ratings

Alan Khachirov in the eights

A performance of 8.61 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Aslanbek Kumykov

“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 ratings

Nobody could get near Amirkhan Selyaev

Successful dribbles: 18. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Match

Spartak Nalchik and Pobeda 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.

Squad

Alan Khachirov finally opens his account

He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Spartak Nalchik have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.

Squad

Khachim Mashukov 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 Spartak Nalchik, and both men came out saying it was fine.

In brief

4 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

24 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

The cup run ends for Spartak Nalchik

1‑2 against Sevastopol, and the road stops here. Cup exits are quick deaths — no second leg, no next week, just the league from now until May.

Market

Mukhamed Mizaushev hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Spartak Nalchik can pretend not to have heard.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Eldar Bliev

Successful dribbles: 25. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

Soslan Lysenko 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.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Khakim Kadykoev

“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 ratings

Islam Pekov takes the honours

Marked 7.34 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, Spartak Nalchik had the best player on the pitch.

Player ratings

Nothing got past Amur Khatsukov

Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 15 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.

Match

Point won or two lost for Spartak Nalchik?

Ninety minutes, no goals, and the argument started before the car park emptied: a point gained, or two thrown away against Angusht? Both sides of it will still be going on Thursday.

Squad

A first senior shirt for Ismail Zhaboev

Every debut is a small story about the future: Ismail Zhaboev, 19 years old, off the academy pitches and into the first team. The parents in the stand will keep the programme.

In brief

3 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

17 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Eldar Luev asks to leave Spartak Nalchik

“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.

Squad

Soslan Lysenko 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 Spartak Nalchik this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

Spartak Nalchik find a way past Nart

Nart made Spartak Nalchik work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.

Squad

No hiding place for Kostas Lampsias

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Kostas Lampsias, and the manager let it.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Islam Tlupov

Marked 8.22 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.

Squad

Islam Tlupov finally opens his account

He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Spartak Nalchik have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.

Player ratings

Islam Pekov shuts the door

Defensive actions: 13, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.

Squad

A first senior shirt for Tamerlan Dzugulov

Every debut is a small story about the future: Tamerlan Dzugulov, 18 years old, off the academy pitches and into the first team. The parents in the stand will keep the programme.

Player ratings

Alan Khachirov runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 11. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

In brief

2 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

10 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Amirkhan Selyaev puts it in writing

“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 Spartak Nalchik, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

Alan Khachirov 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.

Squad

Islam Tlupov 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 ratings

Amirkhan Selyaev runs at them all day

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.

Market

48 months and counting on Aslanbek Kumykov

Still no offer on the table, and Aslanbek Kumykov’s deal keeps shrinking. In boardroom language, silence this long stops being an oversight and starts being an answer.

Player ratings

Amur Khatsukov takes the honours

Marked 7.58 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, Spartak Nalchik had the best player on the pitch.

Market

Spartak Nalchik and Khachim Mashukov are talking past each other

“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.

Match

Spartak Nalchik and Astrakhan cancel each other out

Nil-nil, and few chances worth the name. Astrakhan came to defend and left with exactly what they came for.

Market

Tamerlan Koloev told to find a new club

“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Tamerlan Koloev has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Spartak Nalchik.

In brief

1 Edition

The Spartak Nalchik Herald

3 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Magomed Piriev asks to leave Spartak Nalchik

“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.

Squad

Soslan Lysenko signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Soslan Lysenko and Spartak Nalchik agree another 4 years.

Squad

Tempers go at Spartak Nalchik

Soslan Lysenko 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 ratings

Khachim Mashukov runs at them all day

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.

Squad

Ismail Kushkhov 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.

Market

Talks stall between Spartak Nalchik and Alan Khachirov

“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.

Market

The clock runs on Soslan Lysenko's contract

49 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.

Player ratings

The afternoon belonged to Andemir Goguzokov

A mark of 7.69, and nobody in the ground would argue with it. He was involved in everything that mattered and most of what did not.

Player ratings

Amur Khatsukov shuts the door

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.

In brief