From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad11 Jan 2027
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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.
Market11 Jan 2027
The Pavel Kotov talk will not go away
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Veles know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Squad11 Jan 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 Veles, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match4 Jan 2027
Veles refuse to drop out of the race
Position 1, 27 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.
Market4 Jan 2027
“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 The request is on a desk at Veles, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad4 Jan 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Veles may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad28 Dec 2026
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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.
Boardroom28 Dec 2026
633% of the income goes out in wages at Veles
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
“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
Upbeat
Market21 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 Veles can pretend not to have heard.
Squad21 Dec 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.
Squad21 Dec 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 Veles this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Loan watch21 Dec 2026
“I did not go to Zenit Penza to sit and watch. I want to come back to Veles and fight for my place.” 0 appearances in 17 matches say the rest.
Market21 Dec 2026
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Alexandr Shubin’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
Squad21 Dec 2026
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Vladislav Volkov trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad14 Dec 2026
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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 Dec 2026
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Ishkhan Geloyan trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Market14 Dec 2026
The Pavel Kotov talk will not go away
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Veles know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match7 Dec 2026
Veles are in among the leaders
Position 1 and 27 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.
Squad7 Dec 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 Veles this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad7 Dec 2026
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Veles, and both men came out saying it was fine.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad30 Nov 2026
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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.
Boardroom30 Nov 2026
798% of the income goes out in wages at Veles
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.
Squad30 Nov 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.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market23 Nov 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 Veles, and it is not being withdrawn.
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 Veles this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Loan watch23 Nov 2026
“I watch every Veles game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Zenit Penza runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Dmitry Sergeev 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.
Squad23 Nov 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.
Market23 Nov 2026
Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Alexandr Shubin’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.
From our football correspondent
Triumph
Match14 Nov 2026
Veles make it 4 in a row
Momentum is a hard thing to buy and an easy thing to lose, and right now Veles have 4 straight wins of it.
Squad16 Nov 2026
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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 ratings16 Nov 2026
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.22, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Match14 Nov 2026
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Mikhail Rybalko. 2‑0 against Volgar, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Player ratings16 Nov 2026
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 ratings16 Nov 2026
A performance of 8.25 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Player ratings16 Nov 2026
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 18 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Squad16 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.
Squad16 Nov 2026
The first one is the one every signing is asked about until it arrives. It has arrived, and he can stop being asked.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match9 Nov 2026
Veles are in among the leaders
Position 2 and 24 points on the board. Nobody at the ground will say the word out loud yet, and everybody at the ground is thinking it.
Squad9 Nov 2026
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Veles may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Match7 Nov 2026
Veles cannot stop winning
3 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
Squad9 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 Veles this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings9 Nov 2026
A defender's afternoon for Yury Zavezen
Defensive actions: 21. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings9 Nov 2026
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.
Match7 Nov 2026
Three points for Veles, 1‑0 the final word against Textilschik in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Player ratings9 Nov 2026
Successful dribbles: 18. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings9 Nov 2026
Some games turn on a moment; this one turned on a man. 7.77 on the card, and the Veles support went home talking about one name.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad2 Nov 2026
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Veles have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad2 Nov 2026
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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.
Match31 Oct 2026
6 unbeaten for Veles
Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 6 matches without defeat is a foundation Veles did not have in the autumn.
Match31 Oct 2026
Veles get the job done against Sibir
A 2‑1 win over Sibir, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Boardroom2 Nov 2026
798% of the income goes out in wages at Veles
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 ratings2 Nov 2026
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.
Market2 Nov 2026
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Veles, another week without a signature from Ishkhan Geloyan.
Player ratings2 Nov 2026
Ten men and a goalkeeper behind him, and it still finished in the net. He knew before anybody told him, and nobody at Veles needed to.
Squad2 Nov 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Artur Arustamyan, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market26 Oct 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 Veles, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad26 Oct 2026
Berk Kızıldemir: 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.” Veles have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad26 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 Veles this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match24 Oct 2026
Leningradets made Veles work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑1 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Squad26 Oct 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.
Player ratings26 Oct 2026
A performance of 8.57 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Player ratings26 Oct 2026
Successful dribbles: 16. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Loan watch26 Oct 2026
“I did not go to Zenit Penza to sit and watch. I want to come back to Veles and fight for my place.” 0 appearances in 9 matches say the rest.
Squad26 Oct 2026
Rafael Assis wants a proper job in this side
Shifted about, taken off before the hour, asked to do somebody else's running — Rafael Assis has had enough of being useful and would like to be picked. Veles know, and have known for weeks.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad19 Oct 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.
Market19 Oct 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.
Player ratings19 Oct 2026
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.
Squad19 Oct 2026
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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.
Squad19 Oct 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.
Match17 Oct 2026
Point won or two lost for Veles?
Ninety minutes, no goals, and the argument started before the car park emptied: a point gained, or two thrown away against Alania? Both sides of it will still be going on Thursday.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Player ratings12 Oct 2026
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.
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 Veles this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad12 Oct 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.
Match10 Oct 2026
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Zakhar Tarasenko. 1‑0 against Mashuk, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Player ratings12 Oct 2026
Marked 8.26 — 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 ratings12 Oct 2026
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.
Player ratings12 Oct 2026
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.
Market12 Oct 2026
The name of Ishkhan Geloyan keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Veles say nothing, which says plenty.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Ishkhan Geloyan joins up with his country. Veles lose him for the window and would like him back in one piece.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match3 Oct 2026
5 matches without a win for Veles
The run now stands at 5, and the questions being asked around Veles are no longer polite ones.
Player ratings5 Oct 2026
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.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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 ratings5 Oct 2026
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.
Boardroom5 Oct 2026
1269% of the income goes out in wages at Veles
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 ratings5 Oct 2026
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.
Squad5 Oct 2026
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Ivan Chintsov commits to Veles for another 3 years.
Squad5 Oct 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.
Squad5 Oct 2026
Dmitry Sergeev knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Dmitry Sergeev trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market28 Sep 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.
Match26 Sep 2026
No end in sight to Veles's wait for a win
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Veles has to find a result from somewhere.
Player ratings28 Sep 2026
Defensive actions: 24. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
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 Veles this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad28 Sep 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.
Player ratings28 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.
Loan watch28 Sep 2026
“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 Veles, and 0 appearances in 5 say he has earned the hearing.
Match26 Sep 2026
Ninety minutes, two goalkeepers with clean gloves, and not one finish worth keeping. Tyumen will be the happier side with the point.
Player ratings28 Sep 2026
A defender's afternoon for Yury Zavezen
Defensive actions: 12. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match21 Sep 2026
Veles are in real trouble now
Position 8, 9 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 Sep 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.
Player ratings21 Sep 2026
Successful dribbles: 26. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad21 Sep 2026
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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.
Match19 Sep 2026
0‑1 to Dinamo Moscow 2, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad21 Sep 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.
Player ratings21 Sep 2026
Shots: 7, enough of them from close enough that a striker in form scores two. He is not a striker in form.
Squad21 Sep 2026
Pavel Popov 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.
Market21 Sep 2026
The Pavel Kotov talk will not go away
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Veles know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad14 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 Veles this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad14 Sep 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Rasul Mitsaev, and the manager let it.
Match12 Sep 2026
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Player ratings14 Sep 2026
Successful dribbles: 15. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings14 Sep 2026
Shots: 9. Goals: none. The chances were there and they were good ones, and they went into the stand, the goalkeeper's arms and the side netting in roughly that order.
Squad14 Sep 2026
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Veles, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Squad14 Sep 2026
A year in and the language has not come, the city has not opened up, and he eats alone more often than anybody at Veles would like to admit. It is showing on Saturdays.
Market14 Sep 2026
The name of Ishkhan Geloyan keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Veles say nothing, which says plenty.
Player ratings14 Sep 2026
Marked 5.44, and generously at that. Nothing came off, and by the end the crowd had stopped expecting it to.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market7 Sep 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.
Player ratings7 Sep 2026
Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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.
Market7 Sep 2026
Veles get their man
The chase for Nikita Zavjalov ended with $35.0K changing hands and Murom out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.
Player ratings7 Sep 2026
Defensive actions: 22. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Boardroom7 Sep 2026
1312% of the income goes out in wages at Veles
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 ratings7 Sep 2026
Defensive actions: 20. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Squad7 Sep 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Rafael Assis, and the manager let it.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Rafael Assis has outgrown this division
There is a level at which a footballer stops being tested and starts being contained, and he reached it some time ago. Veles know it, and so does everybody who watches him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market31 Aug 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.
Squad31 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 Veles this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match29 Aug 2026
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Ishkhan Geloyan. 2‑0 against Sibir, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Player ratings31 Aug 2026
Defensive actions: 20, 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 ratings31 Aug 2026
Defensive actions: 20. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Squad31 Aug 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Dmitry Sergeev, and the manager let it.
Player ratings31 Aug 2026
Defensive actions: 19. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Player ratings31 Aug 2026
A performance of 8.28 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Squad31 Aug 2026
The first one is the one every signing is asked about until it arrives. It has arrived, and he can stop being asked.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match19 Aug 2026
Veles bow out of the cup
Khimik go through and Veles go home, 0‑2 the scoreline that did it. The dressing room will call the league the priority now, because that is what dressing rooms say.
The terraces24 Aug 2026
The boos come down from three sides
“We pay for this every fortnight. The least we want is somebody who looks like he cares.” 11 of the 22 senior players walked off into it; the rest were not playing.
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 Veles can pretend not to have heard.
Player ratings24 Aug 2026
Successful dribbles: 26. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad24 Aug 2026
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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 Aug 2026
The manager makes an example of Pavel Kotov
“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 Aug 2026
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad24 Aug 2026
An error at the back is a moment; an error in goal is a goal. Rasul Mitsaev knows it, the crowd knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
Squad24 Aug 2026
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Ishkhan Geloyan trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings17 Aug 2026
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 24 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Squad17 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 Veles this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings17 Aug 2026
Defensive actions: 21, 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 Aug 2026
“The easiest signature of my career.” Berk Kızıldemir and Veles agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Player ratings17 Aug 2026
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.
Player ratings17 Aug 2026
Marked 8.65 — 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.
Match15 Aug 2026
Three points for Veles, 1‑0 the final word against Alania in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Market17 Aug 2026
Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Veles will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.
Squad17 Aug 2026
Dmitry Sergeev 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
Player ratings10 Aug 2026
Defensive actions: 29. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Market10 Aug 2026
Veles say no — this time
The offer from Saturn for Ionafan Sapozhnikov 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 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 Veles this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad10 Aug 2026
“The easiest signature of my career.” Mikhail Rybalko and Veles agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad10 Aug 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Ishkhan Geloyan, and the manager let it.
Player ratings10 Aug 2026
A defender's afternoon for Yury Zavezen
Defensive actions: 18. He was first to everything and second to nothing, and the goalkeeper had an easy day because of it.
Market10 Aug 2026
Still no offer on the table, and Rasul Mitsaev’s deal keeps shrinking. In boardroom language, silence this long stops being an oversight and starts being an answer.
Player ratings10 Aug 2026
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.
Player ratings10 Aug 2026
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
Uneasy
Squad3 Aug 2026
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Ishkhan Geloyan and Veles agree another 2 years.
Player ratings3 Aug 2026
Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad3 Aug 2026
Tempers go at Veles
Ishkhan Geloyan 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 Aug 2026
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.
Market3 Aug 2026
Add another name to the list: Saturn have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Ionafan Sapozhnikov. The answer from Veles has not changed — yet.
Squad3 Aug 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Rasul Mitsaev, and the manager let it.
Player ratings3 Aug 2026
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.
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 Veles, another week without a signature from Ishkhan Geloyan.
Market3 Aug 2026
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.