Goncharenko is the new head coach of CSKA. can he win trophies? The best CSKA coaches past and present Who is the new CSKA football coach

The army leadership announced in 2018 that it would extend the contract with the current player for two more seasons. CSKA coach Goncharenko. Commenting on this event, the culprit said that he was very glad that Russian football officials trust him to raise national football. Home support as stated CSKA coach, comes not so much from the team, but from the fans, who saw in him a true master of his craft.

Many believed that the appearance of a young specialist would not give the club any chance to get ahead. However former CSKA coach Leonid Slutsky stated that his replacement is a reliable partner, and he is confident in his potential. The first seasons in the football club were not long in coming, and now Russian football officials have firmly grasped CSKA coach Viktor Goncharenko, considering him a leading specialist who will “reanimate” domestic football.

But, if we look at his biography, it is difficult to call him a “Varangian”. In 2013 and 2014, Goncharenko led the Krasnodar team “Kuban”, after which he went to work for the Bashkir “Ufa”, where he lasted only 6 months and became the main face of the capital’s army team.

It’s impossible to say anything bad about former coach Slutsky. He led the team for 7 years, which is an extremely long time by football standards. During that period, the team became the Russian Champion three times, and also won the Super Cup and the Cup exactly two times in a row. But the last year was very stressful for Slutsky; according to him, 2016 was fatal for his fate, and this is said by a man who was only 45 years old at the time. The reason is a series of troubles in the composition and management of the Russian National Team, which he reluctantly led in 2015, as well as the most difficult situation before the Euro 2016 finals. Slutsky at one point dropped out of the team Dzagoev, Denisov and. A shortage of personnel forced him to introduce into the team the young and promising athlete Golovin, who had recently joined the army club.

Failure in the national team at Euro 2016 forced Slutsky to return to his previous position CSKA head football coach, but not for long. After his return, a streak of failures began to haunt the army team, where in the Champions League, the club, to the surprise of everyone, took last place in the group team round. At the National Championship, there was a noticeable gap with the main rival “Spartak” of up to 8 catastrophic points. Under the presidency of Evgeniy Giner, this would not have happened in principle; the leader himself would not have allowed this. All the failures could be explained, but Slutsky did not comment on the failures and announced his resignation from all posts.

Nobody tried to dissuade the former coach, his resignation was accepted, and in his last match with London Tottenham (the army team naturally lost with a score of 1:3), the largest TV channels in Russia broadcast programs with the general theme “Thank you, Coach!” dedicated to Slutsky.

Goncharenko’s arrival at the club became known back in 2015, but at that time Mikhalych (the players themselves gave him this nickname) was managing the Bashkir Ufa. Slutsky’s ideological ally also hoped that the former leader would be able to revive the former glory of the army team in record time. But the miracle that everyone expected did not happen.

How Ufa let Goncharenko go to CSKA

To become head coach of CSKA you need to have good reasons, and the main thing is not to let your former partners down. The whole country knew about the crisis among the army team, Goncharenko successfully completed his career in Kuban, and he was offered to work in Ufa. The crisis in the club and problems with Slutsky were on everyone's lips. Before leaving for another club, each mentor had to fulfill the terms of the previous contract, otherwise he would not receive any compensation.

Shamil Gazizov, the president of Ufa, told how Goncharenko left for a new job.

“Each mentor must fulfill the terms of any contract before the deadline specified in the regulations. If he leaves ahead of schedule, we will not compensate him for anything. But Goncharenko faced an interesting situation. It was written in our agreement that if Goncharenko leaves for another club, then he must compensate for the losses from his own pocket. But if he leaves football coach at CSKA, then he doesn't owe anything. Our task was to preserve what Viktor Mikhailovich had achieved and not to lose anything after he left for the army. Before moving to work in Moscow, Mikhalych did what was required of him and “Ufa” played quite successfully without his absence.”

Who is Mikhalych?

Active CSKA coach 2018, born in 1977. His homeland is the small Belarusian city of Khoiniki, which is located in the Gomel region. He began his career at the local youth sports school, and then at the Minsk RUOR. Victor still remembers the warm words of his first mentors Alexander Vergeichik and Yuri Pyshnik. Mikhalych played at RUOR until 1997, after which he moved to BATE (1998-2002). As a member of the club, he managed to win the Belarusian Championship twice (1999 and 2002). Twice in a row his main club won silver places - in 1998 and 2000, and in 2001 BATE won bronze. The football player’s career had to end on October 3, 2002, where the future coach of CSKA Moscow received a serious injury - a rupture of the cruciate ligament located on the left knee joint.

At the age of 25, Goncharenko ended his football career, after which he decided to receive a special sports education and successfully graduated from the Belarusian Institute of Physical Education (BGUFK) in 2004 with a degree in coach. After finishing his studies, Goncharenko returned as a mentor, but until 2007 he played a supporting role in the club. Since 2009, BATE has triumphantly won European and Belarusian trophies. The talent of the young specialist attracted the attention of Russian football functionaries and in 2010 he was offered the post of coach at Lokomotiv, Goncharenko refused, although a year earlier, in 2009, he had already been offered to head Kuban.

The success of the Belarusian team forced Russian and even Ukrainian football officials to feverishly look for ways to approach the future CSKA coach now, but Goncharenko flatly refuses to move to foreign clubs. There were offers from Karpaty (Ukraine), CSKA (the club repeatedly offered, but Mikhalych stubbornly refused).

In 2013, Goncharenko gave up and moved to Kuban.

Work in Kuban

In 2013 he headed the club, a contract was signed for 4.5 years. Under his leadership, Kuban football players were able to rise to 5th all-Russian place in 2014, trailing the 2nd place leader by only 1 point after 13 rounds. The club offered him a rate of 1 million Euros for 12 months, but at the end of the same period, the board dismissed him with the wording “did not show harshness in dealing with football players”. The strange and idiotic wording became the subject of ridicule on the Internet and in the sports community.

Work in Ural

In 2015, Goncharenko went to work for Ural, the contract was signed for 3 seasons. The mentor managed to “pull” the team to 10th place, but after three months of work, Goncharenko resigns. The reason is a divergence of views on the further development of the club.

Work at CSKA (first experience)

He held the position of assistant coach from September 2015 to May 2016. Goncharenko adapted well to the team, but believed that he needed to go “independently” and left the position of head coach. Before this, he was again offered to lead the Belarusian BATE, but Victor politely refused and preferred to stay in Russia.

Work in Ufa

At the beginning of June 2016, a contract was signed for 2 seasons, with the possibility of extension for another period. Until December 2016, Goncharenko managed to lead the team to good positions, which led to Ufa reaching the quarterfinals in the winter season. On December 10, Goncharenko terminates his contract early and is invited to work for the army team.

Guiding Star Goncharenko

Starting from December 12, 2016, and to this day, Mikhalych leads the Moscow army. The team's success can be seen almost every day. The Belarusians did not forget their fellow countryman, and in 2017 he was recognized as the best Coach of the Year in Belarus. If you look at the entire path of the army team, you will notice that with the advent of Goncharenko, the club came to life and managed to prove to the Europeans that Russian football is worth something.

According to Goncharenko, he believes that only two clubs gave him confidence in his coaching abilities, these are BATE and Ufa, while he spent almost 9 years in one club, and only six months in the other.

Under his leadership, the army team became a two-time winner of the Russian Championship (season 16/17 and 17/18), as well as the winner of the Russian Super Cup in 2018.

Belarus does not forget its fellow countryman and has recognized him as the best Coach of the Year 7 times since 2008 (in 2011, 2013 and 2015 Goncharenko was not a nominee).

During the entire period of mentoring, CSKA showed an excellent result in terms of winnings out of 64 games, 57.81% were winning, and the loss was only 13 games (data as of August 21, 2018).

Having won the Super Cup over Lokomotiv, Goncharenko said the following:

“The last thing our team wants to do now is listen to praises. Now the task is to recover and start playing in the new season. Expect surprises in the fall!”

Mikhalych considers it inappropriate to compare the army team with the Spartak team of 1996, where the club then became a champion due to the abundance of young players.

Viktor Mikhailovich has potential, because he is only 41 years old, and his mentoring experience shows that Russian football, even at the expense of the Varangians (although it is difficult to call a Belarusian a Varangian!), can still be competitive.

Calmness is the credo of a football leader

The head of the army, like all celebrities, does not like to talk about his personal life. It is known that he is married, his wife’s name is Margarita, he has a little son who, like his dad, is interested in football. The couple doesn’t give interviews to anyone, but sometimes they post photos of their happy family life on Instagram. Margarita, however, once complained to reporters and said that she rarely sees her husband, mostly on TV. However, she considers him a workaholic and is always ready to lend him her shoulder.

Critics of the current CSKA coach accuse him of weak character. He doesn't argue with almost anyone. At least, there were no serious clashes with any player, not counting the situation with Ahmed Musa, who in the match with Dynamo committed a fine and did not shake his mentor’s hand, after which Goncharenko became furious with his ward. A little later, the incident was resolved, and the men stated that they had resolved the issue peacefully. However, many are surprised how the quiet and calm Mikhalych can manage such complex football clubs.

After his last match as head coach, CSKA rushed to the fan stand to finally “talk frankly” with a boorish fan who once promised to buy an inflatable hippopotamus for the stand (he didn’t), give Wernbloom a car (he did) and constantly insulted the head coach trainer.

The main reasons for Slutsky’s departure are easy to list. Fatigue after a difficult (coached both the club and the national team) and unsuccessful season: the failure of the national team, and the club was not in the Champions League zone, was eliminated from the Cup and the Champions League, and was even left without the Europa League.

After 7 years of successful work in the absence of money and the necessary personnel for a new rise - how can all this serve as motivation? We can recall the loss of support from fans, and the unpleasant story of Roman Eremenko’s disqualification for using cocaine (the press cited anonymous statements from players that other players on the team could take cocaine as a way to quickly recover from a hangover before training after a fun weekend! Believe it or not hard, but such a version exists), and uncertainty with the squad - for this championship season the club did not buy anyone (they only rented out Traore and Ionov, who did not live up to expectations), but what will happen next year?

They are openly talking about the possible sale of Alan, the defense line is brothers who have long been Balzac's age, young Golovin and Chalov are promising, but a completely new coach should build a completely new team, and not a three-time Russian champion, in whom, I hope that this is true, there is interest European clubs.

Moreover, there is such a new coach. Slutsky number two. Slutsky never played professional football, Viktor Goncharenko played only in Belarus and finished at the age of 25 with an injury. He was already at CSKA - an assistant to Slutsky, who let him go to coach Ufa this year, but with a clause in the contract - the possibility of returning to the club if necessary. The need has arrived.

The heated discussion was not caused by possible changes in the composition of the new head coach, not by a discussion of his tactical model, not by forecasts of his success at the club, but by how to correctly spell his last name.

All his life in Russia they wrote his last name “Goncharenko”, and no one looked at his Belarusian passport (“Viktar Mikhailavich Gancharenka”), but becoming a CSKA coach was like a second life. Now there is a mixture of languages: Russian and Belarusian. So, in Russian they wrote - Goncharenko. In Belarusian - Gancharenka. It turned out - Gancharenko.

At the same time, the coach himself previously did not pay attention to the spelling of his last name. When issuing a passport for sovereign Belarus, the passport officer, instead of his birth name Goncharenko, wrote it in Belarusian “Gancharenko”. “All citizens were offered a choice of two spellings of their surname - traditional Soviet and Belarusian. I have a Belarusian transcription in my passport. Being young, I didn’t pay attention to such subtleties. I myself write my surname with the letter “o”, I’m used to it,” said future coach of CSKA.

They say that one day he wanted to correct this mistake, but he would have to fill out so many papers, change so many documents that he gave up and left everything as it was.

But since CSKA decided to start a new life, maybe the Belarusian coach will decide to start all over again? And in CSKA’s application, and on the club’s official website, and on the official RFPL website, he is announced as Viktor Gancharenko.

Zenit fans recognized the surname - then still with an "o" - of Goncharenko in 2008, when the young Belarusian coach led his club BATE (Borisov) to the group stage of the Champions League. Goncharenko not only became the youngest coach in the history of this tournament, but also achieved a draw with Zenit at Petrovsky - 1:1. And here Zenit found itself in good company, because Goncharenko’s team played two draws with Juventus - both at home and away.

Naturally, the young coach forced himself to be respected, so Russian clubs began to look at him. They wrote that Lokomotiv was interested in him, but Goncharenko remained in Belarus and for the first time in the history of Belarusian football led the team to the playoffs of the Champions League, where they lost to PSG in the 1/16 finals only due to the difference in goals at home and away.

Having signed a contract with Kuban, after 13 rounds Goncharenko was with the Krasnodar team in fifth place in the Russian Championship, 1 point behind second place, but was dismissed with the idiotic wording “due to a lack of rigidity in communicating with players.” After Goncharenko's dismissal, Kuban won only one match in this draw.

Another noisy resignation of Goncharenko was from Ural before the match with Terek, when there were strong suspicions about a contractual nature. Non-participation in behind-the-scenes games, of course, commands respect.

Now Viktor Gancharenko (let’s call him that at CSKA) must create a playing team with a minimum budget, carry out a generational change and set some new goals for the players. Whether he will do it through “a” or through “o”, club owner Evgeniy Giner is not interested. The main thing is that the new coach does not ask for money. But this one is not used to asking.

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The team, fans and specialists were waiting for this appointment, because Goncharenko already worked on the coaching staff of the Army Men. Leonid Slutsky left behind a whole sideboard with won cups and trophies on the shelves, and it will not be easy for the new mentor to surpass him. The Belarusian coach took over CSKA in a very difficult situation, but the club’s fans will immediately demand results. Will Goncharenko be able to win new titles with CSKA? Experts and readers of the Championship share their forecasts.

Vladimir Ponomarev, former CSKA defender:
- Whether CSKA and Goncharenko will fight for titles will depend more on the squad than on the coach himself. It will be difficult for Viktor Mikhailovich. The army team has big losses in the midline. At Eremenko's

disqualification, Dzagoev can move to England. You need to buy at least three players: defense, midfield and attack. Or switch to another tactic with active flanks. The coach will definitely bring something new and attract young people.

Leonid Slutsky, former head coach of CSKA:
- – my friend. I can wish him great luck. And creative, and sports, and personal. I will be very worried about him.

Valery Masalitin, former CSKA forward:
- I would like to wish Goncharenko that he and CSKA achieve at least the same results as Slutsky. Viktor Mikhailovich is a young, promising coach. It will be interesting to see how the players, especially the old-timers, will accept him. If Goncharenko gives preference to the young, then the “old people” will be unhappy, and fermentation may begin. I think there won’t be a massive update, players will return from loan, and maybe they’ll buy a maximum of one player.

Evgeny Aldonin, former CSKA midfielder:
- he may well immediately achieve success with CSKA, and they took him to the team with an eye on this. I am sure that Goncharenko’s tasks will immediately be maximum. This is always the case with the army team. It’s unlikely that everything will go smoothly right away for the new coach, because the fight for the championship will be serious in the spring. If the army team manages to maintain its roster and strengthen certain lines this winter, the fight for the championship in Russia will take place with the participation of CSKA.

Ruslan Nigmatullin, former CSKA goalkeeper:
- Goncharenko is able to improve the game and results of the “army team”. CSKA's financial problems will not go away with the arrival of a new coach, but from the point of view of the game, the appearance of Victor can have a positive effect. The new coach will have enough time to systematically work with the team and bring something of his own to the “army team”. In the spring we will see a new CSKA. CSKA - Goncharenko!

Sergei Kolotovkin, former CSKA defender:
- I am surprised by the appointment of Viktor Goncharenko. I am not against or for Goncharenko. He will have to work from scratch, because a whole generation of football players will leave. We'll have to wait. Whether Giner will wait is a big question

Andrey Sozin, football expert, member of the RFU ethics committee:
- worked for CSKA for several months, he knows all the strengths and weaknesses of the team. Moreover, Goncharenko will not immediately break everything, he is not diametrically opposed to Slutsky. The Belarusian specialist has already proven that he knows how to lead teams out of crisis and organize the game. Now it’s time to understand whether he has the strength to make the club a champion in the future

Mikhail Grushevsky, famous artist and CSKA fan:
- With Goncharenko, CSKA will at least fight for trophies. Practice shows that the spring part of the championship is the army team’s trump card. I'm betting on this and hope that CSKA will still spoil the nerves of Spartak and Zenit. Perhaps one newcomer will appear in the winter, if two, it will be a sensation. Loan players can go through a training camp with the team so that the new coach can make a conclusion about their need or uselessness. Everyone knows that Viktor Vasin will return.

A look from the inside

, head coach of CSKA:
- CSKA has been the leader of Russian football in recent years. The team won under the leadership of Leonid Slutsky, and earlier with Valery Gazzaev many different titles. I will do everything in my power to increase my previous achievements. I don't think we'll need time to grind in. There will be no revolution, there will only be steps that will allow you to look at the team from a different perspective. The possibilities are well known, the springboard is good.

Our opinion

Sergey Titov, “Championship” columnist:
- Goncharenko is a strong coach, and he has at least one trait of a top coach: wherever he worked, the team acquired his special style, and it was not expressed in philosophy (attacking/defensive/"sexy"), but was based on selection players. That is, the prerequisites for CSKA’s result even with Ignashevich and the Berezutsky brothers in the center of defense are there. Another thing is that the “army team” in any case needs reinforcement - in defense, which saw the Mesozoic era, on the midfield flanks, which have always been CSKA’s strong point (always, but not now), in the position of a striker. No matter how good Goncharenko is as a coach, it is unlikely that he will be able to fight for gold without at least a couple of strong newcomers.

Readers' opinions

sociologist:
- I don’t think that Goncharenko will be an authority for old-timers (even with all the desire). Therefore, you need to rejuvenate and update the composition to suit yourself.

stefaniy:
- The era of diving into the middle of the table, led by the Belarusian coach, is declared open!

kenny699:
- The new coach has come to restore order.

hakimovsharif78:
- Everything will be fine! Go ahead, CSKA!

magval:
- He won’t get him into the Champions League or even into the Europa League, not because he’s a bad coach, it’s just that CSKA’s luck has come to an end. Maybe he’ll stay in the top eight.

Although the appointment of Viktor Goncharenko has not yet been officially announced, it is already an “open secret.” Leonid Slutsky, who left the position of head coach of CSKA, did not hide the name of the successor, and in general such a step looks absolutely logical. It is reported that the contract with the specialist will be signed on Monday, December 12, as soon as CSKA President Evgeny Giner returns to Russia. Let's figure out what to expect from the army team under Goncharenko.

Last weekend in Minsk, Viktor Goncharenko was supposed to be awarded another prize as the best coach in Belarus at the end of the year. The specialist himself could not come to the ceremony - his Ufa had a match with Tom. Instead of himself, he sent his son Artyom, who was awarded the prize. And at Leonid Slutsky’s demobilization banquet in London, Viktor Mikhailovich was also not there, and again for a good reason - he had to thank the Ufa team for six months of joint work.

This is very characteristic of Goncharenko - leaving behind a good trail. He always tries to maintain dignity and, it should be noted, he succeeds. Although being a decent person in our time is not at all easy.

At one time, at the very peak of his career, Goncharenko did not leave BATE, although he had very lucrative offers. But at that moment, the president of the club, Anatoly Kapsky, became seriously ill and actually left the club to the head coach. But Viktor Mikhailovich could not let down his senior comrade, who helped him in difficult times. After all, it was thanks to Kapsky that after a severe injury, defender Goncharenko remained in the club and began his coaching career there. BATE has already sold most of the players who beat Bayern with Goncharenko, but the coach remained. When I couldn’t get into the European competition, I immediately wrote an application, but it was not accepted. And Goncharenko left at the end of the next season, having prepared a replacement in advance. At the request of the club, he handed over the affairs to his assistant Alexander Ermakovich, although at first it was assumed that they would move to Krasnodar together.

And in Kuban, the collaboration with Goncharenko left a bright mark. The team and the city loved him, the result was good, and so was the game. The fans did not understand why the coach was fired. In the 2014/15 season, the team went on a nine-match undefeated streak from the start and was in the lead. In the tenth round, I played away against the champion CSKA, got involved in open football and was beaten heavily. Then there was a fighting draw with Spartak (3:3), and a victory in Yekaterinburg. And the unexpected dismissal of the coach after the 13th round. With only one defeat and fifth place, one point from second! Formally, “due to the lack of rigidity in communicating with the players,” which caused laughter in the locker room. His place was taken by Leonid Kuchuk, with whom the Kuban team lost nine of the sixteen remaining matches and finished in a deep swamp. And the next year they were relegated from the Premier League.

Then there was Ural and the well-known situation with the debt to Terek. Goncharenko did not wash his dirty linen in public and quietly left. “Sorry, I don’t play such games.” But, in order not to let the club down, he left his assistant Vadim Skripchenko, with whom he worked together at BATE and Kuban. Thanks to the general attention caused by Goncharenko’s departure, Skripchenko got the opportunity to play fairly in the match with Terek and start an independent career. True, a year later the situation repeated itself and he also left.

And then, last September, Goncharenko went “nowhere.” It was then that an offer came from Leonid Slutsky and the CSKA club. It was about joining the coaching staff and helping the head coach, who combined posts in the club and the national team. The proposal came from Slutsky himself, so a situation with “piracy” could not arise. Viktor Mikhailovich agreed.

It is worth noting that Goncharenko and Slutsky have known each other for a long time, since the times when they were considered the youngest coaches of the Champions League with their BATE and CSKA. They have a lot in common. Both were from small provincial towns, both were left without fathers early (Viktor Mikhailovich’s father took part in the Chernobyl epic and soon died from the consequences), and early felt responsibility for the family. And their football career ended prematurely, except that Goncharenko still managed to play for the Belarusian youth team and play eighty matches for BATE in the national championship. But already at 25, after breaking the “crosses”, he finished his performances. Goncharenko headed BATE in 2008, Slutsky CSKA in 2009. Viktor Mikhailovich is the best coach in Belarus in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, and Leonid Viktorovich is the best coach in Russia for the seasons 2012/13, 2013/14, 2015/16. Both are absolute football fanatics, they try to understand the game on an intellectual, not an emotional level, they love to analyze and work on tactics. They follow everything that happens in world football and are constantly learning.

It is wrong to say that Goncharenko was the second coach of the army team or Slutsky’s assistant, this is an inaccurate definition. The second coach is the conductor of the main coach’s ideas, his person in the locker room, capable of explaining to the players in more detail and clearly what is required of them. At CSKA, these functions are assigned to Viktor Onopko and Sergei Ovchinnikov.

Slutsky needed Goncharenko more as an opponent for discussions, as a person capable of offering an alternative point of view. Earlier in this capacity we saw Valery Kuzmich Nepomnyashchiy, who, like Goncharenko, was always ready to express his point of view, argue, give advice, but not insist on its implementation. Goncharenko did the same and also tactfully did not interfere with Slutsky’s decisions and attitudes. And of course, such a role did not completely suit him, which he initially warned the army leadership about. Independent work is a priority for any coach. Therefore, the story with Ufa also looks extremely correct, and for all parties. It was agreed in advance that if the situation at CSKA changed, Goncharenko would return to Moscow; the Ufa residents knew about this from the beginning.

What will change in CSKA with the arrival of Goncharenko? Rumors about the departure of Onopko and Ovchinnikov are unlikely to come true, because Viktor Mikhailovich does not have his own headquarters to follow on his heels. That is, this is a matter of personal relationships between people, and not a change in the coaching team. Goncharenko, Onopko and Ovchinnikov worked together for almost a year, lived at training camps, and communicated. They have built some kind of relationship that will become decisive.

If we talk about the playing style, he will definitely become more aggressive. All of Goncharenko's teams acted assertively and tightly, trying to put a lot of pressure in the center and in the opponent's half. Sometimes they fought on the verge of acceptable harshness, sometimes even beyond the limit. Especially when there was a lack of skill, like, say, BATE in meetings with Bayern. This aggressive style is now in fashion, it is professed by Diego Simeone, Antonio Conte, Jurgen Klopp. When they lose the ball, their players run forward rather than backward, immediately trying to force a fight. They play as close to their opponents as possible, they don’t allow you to think calmly or even breathe. We see something similar with Ufa; it is no coincidence that its central defender Viktor Vasin is the best this season in terms of the number of interceptions. By the way, in terms of this indicator, the Ufa team is the leader of the Premier League, and in second place in terms of the number of fouls. And it is logical that Goncharenko wants to immediately return Vasin to CSKA (he is on loan at Ufa), because the army’s aged central defenders are unlikely to be able to play in such a manner. Previously, Ignashevich often pulled into the center of the field and played ahead, but now he is forced to take the gap - the starting speed is no longer the same.

It is possible that some of the other loaned army players will return to Moscow: Tkachev, Efremov, Panchenko, Bazelyuk. Goncharenko loves disciplined and selfless players who do not skimp on strength and do not take care of themselves or their opponents. However, what can you expect from a person who grew up in the traditions of “sincere football” by Eduard Malafeev - the stellar era of Belarusian sports.

Most likely, CSKA will try to play faster under Goncharenko. In any case, the long positional plays performed by his teams do not come to mind. But you can expect devastating flank attacks and maximum speed when leaving the defense. He will likely need a fast, assertive forward who can play up front and a light-footed, technical wing. In principle, there are such players in the army team, the only question is their use. Much will depend on whether Alan Dzagoev, who does not hide his desire to leave for Europe, remains on the team. Without it, we will have to solve the problem of launching attacks differently.

One way or another, you shouldn’t expect major changes. Goncharenko is mentally close to Slutsky, and the stylistic differences in the coaching style often depend on the quality of the available players. Viktor Mikhailovich is one of those who tries to make the most of what is available, and not demand from the management to buy stars under the coaching concept. And this is exactly what CSKA needs now.

According to our newspaper, the first candidate to replaceDmitry Kvartalnovwas a famous specialistVyacheslav Bykov. After winning the KHL championship in the 2014/15 season with SKA, he left the coaching bridge. In October 2016, Bykov said that he was offered work in Switzerland (Bykov lives in this country) and Russia. Now Bykov is on the board of trustees of the local club Fribourg and advises the head coach of the team where he spent 8 years of his hockey career.

Will Bykov want to exchange a quiet and calm life in Switzerland for constant nerves in CSKA, where they will demand the Gagarin Cup from him, just like anyone else? But, perhaps, Bykov is one of those who is capable of achieving big victories with the Muscovites, so CSKA should try to persuade the eminent specialist to take the helm of the team.

ANDREY NIKOLISHIN
unemployed

According to our data, the greatest chances of becoming a CSKA coach are Andrey Nikolishin. His coaching career began in 2014. Then the young specialist headed Traktor. Under his leadership, the Chelyabinsk club managed to reach the playoffs, where they lost to Sibir in the first round. He also managed to work at Amur, with whom he failed to reach the playoffs of the 2015/16 season.

They say that at Traktor Nikolishin had a conflict with players who were not ready to train twice a day. And the CSKA hockey players, who were afraid to even smile under Kvartalnov, will definitely not be scared by this. One of Nikolishin’s significant advantages over other candidates is that he personally knows the president of the army club IgorEsmantovich.

IGOR NIKITIN
Ideologist Kvartalnova

After Kvartalnov’s dismissal from CSKA, the army leadership did not say a word about what fate awaited his assistant Igor Nikitin and other members of the coaching staff. Perhaps this happened due to the fact that CSKA is seriously considering Nikitin’s candidacy. However, he is the specialist who fully professed Kvartalnov’s ideology, also advocating strict discipline. And serious changes are ripe at CSKA. We need to change a philosophy that does not bring ultimate success. But not only can Nikitin be called an obvious supporter of Kvartalnov, but as a coach, he has not yet achieved great success. Therefore, his appointment to the post of army team mentor seems unlikely.

GORDIE DWYER
Young and perky

Perhaps CSKA should take a closer look at the former head coach of Medvescak Gordie Dwyer, who managed to turn the Croatian club into a rather nice team in two seasons. The 39-year-old specialist left Medvescak after the regular season of the current season, as he received an offer from the Swiss Ambri-Piotta. But if offered by CSKA, Dwyer may well leave the Swiss team and return to the KHL. After all, the army team will again set the task of winning the Gagarin Cup. And Doyer, like any other Canadian hockey player in the past, is a maximalist.

VYACHESLAV BUTSAEV
Perspective

IGOR ZAKHARKIN
Ex-coach of Salavat Yulaeva

	Igor Zakharkin

The two-time winner of the Gagarin Cup can also be called a good candidate for the post of head coach of CSKA Igor Zakharkin, which this season was eliminated from the playoffs in the first round, losing to Ak Bars in five matches. According to the specialist, it was difficult for the Ufa team to win with such injuries.

The Bykov-Zakharkin tandem, which has always achieved success everywhere and always, seems almost ideal. With the Russian team, the specialists became two-time world champions, and with SKA and Salavat Yulaev they won the Gagarin Cup once. Maybe it would be appropriate for the army club to combine Zakharkin’s theoretical base and Bykov’s applied knowledge to achieve success?