Turkish pitch: how real is the interest in Batrakov and Kislyak

After the end of the season, there were rumors in domestic football about serious interest from Europe in two Russian players who have become stars over the past year. We are talking about young midfielders Alexei Batrakov from Moscow's Lokomotiv and Matvey Kislyak from CSKA Moscow. The media attributed the interest in them from Turkey, and to Batrakov also from the Portuguese Sporting.

Farmhands

The Lokomotiv graduate, who turned 20 last week, made his RPL debut for the main team of the Railwaymen in March 2024, coming on as a substitute at the beginning of the second half of the match against Krasnodar. And then that spring he played several matches in the starting lineup. But the truly breakthrough season for him was the 2024/25 season. Loko head coach Mikhail Galaktionov relied on an attacking midfielder when the team's leaders Maxim Glushenkov and Anton Miranchuk left the team.

Batrakov immediately began to justify his trust, regularly scoring goals and providing assists. In total, Alexey scored 14 goals and seven assists in 29 matches of the last championship. He was third in the goalscoring contest, and first in the goal+pass system. In many ways, it was Batrakov who dragged Lokomotiv, which was at the top of the standings in the first round, and created for his fans the illusion of fighting for medals and even for the championship.

Last spring, the red-greens failed and fell to sixth place, but you can hardly blame Batrakov, who was still one of the best. Alexey has also gained a foothold in the national team, for which he has already scored two goals in five matches.

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In June, the Baza Telegram channel published information that Sporting Lisbon was ready to offer €12 million for Batrakov. And according to Sport-Express, Istanbul Besiktas is ready to pay €10 million to Lokomotiv. Sporting have won the last two Portuguese championships and have already guaranteed themselves a place in the general stage of the Champions League for the coming autumn. Besiktas, who finished fourth in the last Turkish championship, will start in European competitions in the summer with the second qualifying round of the Europa League. Last week, Batrakov signed a new contract with Loko until the summer of 2029.

—Batrakov showed the highest level of play last season," Yuri Semin, the former head coach of the Railwaymen, shared his opinion with Izvestia. — He has the highest level of individual skill, while being able to play for the team, with dedication. He showed leadership qualities quite consistently, so he deserved a call-up to the national team. It is not surprising that there is talk of interest in him from Europe. I don't know how real they are, but if Alexey continues to show the same game as in most matches last season, he is quite capable of getting into not the last club in Europe.

Kislyak

Over the past week, Turkish media have been publishing information about Fenerbahce Istanbul's interest in the CSKA midfielder, who will turn 20 on July 26. Kislyak's agent, Alexander Manyakov, refuses to comment on these rumors.

But every now and then there is news that the management of Fener has already met with representatives of Matvey and his relatives. Allegedly, they even came to Istanbul and looked at the club's database. Turkish media also cite different amounts that CSKA wants for the transfer of their young talent, ranging from €20 million to €35 million. It is claimed that Fenerbahce head coach Jose Mourinho is personally interested in Kislyak's transfer.

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A native of Stary Oskol, Belgorod region, he joined the CSKA school at the age of 14. His debut at the base took place back in the summer of 2023 in the Russian Cup. But since the summer of 2024, under head coach Marko Nikolic, Kislyak has finally gained a foothold at the RPL level and became one of the leaders of CSKA, quickly making his way to the national team. Matvey made a significant contribution to the victory of the army team in the Russian Cup and the bronze medals of the national championship.

"Kislyak had a great season and showed the highest level of play," Dmitry Bulykin, a former striker for the Russian national team, told Izvestia. — He took advantage of Nikolic's trust and significantly strengthened CSKA's game in the middle line, becoming one of the leaders of the team. The fact that it also led to medals and a trophy speaks volumes. So the interest from Turkey, if there is one, is quite natural.

Recall that the next season in Russian football starts on July 12 with the Russian Super Cup match between Krasnodar and CSKA, which will be held in Kazan.