Russian label: Sorokin and Khaykin bring their clubs to the base of the Champions League

While Russian clubs are focused on the domestic championship, their former players continue to compete on the European stage. The 2025/26 season has already given us several historical moments, and the main one is the incredible success of Kazakhstan's Kairat. Read more about the Russian legionnaires who will compete at the main stage of European competitions this season in the Izvestia article.

The Kazakh sensation

Kazakhstan's Kairat, with Russian legionnaires in its squad, accomplished the impossible, making it to the Champions League group stage for the first time in history. This triumph would have been unthinkable without the key role of defenders Egor Sorokin and Alexander Martynovich.

Kairat has passed all four stages of qualification. Slovan Bratislava were defeated in the third round (1-0 at home, 0-1 away, 4-3 on penalties), and the team sensationally knocked out Celtic in the playoffs. Both matches with the Scottish club ended with a score of 0:0, and the fate of the ticket was decided in a penalty shootout, where Kairat turned out to be more accurate — 3:2.

Egor Sorokin and Alexander Martynovich were absolutely irreplaceable. Both defenders played all the qualifying matches without a single substitution and converted their penalty kicks in the post-match series against Slovan and Celtic. On the day of the decisive meeting with the Scots, Alexander Martynovich celebrated his birthday: the defender turned 38 years old.

Khaikin's success

Buda-Glimt, with Russian goalkeeper Nikita Khaykin, confidently advanced to the group stage of the Champions League. The Norwegians started their journey with the qualifying playoff round.

The opponent in the decisive round was the Austrian "Sturm". By the 25th minute of the first match at home, the score was 3-0 in favor of the Norwegians. As a result, Buda-Glimt defeated the opponent with a score of 5:0. The return game ended with a score of 1:2 in favor of Sturm, but according to the sum of the two meetings, the Norwegians confidently advanced to the group stage.

The Russian goalkeeper was a key figure in his team. Khaykin played 90 minutes in both matches, contributing to the overall victory and the "dry" game in the first meeting.

For the Austrian "Sturm" and its goalkeeper Daniil Khudyakov, a defeat against Buda-Glimta means relegation from the Champions League qualification. The team will continue to play in the Europa League, and the Russian goalkeeper, after recovering from injury, will have a chance to prove himself in this tournament.

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Serbian failure: "Crvena Zvezda" with Tiknizyan

Serbian Crvena Zvezda with defender Nair Tiknizyan also failed in the playoff round, losing to Cypriot Paphos (1:2 at home, 1:1 away). According to the sum of two meetings (2:3), Crvena Zvezda failed to qualify for the group stage of the Champions League and go to the Europa League.

Midfielder Egor Prutsev, who also plays for Crvena Zvezda, was left out of the application for both matches against Paphos.

Copenhagen's fight: Herman Onugha on his way to the group stage

Danish FC Copenhagen is fighting with Russian striker Herman Onugha to reach the main stage of the Champions League. In the playoff round, the opponent of the Danes was Swiss FC Basel. The first match on the road ended in a 1-1 draw. This result keeps the intrigue alive before the second leg in Copenhagen.

Greek hope: PAOK with Chalov and Ozdoev on the brink

Special attention of Russian fans is focused on the Greek PAOK, which includes striker Fedor Chalov and midfielder Magomed Ozdoev. The team's path to the Europa League qualification turned out to be difficult.

In the third qualifying round, PAOK's opponent was the Austrian Wolfsberg. The first match in Thessaloniki ended in a goalless draw 0:0. In the return leg in Austria, PAOK managed to get a minimal but extremely important victory (1-0) and go on.

In the decisive round, the Greek team faced the Croatian Rijeka for a ticket to the group stage. The first away game, which took place on August 21, was unsuccessful for PAOK. The team lost 0:1. Luca Menalo scored the only goal in the 39th minute.

In this match, both Russian legionnaires were in the starting lineup. Magomed Ozdoev was substituted in the 59th minute, and Fedor Chalov was substituted in the 75th minute. Throughout the qualifying process, Chalov started all three games at the base, and Ozdoev started in two matches and replaced in one.

The second leg against Rijeka will take place on August 28. It starts at 20:30 Moscow time. PAOK only needs a victory to advance to the Europa League group stage. A draw or any defeat means relegation to the Conference League.

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Conference League: Eldor Shomurodov in the fight for the exit

In the qualification of the UEFA Conference League, attention is drawn to the duel between the Turkish Istanbul Bashkşehir and the Romanian Universitatea from Craiova.

Istanbul, in which Uzbek striker Eldor Shomurodov plays on loan from Roma, unexpectedly lost the first match at home with a score of 1:2. This defeat seriously complicated the task of the Turkish team before the second leg in Romania. Shomurodov played five games in the Conference League this season, giving one assist.

The decisive meeting will be held in parallel with the PAOK game.: August 28, beginning at 20:30 Moscow time.