82 November 2020 FourFourTwo
Shakhtar Donetsk for a cool €35m in January,
Anzhi collapsed and won just three of their
final 12 league fixtures. They finished third,
outside the Champions League places, and
exited the Europa League at the last-16 stage
thanks to Papiss Cissé’s 94th-minute winner
for Newcastle at St James’ Park.
But they could still win the club’s first ever
trophy. After beating Zenit in the semis, Anzhi
faced CSKA Moscow in the Russian Cup final,
a giant occasion that the whole republic was
ready to celebrate. Willian and Eto’o played
well, Lassana Diarra hit a stunning equaliser,
and Anzhi were clear favourites to win when
CSKA were reduced to 10 men three minutes
from extra time. Yet the game finished 1-1,
and Anzhi’s crushed stars lost on penalties.
“It was so sad to see Kerimov’s bodyguards
taking huge bags of money from our dressing
room – the ones we were supposed to receive
after winning the cup,” recalls Joao Carlos.
“Kerimov opened them before the match to
motivate us. On top of what he offered, Eto’o
added a million dollars of his own. It was so
much money: two very big bags full of notes.”
PULLING THE PLUG
In retrospect, that episode proved symbolic.
Less than two months later, shortly after the
2013-14 campaign had kicked off, Kerimov
suddenly – and unexpectedly – announced
that his project was over.
The billionaire described it as a “change of
direction”, meaning Anzhi would be centred
around local young players and every single
one of the club’s stars had to be sold. Rene
Meulensteen, Hiddink’s successor, was fired
16 days after being appointed as manager.
The would-be superclub that had aimed to
conquer Europe ceased to exist in a matter of
days. No one saw it coming.
“It was a total shock,” says Batyrov. “I was
taking part in a TV show when a fan phoned
me and said that Kerimov was selling all the
stars. We didn’t believe it – we just laughed.
Then we finished the programme, got out of
the studio and discovered that it was true. It
was stunning, because it was supposed to be
a long-term project. Look at Abramovich, who
waited almost a decade before Chelsea won
the Champions League.”
To this day, no one knows precisely what
convinced Kerimov to axe his plans, although
a BBC report in September claimed he has
been under investigation in France regarding
allegations of tax fraud since 2016; in 2018,
Kerimov – along with 16 other people – was
sanctioned by US authorities.
At the time, there were rumours that rows
in the dressing room could have been behind
the decision. Anzhi had recruited midfielder
Igor Denisov from Zenit, and the notoriously
difficult Russian didn’t see eye-to-eye with
Eto’o, which led to some dramatic incidents
during training. With Kerimov never talking in
public, the whole affair remained a mystery.
“Some gossip came out that Kerimov went
bankrupt, while others suggested one of his
business partners asked him to stop wasting
money on football,” remembers Joao Carlos.
“We never knew the truth.”
“Idon’tthinkDenisovwastoblameforit,”
adds Batyrov. “Kerimov may have just been
disappointed with results. He invested a lot
of money and possibly expected more.”
Gadzhiev speculates a combination of the
above. “Results weren’t good enough, but the
reason could have been elsewhere,” he says.
“Kerimov had health problems, and doctors
could have advised him to take a break from
football. Or perhaps he had financial issues
with his business?”
Whatever the reason, football in Dagestan
suddenly returned to its rather sad normality.
Instead of winning the title in 2014, Anzhi
suffered relegation. “It was a tragedy,” says
Gadzhiev. “The team were the symbol of our
republic, and the project united all the mixed
nationalities in the region. Everyone proudly
supported that great team, and then it was
over. The fanswereleftdevastated.”
Kerimov didn’tleaveimmediately,though.
“He continuedtos h l b d i
changing thedirec
says Batyrov.“He
in Makhachkalabu
signed, so somefu
He even stayedfo
oversaw promotio
in 2015. Onlyin 20
for good, to ex-Dy
president Osman
owner said Kerimo
to pledge hissupp
stopped doingsoNumerousclubsin Russiaaresupportedby
local authorities, and that was the case with
Anzhi before Kerimov took over. After? Not
so much. “There’s no understanding between
the club and the Dagestanian government,
who see Anzhi as a private project,” reveals
Gadzhiev. “Therefore, there’s no financial aid
from the republic.”
Without money, things went from bad to
worse for Anzhi. Fans also abandoned the
club, with just a few thousand visiting home
matches in the Premier League after their
collapse. Anzhi somehow managed to stay
in the top tier until 2019, but after dropping
down they didn’t even have sufficient funds
to obtain a second division licence. Instead,
they were thrown directly into the third tier,
and nearly suffered demotion to the fourth
division in 2020 due to having a very young
andinexperiencedsquad.
“There’snomoneyandnostadium, with
th A hiA l taging football
Weare back to
aybeeven worse,
excited about the
now say that it
erimov had never
small team, but
either. Why not
d outthat we had
twoyears, buttodo is deal with
over.AnZHI
MAKHACHKALA“BODYGUARDS TOOK AWAY HUGE BAGS OF MOnEY – THE
OnES WE WERE MEAnT TO GET FOR WInnInG THE FInAL”
Above Anzhi had
the money, quality
and belief, but they
hadn’t reckoned for
Pardiola’s Magpies
Below Kerimov let
supporters live the
dream, then gave
them nightmaressupportthe clubdespite
ctionofitsdevelopment,”
stoppedcomingtogames
ut decent playerswerestill
undsremainedavailable.
llowingrelegation,and
on backtothetopflight
016 didheselltheclub
namoMakhachkala
Kadiev.Thenew
ov promised
port, butthen
pretty soon.”theAnzhiArenanolonger s
games,”lamentsBatyrov.“W
whereit allstarted–butma
becauseit’stoughertogete
existingteam.Somepeople
wouldhavebeenbetter ifKe
cometoAnzhi. Theywerea
at leasttheyweren’tpoor,
keep thatup? It turned
a bigcelebrationfor
then itended.”
Nowallthat’sleft
the almightyhang