Fakel to appoint Rolan Gusev as head coach after defeat to Rodina

Gusev to take charge of Fakel

Voronezh's Fakel will appoint Rolan Gusev, who previously headed Dynamo Moscow, as head coach. This is reported by insider Ivan Karpov, cited by Gazeta.Ru. According to this information, the specialist will take charge of the team ahead of the Matchday 13 RPL fixture against Kazan's Rubin. Until then, Aleksei Rebko will continue working as acting head coach and will later join Gusev's staff.

The defeat that hastened the coaching change

The appointment was preceded by Fakel's home defeat to Rodina on October 24: the game in Voronezh at the Fakel stadium ended 1:0 in favor of the visitors, with the only goal scored from the penalty spot in the 43rd minute by forward German Onugkha. Gazeta ran a live text broadcast of the match. For Jonathan Alba, this was his first win in charge of Rodina: the Moscow club picked up nine points and consolidated its position in second-to-last place in the Russian championship table, while Fakel, with six points, remained bottom of the RPL. Earlier, the teams' lineups for the matchday fixtures were published, including the RPL game between Rostov and Lokomotiv.

Context and limitations of the information

The appointment is so far reported citing an insider, not through an official club announcement, so there was no final confirmation from Fakel at the time of publication. Editorially, it is notable that the coaching change comes amid the team's worst league position: six points after 12 matchdays is the worst result in the league, and it was precisely the defeat to direct rival Rodina that left the Voronezh side just three points above second-to-last place. In practical terms, this means Gusev will make his debut right away in the match against Rubin, while Rebko, according to the report, will keep his place on the coaching staff.