It wasn't meant to be like this. Ruslan Chepiga walked through the dusty streets of Kaspiysk, it was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen. Just five years ago promises were made to turn his beloved Anzhi into a footballing powerhouse. Now all that is left is a shell of the club he loved as a boy, and it is his mission to revive this dream.
Ruslan was born 5 April 1979 in Kaspiysk, Dagestan, in the shadow of the Caucasus Mountains, to fiercely loyal Russian parents. They believed in Communism, they believed in the strength of the Soviet Union. His parents even had a mirror in the hallway with an image of Stalin embedded in it. Whenever he misbehaved as a boy his father would point to it and remind him, "Big Brother is watching". He hoped to inherit that mirror one day.
His father worked on the nearby secret naval base in Kaspiysk. His mother stayed at home and worked the small plot of land they had around their medium-sized state provided house. It was a tough life, they didn't have much, but what they had they earned the hard way. Times were not always peaceful growing up and conflict was never too far away. The Russian army had moved on Chechnya a number of times which lead to reprisals on ethnic Russians in the surrounding area. Local Russians lived in fear that a war in Chechnya may trigger similar revolutions in Dagestan that would be almost impossible to quell. It was bad enough that Dagestan already had some autonomy from Russia the prospect of further divergence from the federal government was something ethnic Russians would not stomach.
Ruslan's Grandmother (third from the left) working during WWII
Ruslan's early life was spent being prepared for a military life. His grandfather fought in the Red Army during World War II, while his grandmother was posted to the Ural mountains to make ammunition. His father worked his entire life in the secret Submarine facility on the coast of the Caspian Sea. The military was in his blood and he knew it, he couldn't avoid it, nor was he sure he wanted to.
His father was an incredibly tough man. He had huge, calloused, hands that had certainly seen plenty of hard work. It was clear that emotions and feelings were not high priorities in his mind. Indeed, the only time he saw his father cry was at the news of the breakup of the Soviet Union.
"Gorbachev has been fucked in the ass by Bush he cried, we've all been fucked in the ass!" I fuck the Bush son, no Bush fucks me!", he roared.
Ruslan remembers his father's rage lasting many weeks and was sure his mother felt the full force of it too.
One shining light during all this darkness was the arrival of the Eagles, Anzhi Makhachkala who set up in the area in 1991. On match days a young Ruslan could be found completing laps of the Anji-Arena looking for a way in. He had zero money and zero chance of scaling the security barriers, although he searched every nook and cranny nevertheless.
One cold winter afternoon, Spartak Moscow were in town, he couldn't find a way in and was close to giving up when a small clean-shaven man with odd spectacles approached him and offered to lift him over the turnstile. They watched the game together, standing for the full 90 minutes, discussing tactics and football identity. Ruslan remembers the rush forward when Anzhi scored, the rhythm of the drums reverberating in the pit of his stomach was intoxicating. Once the final whistle sounded the older man introduced himself as Lous Sutter, chief scout of five-time Swiss champions and two-time Europa League semi-finalists, FC Vaduz. The young Russian's knowledge of the game had impressed Sutter and he invited him for a trial in Liechtenstein.
He was showing considerable promise as a footballer and after a couple of trials, Vaduz wasted no time signing the youngster to a pre-contract. Ruslan knew he couldn't say no to Vaduz, despite having to leave the family home. Pension reforms meant his father had to continue working. He was frailer now, he stooped when he walked, Ruslan hoped to earn enough money to allow his father to retire.
Chepiga whilst playing for Vaduz.
Although his time with Vaduz would turn out to be brief it had a lasting effect on him. Club chairman Karlo Schelling saw something in the clearly intelligent young Russian and when an ACL injury kept Ruslan out of action for 18 months Schelling decided to take him under his wing. Together they would meet for coffee in the town square in Vaduz discussing anything and everything. They'd travel the length and breadth of Switzerland talking tactics late into the night. It was around this time Ruslan grew to love classical music (Andrei Volkonsky, his particular favourite) and architecture. He especially enjoyed cathedrals and churches, he hoped one day to visit Salisbury Cathedral and photograph its world-famous 123m spire.
Although he enjoyed the mental sparring between them there were a few things about Schelling that troubled Ruslan. Schelling's hands were soft, his nails manicured. His tanned face was supple, Ruslan had even noticed him using a moisturiser mist on his face. Ruslan wasn't really sure Schelling was even a man. How could a real man be so rich with such delicate hands that had clearly seen no work?
One night, over some Eastern European Beer, he asked Schelling how he made his money. Schelling explained he owned an investment and hedge fund company. A lengthy explanation followed regarding blockchains and futures but as far as Ruslan could tell he made nothing, he sold nothing, yet his fortune grew. This didn't sit well with Ruslan, in fact, it sounded to him at least, a bit like Russia before the Workers Revolution of 1917, and he did not like it one bit.
One afternoon, as was often the case, Schelling called Ruslan to his office. Ruslan had recently returned to light training and was hopeful of a return to the first team soon, still only 20 he had plenty of time to fulfil his immense potential. Ruslan had prepared a thesis on a new 4231 Deep he'd been working on and was looking forward to discussing it. However, upon entering the room Ruslan could sense a different atmosphere, he wasn't offered a cigar, and the new Director of Football, Alexis Howald was there.
"We have decided not to renew your contract son, you'll be leaving at the end of the season", dumbfounded he felt a rage gather inside. A rage he'd never felt before.
"Where will I go? What about our friendship?"
"This isn't personal kid, it's business. You don't justify the wages anymore.We can still be friends"
Ruslan stormed out of the plush office and left Vaduz that very evening. He had just experienced Capitalism in action and it was clear to him it led to laziness, dishonesty and the exploitation of the downtrodden. Communism, on the other hand, it seemed to him, works for the many; not the few. Ruslan knew he had to return to Russia. At that moment, full of rage, he made the decision he would make it his life's work to further the Russian and Communist cause across the globe. Football was just a game.
Upon returning to his native Russia, Ruslan immediately signed up to the military. He was overwhelmed with hatred, he knew it needed an outlet. He took various tests and unsurprisingly, attained a record high intelligence score. This score, coupled with a now weakened knee, meant Ruslan would not be serving in the regular Army; he was sent straight to the Federal Security Service.
Fifteen years have passed since Ruslan joined the FSB. The Russian President decided a change in foreign policy was needed. It was now his belief that the best way to gain control of land in today's society was still to control its people, but not through oppression, but by controlling their identity and belief system.
"Ideas are more powerful than guns. We would not let our enemies have guns, why should we let them have ideas." Joseph Stalin.
Football was seen as the conduit through which this could be achieved. Ruslan was, by now, the FSB's top agent after serving undercover in Crimea, Switzerland, and the UK. He was hand-picked to manage his hometown club Anzhi with the sole mission of turning them into a footballing powerhouse. Using only players from the former Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc, the plan was to spread Russian values and modern communism across the globe.
Chepiga as Anzhi Manager
Players were to be radicalised in the clubs academy and first team before being sold onto western countries. Here they would work undercover spreading their ideology and propaganda, the aim was to incite social unrest wherever they went. Selling these players at a premium would also rob western economies of many millions of dollars and further line the pockets of the Russian state.
This blog will follow Ruslan's journey to make Anzhi a global superpower, spreading Russian influence as he goes.
Comrade! If you have made it this far thanks very much for reading. You can find me on twitter here and I will also be providing sporadic updates about the save and various other things on my slack channel #fmeadster.
Over and out FMEadster!