Nine coaches in seven years: who tried to save FC "Pari NN"

      NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" - Polina Zubova

      Yesterday the football club Pari Nizhny Novgorod was eliminated from the Russian Cup and can now "focus on the RPL." The heavy defeat to Rostov was the seventh consecutive loss for Alexei Shpilevsky's side. In total in the 2025/2026 season the Nizhny Novgorod team have lost 15 of 18 matches.

      After the latest failure Alexei Shpilevsky apologized to the fans and took the blame for the defeat upon himself, arguing that he chose the wrong structure and "not the right personnel."

      The team is currently in the automatic relegation zone of the Premier League.

      Since 2018 the club has already changed nine head coaches. Some lasted only a few months, others more than a year, but no specialist has worked for longer than one and a half years. We recall what results the team achieved under each of them and what the former Pari NN managers are doing now.

      Dmitry Cheryshev

      Period in charge: 2018–2019

      Current position: Ravshan (Tajikistan)

      Cheryshev took charge in the summer of 2018, when the club changed its name from Olimpiets to Nizhny Novgorod and Gleb Nikitin, then acting governor of the Nizhny Novgorod region, became the team's overseer. In the 2018/2019 season under Cheryshev the club finished 4th in the FNL and played in the promotion play-offs for a place in the RPL against Krylia Sovetov, but lost on aggregate.

      After his dismissal Cheryshev went to Andorra, where he took over Santa Coloma and helped the club advance through two rounds in European competition for the first time. Later, at the end of 2023, he briefly managed Shinnik, and in December 2024 he became head coach of Tajik side Ravshan.

      Robert Evdokimov

      Period in charge: 2019–2021

      Current position: without a club

      Evdokimov joined the team in autumn 2019. In his first season the team finished 11th in the FNL. Due to the pandemic the championship was cut short after the 27th round. In the Russian Cup Nizhny Novgorod reached the round of 16.

      In the 2020/21 season the team finished 3rd in the FNL and earned promotion to the RPL, since Orenburg, who finished second, failed to obtain a license. Evdokimov became the club's longest-serving coach in recent years, as he was in charge for 566 days.

      He later managed Kuban and was part of the coaching staff at Akhmat. In April 2024 he again became head coach of Kuban, but was sacked in September after the team's relegation from the First League and the start of the season in Second League A under a transfer ban.

      Alexander Kerzhakov

      Period in charge: 2021–2022

      Current position: without a club

      In summer 2021 former Russia striker Alexander Kerzhakov took charge. In his debut RPL season the club finished 11th — the best result in the history of Nizhny Novgorod teams in the Premier League. However, the club leadership did not renew his contract.

      After leaving Pari NN Kerzhakov worked in Cyprus at Karmiotissa, then at Serbian Spartak. In May 2024 he became head coach of Kazakhstan's Kairat. However, by September the parties mutually agreed to terminate the contract.

      Mikhail Galaktionov and Artyom Gorlov

      Period in charge: 2022–2023

      Current positions: Galaktionov — Lokomotiv, Gorlov — Saturn

      In summer 2022 the club changed its name to Pari Nizhny Novgorod as part of a sponsorship agreement with a bookmaker. Soon after Kerzhakov left, Mikhail Galaktionov, who had previously worked with the Russian youth national team and Akhmat, replaced him. However, in November he moved to Lokomotiv, which he still manages. Incidentally, the Moscow side are currently top of the RPL table.

      After his departure Anton Khazov temporarily performed the head coach duties, and in January 2023 Artyom Gorlov took over. He lasted only 93 days: the team lost five matches and fell to 13th place, finding themselves on the brink of relegation from the RPL. Gorlov later worked at Torpedo and on the coaching staff of Akhmat, and in January 2025 became head coach of Saturn Ramenskoye.

      Sergey Yuran

      Period in charge: 2023–2024

      Current position: Serik Belediyespor (Turkey)

      In spring 2023 Pari NN appointed Sergey Yuran. Under his leadership the team finished 13th in the RPL and retained their top-flight status by beating Moscow's Rodina in the promotion/relegation play-offs on aggregate.

      However, in spring 2024 the team's results sharply deteriorated: they collected only four points in eight matches. After a heavy 1:5 defeat to Akhmat Yuran resigned. At that time the team sat 11th with 28 points after 26 rounds.

      After leaving the club Yuran was out of work for a time. His next appointment was Turkish side Serik Belediyespor, which he took over in July 2025.

      Sasha Ilic

      Period in charge: 2024

      Current position: Sumgayit (Azerbaijan)

      Serbian coach Sasha Ilic became the first foreign head coach in Pari NN's history. He replaced Yuran in May 2024. At the end of the 2023/24 season the team again finished 13th and played the play-offs against Tula's Arsenal. After losing the first match the Nizhny Novgorod side won the return leg and kept their RPL place.

      In the new season the team collected 11 points in 11 rounds. However, in October 2024 Ilic was dismissed. The club said the decision was necessary for a reset and driven by more ambitious goals.

      On 7 July 2025 Ilic became head coach of Azerbaijani side Sumgayit.

      Viktor Gancherenko

      Period in charge: 2024–2025

      Current position: without a club

      Belarusian coach Viktor Gancherenko took over Pari NN in October 2024, signing a two-year contract. He arrived at a difficult time but was unable to achieve progress.

      At the end of the season the team again finished 13th and lost to Sochi in the play-offs, being relegated from the Premier League. However, due to Khimki's removal by decision of the RFU executive committee, the Nizhny Novgorod side retained their RPL place.

      Gancherenko became the club's sixth coach in four years. Despite extensive experience, including two runner-up finishes with CSKA in the RPL, he was unable to change the situation. The specialist is currently without a club.

      Alexei Shpilevsky

      Period in charge: June 2025 – present

      Belarusian coach Alexei Shpilevsky took charge of Pari NN this summer. Before that he managed Cypriot Aris, with whom he won the league and the Super Cup, and earlier he became Kazakhstan champion with Kairat.

      However, such success has not yet been achieved in Russia. The team finished last in Group C of the Russian Cup and were knocked out of the tournament. In the RPL after 12 rounds Pari NN have only six points and sit second from bottom in the league table.

      Over the summer there were rumours about the possible dismissal of both general director David Melik-Guseinov (who left the position in September 2025) and Shpilevsky, but the club's management denied this information, emphasizing that the coach has a high degree of trust.

      Photos: FC Pari NN

      NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" has a Telegram channel. Subscribe to stay informed about the main events, exclusive materials and timely information.

      Copyright © 1999–2025 NIA "Nizhny Novgorod". When republishing a hyperlink to NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" is mandatory. This resource may contain 18+ materials.