Millions on the field: how much are the players of FC "Nizhny Novgorod" worth

      FC "Nizhny Novgorod" confidently started the new season in the First League, winning three matches in three opening rounds and topping the league table.

      Just a few months ago, the situation looked quite different: the previous season was one of the toughest for the club in recent times. During the championship, the management changed, the team regularly lost points, the attacking leader Juan Boselli left in winter, and three rounds before the finish, the head coach was dismissed, after which the Nizhny Novgorod team was relegated from the Premier League.

      In the summer, the club underwent a major restructuring, which also affected its image: the club was returned to its historical name "Nizhny Novgorod," abandoning the bookmaker naming. The financial model also underwent changes: budget financing ceased, and the key shareholder became entrepreneur Andrey Artemov.

      While in the elite, the Nizhny Novgorod team had one of the most modest budgets, now in the First League, they are among the most expensive clubs, comparable in squad value to the relegated from the RPL "Sochi," whose value is estimated at 16.7 million euros (about 1.48 billion rubles).

      As of today, the club's roster includes 29 players with an average team age of 25.5 years and a share of legionnaires of about 21%.

      The most expensive player remains 28-year-old Slovenian central defender Sven Karic, valued at 1.2 million euros (about 106.6 million rubles), who played 33 matches for the club in all tournaments last season.

      The same value is held by 19-year-old attacking midfielder Andrey Ivlev, who transferred from Voronezh's "Fakel" in the summer of 2025, having played 25 matches last season and establishing himself as one of the main talents of the team.

      Following them is a group of players valued at 900 thousand euros (about 80 million rubles), which includes experienced central defender Viktor Alexandrov, who played 19 matches in the RPL and 6 in the Russian Cup in the 2025/2026 season, and Panama national team player Edgardo Farinha, who quickly adapted to Russian football after transferring in the summer of 2025 and became a key rotation player.

      Four players are valued at 800 thousand euros (about 71.1 million rubles). This includes Vyacheslav Grulev, who transferred from Moscow's "Dynamo" and scored three goals in 21 matches last season in the RPL, free agent Roman Evgenyev, who came from "Krylia Sovetov," team veteran Nikita Kakkoyev (17 matches and one assist in the championship), and Slovenian midfielder Luka Vesner-Tichich, who recorded two goals and one assist in 26 matches.

      Nikita Medvedev, the controversial goalkeeper who played 29 matches in the RPL last season, six of them "clean sheets," and defender Yuri Koledin, who joined the team in the fall of 2025, are each valued at 750 thousand euros (about 66.6 million rubles).

      Striker Vladislav Sarveli, who transferred from "Lokomotiv" in the summer of 2026, Belarusian defender Vadim Pigas, who played 16 matches last season, team captain Mamadou Maiga, and 18-year-old Lokomotiv graduate Gleb Popolitov, who joined the squad this summer, are valued at 700 thousand euros (about 62.2 million rubles).

      Newcomer Artem Timofeev, defender Alexander Ektov, who missed last season due to a severe knee injury, and 20-year-old Ivan Bober, who recently signed a long-term contract with the club, are each valued at 600 thousand euros (about 53.3 million rubles).

      Uruguayan striker Adrian Balboa, who scored three goals in 12 RPL matches after his winter transfer, defender Yan Gudkov, who joined the team this summer, and midfielder Nikita Ermakov, who played 22 official matches last season, are valued at 500 thousand euros (about 44.4 million rubles).

      Goalkeeper Islam Imamov, midfielder Nikolai Kalinsky, midfielder Artem Sokolov, winger Timofey Komissarov, as well as defender Gleb Shilnikov and midfielders Valery Tsarukyan and Artem Sidenko are valued between 450 and 250 thousand euros (approximately from 40 to 22.2 million rubles).

      The lowest market value belongs to midfielder Ivan Sutugin and central striker Stanislav Lapinsky—100 (about 8.9 million rubles) and 50 (about 4.4 million rubles) thousand euros, respectively.

      Earlier, former Russian national team midfielder and ex-player of "Pari NN" Denis Glushakov assessed FC "NN"'s chances of returning to the RPL. NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" has channels on Telegram and MAX. Subscribe to stay updated on major events, exclusive materials, and timely information. Copyright © 1999—2025 NIA "Nizhny Novgorod". When reprinting, a hyperlink to NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" is mandatory. This resource may contain materials 18+