14 Footballers of Armenian Descent Played in the Second Round of the Russian Cup Regions Path

The second-round matches of the Russian Cup Regions Path were played on August 11 and 12. Clubs from the lower divisions and amateur teams compete at this stage of the tournament, while Russian Premier League sides are simultaneously playing in the group stage of the RPL Path.

As many as 14 footballers of Armenian descent took to the pitch in the second round of the Regions Path. Four of them had previously been involved with Armenia’s youth national teams.

Here is how the Armenian footballers performed in the Russian Cup matches.

Dynamo SPB — FC 10 — 2:1

20-year-old midfielder Roman Torosyan played the full 90 minutes for St. Petersburg’s Dynamo and provided an assist, helping his team advance to the next round.

Nart — Dynamo Stavropol — 1:2

Two 18-year-old footballers of Armenian descent featured for Dynamo Stavropol.

Defender Yanis Grigoryan and midfielder Arkady Gyulushanyan both spent 70 minutes on the pitch.

Angusht Nazran — Druzhba Maykop — 0:0, 2:4 on penalties

19-year-old defender Matvey Agasyan came on after the break and played the entire second half for Angusht.

The match finished goalless in regulation time, with Druzhba Maykop proving stronger in the penalty shootout. Agasyan did not take a penalty in the shootout.

Murom — Metallurg Lipetsk — 0:0, 5:3 on penalties

Footballers of Armenian descent featured for both teams in this match.

22-year-old defender Ruslan Babayan played the full match for Murom, while 18-year-old midfielder Vartan Markaryan completed all 90 minutes for Metallurg Lipetsk.

Neither Babayan nor Markaryan took a penalty in the post-match shootout.

Ruslan Babayan had previously been called up to Armenia’s U21 national team while playing in Krasnodar’s system.

Volna — Tyumen — 2:1

22-year-old midfielder Artemiy Gunko played the full match for Volna and recorded an assist.

Gunko returned to Russia this summer following a spell with Yerevan-based Urartu. He had previously received a call-up to Armenia’s U21 national team but did not make an appearance.

Irtysh — Saturn — 1:1, 4:2 on penalties

Two footballers of Armenian descent featured for Omsk-based Irtysh.

24-year-old midfielder Arman Markosyan played the first half, while 20-year-old Gevorg Galstyan came on in the 80th minute.

Galstyan previously represented Armenia U17 while he was a Tyumen player.

Shumbrat — 2Drots — 1:1, 4:5 on penalties

23-year-old midfielder Artem Abramyan started for 2Drots and spent 63 minutes on the pitch.

The winner was decided in a penalty shootout, where the 2Drots players proved more accurate.

Astrakhan — Mashuk-KMV — 1:1, 4:3 on penalties

Sevada Torosyan and Alexander Mkrtychyan featured for Mashuk-KMV.

25-year-old Torosyan played 78 minutes, while 22-year-old forward Mkrtychyan spent 65 minutes on the pitch.

Alexander Mkrtchyan previously made eight appearances for Armenia U19.

Tosno — Cherepovets — 0:0, 4:5 on penalties

21-year-old midfielder Alexander Ayloyan played the full match for Tosno.

Ayloyan took one of his team’s penalties in the post-match shootout but failed to convert.

It is worth noting that in the first round of the Regions Path, Alexander scored twice against Kirovets-Voskhozhdenie, as Tosno claimed a 3:0 victory.

Khimik — Nosta — 2:3

Artur Ananyan was the most productive player of Armenian descent in the second round.

The 20-year-old Nosta midfielder spent 83 minutes on the pitch and was involved in all three of his team’s goals, scoring twice and providing an assist.

Ananyan therefore finished the match with 2 goals and 1 assist, making a decisive contribution to Nosta’s 3:2 victory.

14 Armenian Footballers in the Second Round of the Russian Cup

A total of 14 footballers of Armenian descent featured in the second-round matches of the Russian Cup Regions Path:

Roman Torosyan, Yanis Grigoryan, Arkady Gyulushanyan, Matvey Agasyan, Ruslan Babayan, Vartan Markaryan, Artemiy Gunko, Arman Markosyan, Gevorg Galstyan, Artem Abramyan, Sevada Torosyan, Alexander Mkrtychyan, Alexander Ayloyan and Artur Ananyan.

Artur Ananyan delivered the standout performance, registering three goal contributions. Roman Torosyan and Artemiy Gunko also provided assists.

Among the players involved in this round, Ruslan Babayan, Artemiy Gunko, Gevorg Galstyan and Alexander Mkrtychyan had previously been called up to or represented Armenia at various youth levels.