Bunyodkor FC coach passes away

Sergei Arslonov, a Tajik assistant coach of Bunyodkor club and former football player, passed away yesterday, September 22, the club’s press service reported.

Arslonov began his football career in 1984 with Tajikistan’s Pakhtakor (now Khatlon) team, where he played eight matches. From 1986 to 1987, he appeared in 58 games for SKA Khabarovsk, scoring one goal.

From 1988, he played for Dushanbe’s Pamir, winning the USSR First League with the club and competing in the Premier League in 1989. He made a total of 14 appearances in league and cup matches with Pamir.

He joined Kuban Krasnodar in 1990, where he played 31 league matches. From 1991 to 1992, he represented Namangan’s Navbahor, scoring three goals in 42 matches and winning the Uzbekistan Cup with the team. In 1993, he returned to Kuban, appearing in 23 matches in the Russian championship, before rejoining Navbahor, where he twice won bronze medals in the Uzbekistan Championship and secured a second Uzbekistan Cup in 1995.

Since 1996, Arslonov continued his career with the Kizilkum team. After retiring as a player, he began his coaching career. As a coach, Arslonov worked with Kizilkum, Dinamo Samarkand, and Kyrgyzstan’s Dordoi teams. In 2008, he gained recognition as the assistant to Ahmad Ubaydullaev with Uzbekistan’s U19 team at the Asian Cup and later at the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup. In recent years, the specialist has been part of the coaching staff of the Bunyodkor club.