FC Nitra won their fifth Slovak Second Division title with an unbeaten season in Vladimir Latunov's first season in Slovakia. Now, heading into the 2032/33 campaign, the challenge was to strengthen the side and develop some exciting youngsters to step up to the top tier and move into European football.
Soviet Surge | Part 24 | FC Nitra #2: Chasing An Unbeaten Season
Vladimir Latunov had made a great start to life in Slovakian side FC Nitra, the ninth club and eighth country in his Soviet Surge.
Soviet Surge | Part 23 | FC Nitra #1: A Different Kind of Challenge
After tasting success in more than half of the countries across Eastern Europe, Russian manager Vladimir Latunov, with all due respect, took a major step down in quality in the next leg of his Soviet Surge in the summer of 2031.
Soviet Surge | Part 22 | Shakhtar Donetsk #2: Amine Gouiri Signing Aids Title Fight
An unbeaten start to the Ukrainian Premier League had Vladimir Latunov in prime position to win a seventh national title in his Soviet Surge - in which he was bidding to win all 13 leagues in Eastern Europe.
Soviet Surge Part 21 | Shakhtar Donetsk #1: A Jousse-y Start to Life in Ukraine
After success in winning the national title in six of the 13 target countries in his Soviet Surge journey, Russian manager Vladimir Latunov landed one of the biggest managerial roles in Eastern Europe in the summer of 2030.
Soviet Surge | Part 20 | FCSB #1: Romanian Domination
Having led Rijeka to the Croatian title, Russian manager Vladimir Latunov continued his Soviet Surge across Eastern Europe by joining his seventh club in six countries. And that side was FCSB in Romania.
Soviet Surge | Part 19 | Rijeka #4: Record Breaking Handzic
HNK Rijeka were right in the mix for the Croatian title, just six points behind the almost unbeatable Dinamo Zagreb. Their efforts had once again been led by free-scoring striker Zijad Handzic, while the club's owners were reportedly worried by manager Vladimir Latunov walking away at the end of his contract in the summer.
Soviet Surge | Part 18 | Rijeka #3: Big Name Signings
A first season in Croatia ended without a trophy but offered glimpses of promise, including a potential superstar striker smashing goalscoring records. However, the HNK Rijeka board were unhappy with Vladimir Latunov not signing high-reputation players, which he immediately set about addressing in the summer of 2028.
Soviet Surge | Part 17 | Rijeka #2: Lethal Handzic
Life in Croatia had gotten off to a solid start but a worrying dip towards the last month or so of 2027 had Vladimir Latunov slightly concerned about the strength of his new HNK Rijeka side. With that in mind, he used a 50-day winter break to begin spending the £20 million or so transfer kitty available to him.
Soviet Surge | Part 16 | Rijeka #1: Rebuilding Rijeka
Having wrapped up the national title in Czech Republic, adding to those in Poland, Turkey and Hungary, it was time for Russian manager Vladimir Latunov to spread his wings once more. He'd resigned from Viktoria Plzen and eventually wrapped up a move to Croatia with HNK Rijeka.
