Champions League: Sherif Tiraspol is the “sin-bass” club that seeks the championship, the crucible of nationalities

NSMoldovan football, which was eliminated at 175th in the FIFA rankings and 37th in the UEFA, is about to taste Sweet taste of the Champions League thanks to the Cherif Tiraspol instrument. A club from a province, Transnistria, has been embroiled in an entrenched identity conflict since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in the 1990s.

Moldova became independent from the Soviet Union and Transnistria from the new republic in 1990 This led to a military conflict that ended in 1992 without settling their political status. The Republic of Moldova Pridnestrov, whose flag shines with the Soviet hammer and sickle, does not have the recognition of the international community, but it functions de facto as a state by having its parliament, army and currency …

Moldova regards the region on the banks of the Dniester River as an independent territorial unit with a special legal status within its own country. area Tirspol is the capital of Moldova, with a third of its 500,000 inhabitants and a large number of Ukrainians and RussiansHe speaks all three languages.

A region in international limbo after the fall of the Soviet Union, with geopolitical, commercial and energy interests, in which its teams play in the leagues in Moldova. And at Divizia Nationala, The Transnistrian Sheriff enforces his law: They’ve won 19 of the last 21 tournaments And now they are at the gates of the group stage after the champions They beat Dinamo Zagreb (3-0) in the first leg of the qualifiers. Today they are arguing about the return of the Croatian Maximir.

“The only thing that gets weird when we go to play Chisinu is that the mobile coverage changes and there’s another currency. Here the ruble is used and there are borders with Ukraine and Moldova. We are the pride of Transnistria and so is Moldovan football. We are close to making history,” BRAND Gustavo Dulanto confirms. The Peruvian defender, the son of a former international who played for Merida in 1995, is one of the captains of a team with just 24 years old ripping through the fabric of Teresball.

Here the ruble is used and there are borders with Ukraine and Moldova. We are the pride of Transnistria and so is Moldovan football

Gustavo Dulanto, honest defense

The club was established in 1997 under the umbrella of the Sharif. A business conglomerate created in 1993 by Viktor Gushan and Ilya Kazmali – former members of the KGB – Which started as a security company which has now grown into gas stations, supermarket chains, branches in construction and telecommunications…a commercial giant “ruling” in Transnistria which helped develop an ambitious project containing modern facilities.

“It is an organized club with many amenities for football players. It gives peace of mind,” says Dulanto, one of the leaders of the Babel Tower team. In the first leg, against Dinamo Zagreb, players from Moldova, Greece, Colombia, Ghana, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, Luxembourg, Mali, Slovenia, Bosnia, Malawi, Brazil and Guinea played. “It’s a very cheerful wardrobe. They play music and dance a lot. There are many nationalities and they are spoken in English … but also in Spanish. It is one of the native languages ​​of the South American sheriff who are here,” Dolanto jokes. The Peruvian arrived in February and shares a booth with Colombians Castaida, Zapata and Arboleda.

Fireplace “Heroes”

Al Sharif played four times in the group stage of the European League (2010, 2011, 2014, and 2018), But the Champions League is the biggest challenge for him. “It was tough. We beat Tota of Albania in the first round, Alashkert of Armenia in the second, and European champions like Red Star in the third. We won the first leg in Dinamo Zagreb! The opponents were superior, but with passion and responsibility we beat them and are close to goal”, highlights Dulanto.

We all dreamed of playing in the Champions League since childhood. Playing against those big teams would be amazing. No one will take it from us.”

Gustavo Dolante, honest defense

Crossing with Real Madrid, Barra, PSG, Bayern, City… It’s no longer impossible: “We’ve all had this dream since we were kids. Playing against them would be amazing. No one would take it away from us.” There is a new sheriff.