"Script for some movie": how the star of "Amkala" signed a contract with the Bulgarian "Botev"

Extravaganza in the Russian Cup and an offer from Botev

Amkal's performance can be safely called the main revelation of the first rounds of the Russian Cup.

The amateur team representing Medialiga knocked out two professional teams at once, Zorkiy and Tver, and only lost to Zvezda in a penalty shootout, and at the same time seriously increased the already considerable army of fans.

However, even after the elimination from the tournament, they continue to discuss it.

This time, the reason was the transfer of one of the leaders of the club, Mikhail Prokopiev, to the Bulgarian Botev.

Interest in the 20-year-old midfielder was not surprising, because he became one of those Amkal players who most clearly showed themselves in the Cup.

The young blogger, whose TikTok account has 1.7 million subscribers, led the game of Muscovites in attack and gave an assist in each meeting.

I especially remember his assist from his half of the field to Alexei Gasilin in the confrontation with Zorkiy.

After such a performance, the pupil of Zenit became interested in Botev and at the end of September was invited to watch.

An injury almost put an end to the trip, received in the game with Zvezda, but, fortunately, it turned out to be not serious.

And Mikhail showed himself so brightly in training that a month later he signed the first professional contract in his life - for three years at once.

“I didn’t think about returning, but that’s how it all turned out: the invitation of media teams to the Russian Cup, I got in shape right at that moment, not knowing that we would play there, but then it’s history.

I love everyone, ”the Russian shared his emotions in his Telegram channel.

Botev also did not hide its satisfaction from the signing of the agreement.

According to the media director of the club, Sergei Rasulov, the sports block was satisfied with the newcomer's actions.

He will be able to make his debut in the Plovdiv team after the start of the winter transfer window.

In turn, the adviser to the president of Botev, Timur Daguev, admitted that he was impressed by the midfielder's performance in the matches of the Russian Cup, and gave him appropriate recommendations.

“I liked what I saw and began to collect more information.

Invited after watching the video.

I believe that he is able to grow into a good, high-quality footballer, - Daguev quotes Eurostavka.ru.

Distrust at the Zenit Academy and leaving Strogino due to TikTok

The story of Prokopiev is truly unique and amazing, because last year he actually completed his professional career, although he showed great promise as a child.

It is no coincidence that a native of the small town of Kirishi in the Leningrad Region with a population of 50 thousand inhabitants moved to St. Petersburg at the age of 13 and joined the Almaz-Antey team.

And in 2018, he was completely taken to the Zenith Academy.

It seemed that a technical boy with an excellent vision of the field would be able to prove himself in the main team of the city.

However, the coaches did not count on him much, and in 2020 he moved to Strogino.

“I spent a year in a bank.

This gave me an important understanding: you need to choose a place where you play and progress.

From Zenit he moved to Strogino, specifically for the Youth Football League (UFL).

I was the captain there, we even tied with Zenit.

But we were closed due to the coronavirus, ”the athlete recalled in an interview with Sports.ru.

It was during the COVID-19 pandemic that Prokopiev got a hobby that dramatically changed his whole life.

In the spring of 2020, he, like other Russians, was forced to stay at home in quarantine.

In the absence of training, Michael out of boredom decided to start making videos on TikTok.

The administration deleted the first account when it had not yet gained thousands of subscribers.

But Mikhail did not give up and created a second one.

Soon one of his videos shot and got almost a million likes.

On it, a young man tries to hit a spool of tape with a table tennis ball, then he mints the ball and, performing somersaults, falls to the floor.

Since then, the popularity of the blogger has only increased.

He published new funny videos, and the audience grew by leaps and bounds.

He could hardly have imagined then that his activity on social networks would be the reason for leaving Strogino.

As the footballer recalled, the head coach was dissatisfied with the hobby of the ward and gave him a tough choice: either TikTok or playing in a team.

“We went to the training camp, where I was in the top 3 teams among youth and seniors.

But after returning, we were gathered, and coach Smirnov said: “You don’t fit.”

And they made comments to me because of TikTok during the training camp (I already had more than a million subscribers) and then they put me in such a framework, ”said the midfielder.

He refused to accept the conditions of the mentor, and at the age of 18 he was deprived of the dream to which all his childhood and youth went.

It is difficult to say how another person would behave in his place, but Prokopiev tried not to lose heart.

And media football became a real salvation for him.

Mikhail replenished the colors of "Na Sporte" and turned out to be a godsend for the team, because he combined the media and a high level of play.

The guy was bright both on and off the field.

He could beat "Amkala", and then breakdance, saying hello to a principled opponent.

Then he moved to 2Drots, and in the fall of 2021 he joined Amkal, where he quickly became one of the main stars.

The midfielder did not think about professional football during this period of his life.

The millionaire blogger had other interests and goals, and he even spoke with incomprehension about people playing in FNL-2 for modest salaries.

“I don't feel sorry for them.

I left because something didn't suit me.

It is the choice of everyone: to stay or not.

In Strogino, he survived more than he trained and played.

Mom gave 1 thousand rubles a week, I spent 500 (2 thousand per month).

It seems to me that if the players in the Second League team receive 30 thousand rubles, then everyone is happy with everything, ”the young man was perplexed.

A dream come true and a chance to shine in Europe

But fate gave him a second chance in the form of the Russian Cup, which he took full advantage of.

Prokopiev admitted that Volgar, who plays in the FNL, showed interest in him, but the proposal from Bulgaria outweighed.

Despite all his previous statements, Mikhail was truly happy.

“Will there be a big salary?

For me, there is a football salary, when a player gets a lot.

So in my case, it’s not football at all, ”admitted Prokopiev.

And the creator of Amkala Herman Popkov gave the most vivid assessment of the midfielder's transition.

In his opinion, this is only the beginning of a long journey.

“For me, this means that in front of millions of people, we were able to show the path of a dream.

Basically a script for a movie.

The path from a subscriber who follows the community to an active participant in media football.

From a teenager with resentment that he was not given a pass, to a man who played in the Russian Cup with a captain's armband and led everyone along.

I assure you, the story of Prokop is more inspiring than the movie Goal!

After all, this is reality!

And all this did not happen in one day.

This is hard work,” Popkov quotes “Championship”.

Moreover, the option with Plovdiv for Prokopiev can be called an ideal option for launching a career.

On the one hand, the blogger went to a strong European championship, where he will be in front of scouts from all the leading championships of the continent.

On the other hand, he should not have problems with adaptation.

Firstly, Bulgaria is as close as possible to Russia in terms of mentality, way of life and language.

Secondly, the owner of the club is a domestic businessman Anton Zingarevich.

And the post of executive director is occupied by the well-known Russian agent German Chistyakov.

Periodically, the team achieves results in domestic tournaments.

So, over the past eight years, she has reached the final of the country's Cup three times and won the trophy once, which allowed her to play in the Europa League.

In the national championship, it has not yet been possible to rise above fourth place, and Botev finished the last two seasons in tenth place.

In the current championship draw, he is in a similar position.