MEDIA: Artem Smolyakov will move to "Kharkiv" on loan rights

FC Kharkiv has decided not to buy out the contract of 23-year-old defender Artem Smolyakov, who currently belongs to the American club Los Angeles.

Instead of a full transfer, the parties have agreed on a free loan of the player for a period of one year. According to the terms of the agreement, the Kharkiv club will fully cover the player's salary and has the option to buy out his contract in the summer of 2027. Currently, the clubs are in the final stages of agreeing on legal details.

In addition to Smolyakov's transfer, the management of FC Kharkiv is nearing the completion of negotiations with Maccabi regarding the transfer of Georgiy Yermakov. Artem Smolyakov, a graduate of the Dnipro football school, previously played for Inhulets and Zhytomyr's Polissya. During his professional career, the defender played 32 matches for Inhulets (2 goals, 2 assists) and 43 games for Polissya (2 goals, 1 assist). The player also has 11 appearances for the Ukrainian U-21 national youth team.

Currently, under the guidance of head coach Zhelko Bartulovich, the team continues preparations for the new season, which includes a series of friendly matches with teams from Jablonec, Hradec Kralove, Okayama, and Schalke. The official start of the 2026/27 Ukrainian Championship for FC Kharkiv will be on August 1 with a home match against Veres from Rivne, scheduled to kick off at 15:30.