Viktor Melekhin

Viktor Melekhin did not start out as a defender at all. Signed by FC Rostov's academy as an attacking midfielder valued for his goal-scoring instincts, he was moved into central defence at 17 by head coach Valeri Karpin.

He came up through Domodedovo's own football school before moving on to Vityaz Podolsk and then the Rodina Moscow academy, also turning out for the amateur side Vika in the local Domodedovo league along the way. A winter training camp with Rostov in 2020/21 led to his integration into the club, and he made his Russian Premier League debut in August 2021. Rostov backed him with a new five-year contract the following spring.

In June 2023, Melekhin was named among the 100 finalists for the Golden Boy award for the 2022/2023 season, one of just three Russian Premier League players on that list. His agent, Anton Zheleznyakov, expressed surprise that the nomination drew so little press attention. Melekhin has also represented Russia at youth level, gathering caps for the under-18, under-19 and under-21 sides. Reports early in 2025 linked him with a loan move to Italy, with an option to buy attached, but the talks came to nothing and he remained at Rostov.