Kazakh Footballer Joins Scottish Championship Leader Hearts

Twenty-six-year-old Kazakh footballer Islam Chesnokov has signed a contract with Scottish Championship leaders Heart of Midlothian FC.

The agreement will see Chesnokov continue his career with the club until the summer of 2028, The Caspian Post reports, citing Kazakh media.

The player joined the Edinburgh club from Kostanay based Tobol Kostanay as a free agent.

As a result, Chesnokov has become the first representative of Kazakhstan in the history of Hearts, as well as the first Kazakh footballer to play in the Scottish championship.

Hearts are four time champions of Scotland and eight time winners of the national Cup. After twenty rounds of the current season, the team has collected forty four points and leads the league table.

At his new club, Islam Chesnokov will wear the number ninety nine shirt.

Islam Chesnokov is a graduate of Ust Kamenogorsk based Altai Ust Kamenogorsk. In 2018, he began playing for the youth team, while his debut for the senior side took place on 15 September 2020 in a match against Turan Turkistan.

In April 2021, the footballer moved to Belarusian club Belshina Bobruisk. He made his debut in the Belarusian Premier League on 20 March 2022 in a game against Mogilev based Dnipro Mogilev, and scored his first goal on 21 May 2022 in a match with Isloch Minsk Region. During his time with the Belarusian club, Chesnokov played fifty nine matches, scoring eleven goals and providing eleven assists.

In the 2023 season, Islam Chesnokov joined Kostanay based Tobol. For the club, the footballer played ninety two matches, scored twenty nine goals, and delivered fifteen assists.