Tambov started the season with mostly a new-look squad after barely escaping relegation in their first campaign in the top-flight. They struggled to get good results in the early weeks of the season and were soon finding themselves adrift at the foot of the table.
Yet, the team coached by Sergey Pervyushin showed some spirit and dedication as well and got the odd good result against a direct rival like Khimki or Ufa gave the team some points and showed that they are not completely giving up in the fight for survival.
However, things started to really unravel from November onwards when it became clear that the majority of the squad have not been paid for moths and some started to boycott games. The massive financial issues besetting the club became well-known during the winter break and pretty much the entire squad rescinded their contracts and left.
It looked like Tambov will not be able to finish the squad but there was a mad dash to sign 20 players right before the start of the second half of the season and a squad was eventually assembled. They clearly lacked the quality to compete though and even though the squad did show some spirit and were competitive in games, they lost all 11 games in 2021.
Sadly, the club will cease to exist as it is after the end of this season and could start again from the lower divisions if resurrected, with the debts becoming too much of a burden for a club that bit more than it can chew for a while.
