“Being able to carry this name with us is so nice. It is like a warm blanket.”
It has not taken Rui Mota, the head coach of FC Noah, long to feel a special association with the Armenian football club. Five months after taking over a team currently 308th in UEFA’s coefficient rankings, one might think Mota will need all comfort he can find when his side take on Chelsea — a mere 300 places above them in the governing body’s standings — at Stamford Bridge in the Conference League on Thursday night.
If you are reading this without much knowledge of Chelsea’s opponents, it is understandable. The club has been going for only seven years and after starting out as FC Artsakh, they changed their name to FC Noah in 2019. The only trophies won so far are the Armenian Cup and the Armenian Super Cup in 2020.
Anyone assuming the desire to be called FC Noah is due to a connection with the biblical figure is right. The legendary tale of Noah’s Ark in Genesis, the first chapter of the Bible, ends with the large boat he built to avoid an astronomical flood coming to rest on Mount Ararat. While the border was moved in 1921 — the mountain now sits in eastern Turkey — it is still considered to be the country’s national symbol and is on Armenia’s coat of arms. The mountain towers over Armenia’s capital city, Yerevan.
“Armenia has a strong relationship with the Noah story; it is a spiritual nation,” Vahe Gasparyan, a member of the First Armenian Front supporters group, tells The Athletic. “Christianity is the state religion. Mount Ararat is a special site in the country’s history. It is much more than just a place. The symbolism for the country is monumental.
“I believe many people in the world do not know what Armenia is, but we have a big historical background. We are not a big country, but we are a proud people. This game against Chelsea is something Armenians dream of, to have the opportunity to make some Armenian history through football. It is priceless.”
FC Noah have already done that by becoming the first club since the Conference League began in 2021 to reach the group phase by winning all four qualifying rounds, the most noteworthy being a superb 3-2 aggregate victory over AEK Athens in the third round. Their participation in the competition began on July 11, before Chelsea had even played a pre-season friendly, with a 2-0 victory over Macedonian side KF Shkendija.
For Mota, the timing of the fixture meant he had to act fast in the transfer market. The 45-year-old was lured away from his first managerial position at Georgia club FC Dila Gori, who he had led to the top of the championship, a month earlier.
FC Noah went on a recruitment drive that in some ways rivals Chelsea’s busy nature under the Todd Boehly-Clearlake consortium. They signed 16 players, mostly from abroad, in the space of just over three weeks. Unlike the west London club’s seemingly open chequebook — over £1billion has been spent on acquisitions over the last two years — all of FC Noah’s new arrivals were free agents. And whereas Chelsea’s top earner Reece James earns around £250,000 a week, FC Noah’s squad members are all on under £5,000 a week.
Portuguese players who have come, such as veteran defender Goncalo Silva (Farense), striker Goncalo Gregorio (Dinamo Bucharest) and winger Helder Ferreira (Anorthosis Famagusta). They have gelled quickly with Armenia internationals already there in Hovhannes Hambardzumyan (the captain) and Gor Manvelyan (attacking midfielder).
Mota has worked in a variety of roles with several clubs since 2009, including as a performance analyst for Sporting Lisbon between 2012 and 2016. Having a lengthy contacts list came in very handy.
He said: “The president (owner Vardges Vardanyan) told me what money we had (for wages) and asked me, ‘Do you think this is OK to build something?’ And I said, ‘Yes, let’s look at doing the best we can’. It was a huge effort; we had just three weeks to prepare the whole squad. There was a lot of work from my team and people in the club.
“The networking is important, but the real key was knowing what kind of player we wanted for the squad. Yes, you need the technical/tactical skills ,but most crucial was those who have the will. I wanted players who were hungry. I was offered players where some maybe had better qualities but they came across like they had already done most of the job in their careers, and were coming here just to still be in shape and play in a competition. I didn’t want this; I wanted those hungry like me.”
No one is more ambitious than Vardanyan, who bought FC Noah last year. Not only has the businessman backed Mota in the market, he has invested in a new training ground. There are also plans to build a new stadium.
Vardanyan explains: “My goal is for FC Noah to become a pillar of Armenian football, consistently achieving success in the Armenian Premier League and proudly representing Armenia in European competitions.
“Our long-term goals go beyond club success. We aim to elevate Armenian football by recruiting, developing, and nurturing young talent that can contribute to the national team’s achievements. Ultimately, I envision FC Noah as the foundation for Armenian football’s future, cultivating talents who will represent our country on the international stage. Today our youth have that potential, and my ambition is to support them in every possible way.
“In a few months, the residential area of our new training base for the first team will be ready, equipped with all essential facilities. In addition to this, we’ve already launched an artificial turf pitch at the academy, and soon a natural grass pitch will be ready for the main team’s training (base). We also have other infrastructure projects aimed at the growth and success of Armenian football.
“To develop our academy, we invited high-calibre coaches and specialists from Portugal, specifically from the renowned Sporting Lisbon Academy, who have years of experience at the highest levels of Portuguese football. These experts work closely with us to shape a new generation of Armenian football.
“Our new stadium will be a UEFA fourth-category venue with a seating capacity for 15,000-20,000 spectators. It will be designed to host various tournaments and European final matches. We are currently negotiating with a prominent British company experienced in building football stadiums worldwide. We have tasked them with designing a stadium that reflects both Armenian heritage and a unique national style. There’s great excitement around this project in Armenia, as this stadium will become the main venue for significant matches. This is one of the most substantial initiatives by FC Noah, reflecting our dedication to advancing Armenian football.”
To put the construction of a bigger ground into perspective, FC Noah currently play their home games at Abovyan City Stadium, which has a capacity of just 3,100. In their bid for a first-ever Armenian championship, they sit seven points off leaders Urartu but with three games in hand.
In terms of making a mark in European football, FC Noah see Qarabag as a benchmark to follow. The Azerbaijani club are competing in a UEFA competition for the 15th season in a row.
This clear intent to build something significant and ensure their current adventure in the Conference League this season is not just a one-off is a major reason why they were able to convince Mota and so many players to join.
Iceland international Gudmundur Thorarinsson, who counts MLS side New York City among the teams he has played for, was one of the 16 free agents who arrived in the summer.
“When they first contacted me I was basically sold on their long-term idea,” he says. “Even this first year has been amazing how far we have come because these things usually take time but we have put together good results, as we have shown in Europe. They are better than most people expected around the club. To beat AEK over two games is a big achievement.
“They are building the new training ground right next to our current site. I was in New York training with the City Football Group, with unbelievable facilities, but this looks like it will be even better than that. It is going to be world-class.
“We want to be regulars in Europe. When they spoke to me, you could say they want to be a team like Qarabag, something like this. They are in Europe frequently and the president wants to do the same. It is difficult to make the group phase in our first season, but we did it. We are enjoying the experience and want to continue on this path.”
So how is the Chelsea game viewed? Ticket requests have flooded in from Armenians who reside elsewhere in Europe. Gasparyan, who is making the trip from Armenia to London, revealed: “We have had many messages from Armenians living elsewhere in the world. Many messages from Germany, France, and Serbia who are willing to travel and there is a large Armenia community in the UK too. The local community in London is very excited, it is one of the best I have seen. It is a very proud moment for us. This will be one of the biggest football events Armenia has ever had.”
When he spoke to The Athletic, Mota suggested he would reach out to fellow Portuguese coaches working in the Premier League, Fulham’s Marco Silva and Nottingham Forest’s Nuno Espirito Santo, for advice on how to stop Chelsea. He already has knowledge of what playing at Stamford Bridge is like, having scouted them for Silva ahead of Sporting’s 3-1 defeat in the Champions League there a decade ago.
Vardanyan cannot wait to see his team in action. “This is the biggest game an Armenian club has ever played in a European tournament, against one of the strongest opponents,” he says. “Alongside our fans, we’re ready to make it an unforgettable day.”
Everyone is aware of the task that awaits them, even with Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca expected to make his usual 10 to 11 changes. Thorarinsson decided to sum it up by making a light-hearted reference to a famous phrase former Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho once uttered about teams who prioritise defending to get a good result. The defender said: “We will try to play our football but there may be times where we will have to park the Ark!”
(Top photo: Xinhua/Li Ming via Getty Images)
