Andrei Belanov (Caspar Zafer) 2001-2002

First Regular Appearance: 5.1 (#229) Passports Out  Sunday 16th September 2001

Last Regular Appearance: 5.23 (#251) Secrets & Lies  Sunday 3rd March 2002

Duration: EP: 229 - 251  |  EP: 5.1 – 5.23

Squad Number/Position: #6 (Defender) (2001-2002)

Last Seen: Departing for AS Monaco having fallen out with everyone, Taylor Doyle's scheming leaving Jeff in the dust.

At a cost of £3.5M (a record for Harchester in 2001), Andrei arrived from Steaua Bucharest, the 24-year-old Ukrainian’s head turned by the club’s gain of Champions League football at the end of the previous season. Well, that and the chance to put his womanising ways to use in a new country without the small fact of having a wife back home inconveniencing things! Andrei settles into the team, forming a bond with captain Stevie Shaw and relishing in all the trouble surrounding the club, from Karl Fletcher’s murder charge to causing a whole lot of controversy for Jamie and Tash Parker when presenting them with a Romanian baby!

Andrei has one of his best matches scoring his debut goal against Newcastle, but his desire to celebrate sees him hook up with none other than Victoria Baptiste. Anyone a mile off could see they were a match made in hell, even more so when manager David Spears houses Andrei with Monday Bandele, and Victoria, the star witness in the prosecution for his murder charge, right next door to Fletch! Victoria continues to make Fletch’s life hell, including blackmailing he and the Parkers on Andrei’s video camera for £500,000. With her work done, Victoria chucks the useless Andrei, just before his hidden-away wife Anouk arrives in Harchester already in the know that she has a cheating scumbag for a husband. With all his money as a European and now Premier League star, Anouk hasn’t seen a penny in months due to Andrei's selfishness, leaving she and their young son in peril of debt collectors. Anouk develops a bond with Monday, who treats her better than her husband, and Monday forces Andrei to pay up to Anouk with the threat of informing the press of his wife beating.

Andrei now takes great pleasure in winding up Monday whenever he can, especially when it is learnt Tash is pregnant and it unknown whether Jamie or Monday is the father. It reaches a point where Monday lunges at Andrei in front of a TV crew recording new manager Patrick Doyle's first week of training sessions. Lynda Block manages to stop the press getting hold of the footage, and a bitter Andrei goes public on Sky Sports and shows off his bruises! Doyle has had enough, and wastes no time speeding up Andrei’s departure, overseeing Jeff Stein to sort out a move to Parma. His slimy agent of a son Taylor Doyle sneaks in on the deal however, and Andrei’s final destination is AS Monaco.

It is probably the best for Andrei, as he would surely have had a seat on the doomed team coach for the UEFA Cup Final, a crash which leaves three of his team mates dead.