Alexander “Raul” Melnikov is a fan of the football club “Dnipro”.

Alexander Yurievich Melnikov was born on May 20, 1980 in the city of Kamianske (formerly. Dniprodzerzhynsk). He studied at the local gymnasium №39, and after the 9th grade he entered the technical school of electrification of Dnipropetrovsk State Agrarian University for the specialty of electrification and automation of agriculture with a specialization “Electric heating and refrigeration plants”. Learning was easy, since I had a very sharp memory from an early age, and devoted all his free time to his main childhood hobby - football. He was one of the best footballers among his peers, but in the disastrous 90s the family was not able to fully develop the talent of his son.

Yes, it was on the football fields among the residential buildings that Sasha received his call sign with which he will pass through his whole life. Being a thin and black boy, he was very fond of the Spanish player Raúl García. The children noticed it quickly, and so it took hold. In 1996 he moved to live in the village of Karnaukhivka (Dnipropetrovsk region). In 1999, he was called up for military service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the city. Kryvyi Rih in the tank troops, where he received the rank of sergeant. After returning from the service, he went to work at the Dnipropetrovsk Coking Chemical Plant.

He began to support “Dnipro” in the fan sector from a young age. He attended home and away matches, and did not forget to play himself. He trained 2-3 times a week, was the captain of his own team. Thanks to his perseverance, this team has repeatedly taken prize places at competitions in the village. Karnaukhivka and tournaments in Kamenskoe. Close and friends remember Alexander as a cheerful, hardworking and very open person. He was always friendly and had many friends. In addition to his love of sports and travel, he was fond of fishing.

In 2005, he got married and dreamed of a big family - a daughter and son, who would realize his father's dream, becoming a famous football player. One dream came true in 2007 with the birth of daughter Sophia. Alexander wanted to see her as a fully developed personality, led on dances and vocals. At the end of 2012, he decides to go to work for a private enterprise. With the goal of rising to the position of chief energy officer, in 2013 he entered the Interregional Academy of Personnel Management and completed the first course.

Being a true patriot and hearing about the beginning of mobilization in February 2014, Raul appeared at the Military Admissions Office. On March 25, he was sent for retraining to the village. Guardice as part of the 25th separate airborne Dnipropetrovsk brigade. At the end of April, the ATO began. On May 2, 2014, from Dnipropetrovsk airport on helicopters, the battalion was delivered to the city. Kramatorsk, where he stayed for 2.5 months, until the liberation of the city. Later, Alexander told his loved ones that those days were very difficult. Sometimes the fighters did not have water or food.

But here his brother was repeatedly helped by the fan movement. During a short vacation, he recalled a funny story, how his company was waiting for help, and then “Raul” saw things with the symbolism of his hometown club in another brigade. Then it turned out that the fans of “Dnipro” dropped parcels from the helicopter for their teammate, but the other fighters took them for themselves, because they were very hungry. Alexander was not greedy, but asked to return and split the parcels.

Also on the network was a video from April 16, 2014, filmed near Kramatorsk. Residents of Donetsk region. stopped the military, one of them was Alexander. Answering provocative questions from the journalist of pro-Russian views about why the military is here and what they think about the situation in the region, he replied: - “Our country is being torn to pieces. How can we relate to this? Today is my country, and tomorrow it may not be. How should I treat this? Here they want to tear down the flag of my country. How should I deal with that?”

On his only and last vacation, he met all his family and friends, as if everyone had come to say goodbye. On the morning of July 18, Raul returned to the military unit, where new combat tasks awaited him. Alexander Melnikov died on August 12, 2014, during the liberation of the city of Vuhlehirsk, after coming under mortar fire. His last dream was to take his daughter in the 1st grade to the school line. But it was not destined... He was buried next to his father at the cemetery of the Social Worker in Kamenskoe. On November 14, 2014 he was awarded the Order “For Courage” of the 3rd degree (posthumously).