Maksim Tsyhalka (, ; often spelled Maxim Tsigalko; 27 May 1983 – 25 December 2020) was a Belarusian football player. He ended his professional career early (at the age of 26) in 2010 due to persistent injuries.
Honours
Dinamo Minsk
Belarusian Premier League champion: 2004
Belarusian Cup winner: 2002–03
In popular culture
Maksim and, to a lesser extent, his brother Yuri both achieved a small amount of fame and worldwide renown after they were featured in the Championship Manager / Football Manager computer game series by Sports Interactive, especially in CM 01/02. Both players were present in the database with good starting stats and a very high potential, and Maksim (spelled "Maxim Tsigalko" in the game) in particular was capable of becoming a world class player, to the degree that he is very well known amongst fans of the Football Manager series and considered one of the game's legends.
Personal life
Tsyhalka also had a twin brother Yury who played as a goalkeeper. The brothers played alongside each other at Dinamo Minsk.
Death
Maksim Tsyhalka died on 25 December 2020 at the age of 37.