Russian football player shot dead

MOSCOW - A 20-year-old footballer for Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala has been shot dead near his home in Russia's volatile North Caucasus.

Gasan Magomedov was driving into his home village Saturday night when his car was sprayed with machine-gun fire and he died from his wounds while being transported to hospital, Anzhi said in a statement.

No arrests have been made and the motive is unclear, the club said. Magomedov was a regular in midfield for Anzhi's youth and reserve teams.

The Russian region of Dagestan, where the attack took place, has a long-running Islamist insurgency.

Anzhi challenged for the Russian title in recent years, but was relegated to the second tier last season. For several years, it had a policy of basing star players in Moscow to avoid Dagestan's security risks.