Cryptic crossword clue
Putin, say, has to defeat revolutionary 4,2,5

The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 plus 2 plus 5 letter word HEAD OF STATE

I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
H
E
A
D
O
F
S
T
A
T
E

Buddy explains!

The straight part
We know that "Putin, say" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case putin, say = head of state.
The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.
This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.

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