With the transfer window being almost three weeks old, and Spartak Moscow being in United Arab Emirates on their first training camp this winter, the fans are starting to wonder what’s happening regarding transfers.
The disappointing results in the autumn led General Director Sergei Rodionov to talk about a smaller spring cleaning in the squad during the winter, with up to six players leaving the club. So far, there have only been a few official announcements while the rumours are plenty.
So what will happen with Spartak during the winter?
Departures
The confirmed transfer:
Armenian striker Yura Movsisyan was the first to pack his suitcase. Movsisyan’s form has been poor in the past year and a half, and so it has for a long time been expected that he would return to USA where he grew up.
Yura Movsisyan.
Real Salt Lake, where Movsisyan played from 2007 to 2010, agreed with Spartak to sign Movsisyan on a one-year loan until December 1 this year, with a purchase option. This transfer could have happened last summer, but Movsisyan opted to give the new head coach Dmitriy Alenichev a chance before leaving the club.
The Rumours:
Aras Özbiliz, the other Armenian in Spartak’s squad, hasn’t played much this season, and he has attracted the interest of many foreign clubs. Özbiliz is no longer a part of Alenichev’s plans, and if we are to believe the rumours the winger has offers from Turkey, Spain and USA with Spartak asking for around €3 million to let him go. Alenichev sent a clear sign to Özbiliz when he left him in Moscow to train with the youngsters, instead of including him in the 25-man squad for the training camp.
German defender Serdar Tasci is also expected to leave the club soon. Tasci arrived in Moscow with huge expectations, but the former German national team player is yet to live up to them. Tasci, who has Turkish roots, has reportedly been unhappy at Spartak since the start of the Turkish-Russian diplomatic crisis, and a move to Turkey seems likely. Trabzonspor have already been mentioned as a possible destination, and there were rumours of a trade with Tasci going to Turkey and the former Dinamo defender Douglas plus €2 million going the other way. Unfortunately, Douglas has already played competitive games for two different clubs this seasons, making that deal impossible. Besiktas are also believed to be interested in Tasci.
Argentinian midfielder Tino Costa is currently playing on loan at Genoa, but Fiorentina could be his next club. Apparantly all parties should be ready to let Costa join Fiorentina on loan with a purchase option of around €1.5 million.
Used at the beginning of the season, and then discarded in favour of Sergei Parshivlyuk on the right back, defender Kirill Kombarov also has to find a new club this winter. He wasn’t included in the squad for the first training camp, and the latest rumours send him to arch rival Dinamo Moscow, the club for whom he played between 2006 and 2010. Vladimir Granat finds himself in the same situation, and he could rejoin Dinamo after leaving them on a free transfer just last summer.
Those who should not leave this winter:
Despite the harsh criticism and rumours of their departure during the tough times in the spring, Spartak should not let go of Denis Glushakov and Dmitriy Kombarov this winter. Glushakov has benefited from the controversies surrounding Roman Shirokov, as he was moved higher up the pitch, allowing him to play an even bigger role in Spartak’s attacks.
Currently there are no rumours about Glushakov and Dmitriy Kombarov, and it is difficult to imagine Spartak letting go of them at a time where the club needs to keep their best Russian players in the squad because of the foreign limitation.
Central defender Ilya Kutepov, who has got a minor break through this autumn, has been targeted by Italian sides Lazio and Napoli, but with a €10 million release clause, the 22 year old Russian is expected to stay in Moscow. Everything will however depend on whether or not Spartak manage to recruit a central defender this winter. Salvatore Bocchetti, another central defender, is also expected to stay, although he hasn’t been offered a contract extension.
Last but not least, we have Quincy Promes, the current leading goal scorer in the Russian Premier League, and the second best player in the country according to the RFN Top 50. The Dutch striker is simply non-transferable this winter, unless Spartak receive an irresistible offer around €30 million. The Spartak board has even offered Promes a bonus of €1.5 million, his annual salary, if he turns down all offers and stays with Spartak according to Izvestia.
The Shirokov Case
This autumn has been yet another soap opera in the career of Roman Shirokov. Starting the season as a key player, Shirokov was kept out of the team in the last three games to avoid activating a clause that would automatically extend his contract with another year.
Shirokov, whose contract expires after the season, has played 14 games, and another league game in the red-white Spartak jersey would extend his contract for another year. Shirokov is the 14th best paid player in the league, earning €2.7 million per year, which explains why Spartak are reluctant to give Shirokov more playing time.
Spartak are however under pressure from the president of the Russian Football Union and sports minister of Russia Vitaly Mutko, who would like to see the captain of the national team get regular playing time before the Euro in the summer.
Spartak have already tried to get Shirokov to annul the clause, but his agent has refused. Another solution to the problem could be a loan away from Spartak similar to what we saw when he left Zenit two years ago. Back then, Shirokov joined FC Krasnodar, but the Bulls have denied being interested in the controversial midfielder.
Unlike Özbiliz and Kirill Kombarov, Shirokov has joined Spartak’s training camp, and so far, he is still seen as a part of the first team and apparently a part of Alenichev’s plans. The situation is however very strange for a player with such an obvious and enormous talent as Shirokov.
Arrivals
While Spartak are yet to announce any new signings, there have been rumours. Kuban striker Lorenzo Melgarejo seems to be the most realistic signing, although recent news claims that the negotiations between the clubs have reached a problematic stage as Kuban have double the price from €5 million to €10 million.
One of Spartak’s declared goals before this transfer window was to sign a new striker, something that is even more urgent after Movsisyan’s departure, and after the problems with the Melgarejo deal, Fedun and Spartak are now looking in London where Loïc Remy from Chelsea has caught the eye of the Red-Whites. The French striker isn’t playing much for Chelsea, and according to the Vesti the deal could be closed soon.
Other than Remy and Melgarejo, Spartak has also been involved in some more or less obscure rumours, linking them with players like Inter’s Freddy Guarin and Nemanja Vidic, Benfica’s Konstantin Mitroglou and Valencia’s Sofiane Feghouli,
The fact remains that Spartak desperately need both a striker and a defender in order to stay in the fight for European football next season, especially if they succeed in their spring cleaning.
The Next Generation Is Ready
During the first part of the season, Alenichev gave the chance to several young players from the second team after the first team was heavily affected by injuries. Spartak has one of the best academies in Russia, if not the best, and both Rodionov and Alenichev have indicated that the youngsters will play an even bigger role for the club in the future.
That these are not just empty words is proven by the fact that Spartak have already extended the contracts of players like Georgi Melkadze, Aleksandr Zuev, Igor Leontiev and Artyom Timofeev as well as many others.
Speaking about talents, Spartak’s biggest concern at the moment is the situation of 19-year-old Anton Mitryushkin. Mitryushkin is one of the biggest talents in Russia at the moment, and with his contract expiring after the season, he is being closely monitored by several big European clubs. Last year, stories emerged of him asking for €50,000 per month, a remarkable raise compared to his current €15,000 per month.
With only one and a half months until the spring season kicks off, Spartak have several important tasks ahead of them. They need to strengthen the first team to achieve their short term goal of qualifying for European football next season, but they also need to sell some players to make room for new ones, and sort out Roman Shirokov’s future. Finally, they need to talk Mitryushkin into signing a new contract, as he could end up becoming the Igor Akinfeev of the Red-Whites. However, before becoming too worried about the lack of new signings, it is important to remember that the Russian transfer window doesn’t officially open until the 28th of January, meaning Spartak can also buy new players in February.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
Leave a Reply