(16:30)
It has been four months since the midfielder, who gave the army team seven years, left the club and moved to his native Partizan. In an exclusive interview with SE, the midfielder spoke about the level of the Serbian championship, shared his expectations from the upcoming derby with Lokomotiv and talked about the circumstances of the departure from the red and blue.
IN "PARTIZAN" FROM THE FIRST DAY I FEEL AT HOME
- Zoran, with a beautiful winning goal from a free kick in the Europa League. Are you a staff performer of standards at Partizan?
Yes, wherever I play, I have always taken free kicks. You yourself know - when I played for CSKA, I often hit from positions for a left-footed player. Nothing has changed in Partizan either.
- Thanks to the victory over Skenderbeu (2: 0), your team moved into second place in the Europa League group. How do you rate the chances of reaching the playoffs?
We got a good move. In the next match, you need to defeat the Young Boys in order to qualify from the group. I hope it works.
- Several months have passed since you joined Partizan. Have you already played with your partners?
- Partizan is the only club after CSKA where I immediately felt at home. To be honest, that's why I chose this team. From the first day there was a feeling as if he had never left here. Therefore, everything is fine.
- Did you feel that you have found a second youth in the team?
Yes, and did not lose the first one! ( Laughs). I feel great, I have not noticed any changes in myself. Perhaps it seemed to many that he had lost his form at CSKA. But it so happened that in Lately rarely appeared on the field. With the arrival, the tactics changed, the winger's position disappeared. Unfortunately, I just didn't fall under the new scheme, that's all. And in "Partizan" I was returned to my native flank, where I played all my life, and then the result returned.
- Does the level of the Serbian championship differ greatly from the Russian one?
There is a difference. Yours is stronger than Serbian. We have only two teams that constantly win - Partizan and Crvena Zvezda. Everyone else is unable to compete with these clubs. You have five or six teams competing for first place every year, and this is much more interesting.
But lately, the Serbian championship has improved a lot. This is shown by the results in European competitions. Look, Crvena has tied away with Arsenal in London. We are applying for a way out of the group. So it's not all bad.
WERNBLOOM - THE STRIKER? HE CANNOT, HE WILL IMAGINATE HIMSELF AS THE BEST PLAYER IN THE WORLD!
- Do you continue to follow?
Certainly. I try to watch every game. If there is no possibility, then I will definitely find out the result. I am rooting for the red and blue, I wish them success and victories in the Premier League and the Champions League.
- Do you communicate with someone from the army?
Yes, I keep in touch with many. I spent so many years at CSKA, this is not forgotten.
Great fellow, he came back and immediately turned the game over. And Pontus again demonstrated his mighty blow. CSKA never gives up, and the home defeat to Basel only turned the guys on. I am sure that they will be able to advance further in the Champions League.
- CSKA strikers rarely score goals lately. Maybe you should return to your historical position?
Pontus will cope in the place of the forward. Only this will raise his self-esteem too much, he will think that he is the best football player in the world! ( Laughs) Let it be better to score on holidays, but all the goals will be important.
If we talk about the attackers, then a slight crisis is visible. But this is an accident, there are moments. And, and the rest of the young guys will overcome everything soon, I'm sure. Just like that bad period, it happens.
- Latest results left much to be desired. After such an emotional victory, will they improve?
I am sure that the coaching staff squeezes the maximum out of the players. CSKA hasn't had transfers for so many years, and the team is still afloat. The guys try and give all the best in every match, it can be seen. Yes, defeats do happen. But CSKA never give up, I know. This is the trick of the team - to get together when it has already been written off.
May 15, 2014. Khimki. CSKA Moscow - Lokomotiv - 1: 0. Zoran TOSIC (in the center) celebrates with partners the goal, which became "golden" for the army team. Photo by Alexander FEDOROV, "SE"
"GOLDEN" GOAL "LOCOMOTIVE" IS THE MOST IMPORTANT IN THE CAREER
- Ahead of CSKA is the most important match with. In the first round, CSKA lost 1: 3 at home. Do you think there is a chance to avenge that defeat?
I remember that we always played well with Loko. I am sure it will be so this time. It's a pity that we lost in the first round. After all, it was a match at which the fans said goodbye.
- For many it came as a surprise to the first place of “Locomotive” on the basis of the circle.
The railroad workers have always claimed the championship, they were very close to the first line. But when the championship came to an end, they began to lag behind us, and. I don’t know how it will turn out this season. But it is clear that the team has improved.
- You played 13 matches against Loko and scored five goals. What is the secret of success?
You are right, these games with me have always been successful. The derby has a special attitude, a great desire to win. And there is no special secret. I just wanted to benefit my club.
- Is the golden goal for Lokomotiv in 2014 the most important one in your career?
I think yes. That ball brought us such a tough championship. I will remember him for the rest of my life.
- You remembered that you said goodbye to CSKA fans at the match against Loko. Do you miss them?
Very. To be honest, I always thought that I would end my career at CSKA. But it didn't work out. It's a pity that I no longer play for the army team.
- It's been four months since you left CSKA. Do you have any offense at the management that the contract was not renewed with you?
We just didn't agree. We did not have time to find understanding and our paths went our separate ways. They wrote a lot about the fact that I did not agree to a salary cut and therefore left. It is not true! There was no question of money at all. And there are no offenses against the leadership of CSKA and will never be. We stayed on friendly terms. As I said, I just didn't fit into the new game model of the team.
The SE correspondent is sad along with the army fans and shares a common idea: the time has really come to part.
The departure of such bright legionnaires - real professionals, extraordinary performers with a twist and simply open and pleasant people in communication - always makes you sad. Tosic has become a landmark figure for CSKA in recent years, took part in all the successes of the second wave of the 2010s, scored one of the golden goals with his magic left, and a couple of years ago it was difficult to imagine the main team without him.
Now the news of the Serb's departure caused the fans to feel a bit of nostalgia: “Zoran, thanks for everything!” And not angry or confused: “How is it, what are we going to do now ?!”. Everyone was ready for such a decision, and even in last season it became obvious that from a sports point of view, CSKA would not lose almost anything in such a development of events.
WITH THE AGE OF ITS EFFICIENCY DECLINED
We are talking about both the main statistical indicators: goals and assists, where negative dynamics is evident ("1 + 5" - in the 2016/17 championship, "4 + 5" - in the 2015/16 championship, "7 + 4" - in the 2014/15 championship, "11 + 4" - in the 2013/14 championship), and many additional ones.
For example, Tosic was able to dribble one and a half times less often - according to the data WhoScored, only 0.8 successful attempts in an average of 90 minutes (it is incorrect to count the average data per match, since Zoran often went out in the spring for short-term replacements), while in previous seasons, the effectiveness of strokes was 1.2, 1.3 and 1.4 ... The Serbian midfielder also began to hit the target less ( 0.7 times in 90 minutes in the last championship - against 0.9, 0.9 and 1.5 in the previous three), more often make mistakes in passes (78% accuracy against 81.7, 81.1 and 81.1).
Of course, a lot here can be attributed to the changed position of the football player on the field (we'll talk about it a little below), but even visually, Zoran did not look as explosive during matches as before. Until now, before my eyes, an episode from the last derby, when he could not oppose anything on a long dash to Promes, he easily rushed off and hit the post. On the one hand, very few people will catch up with the Dutchman in Russia. But, firstly, he ran with the ball, and secondly, Tosic then came on as a substitute during the break and was objectively fresh.
However, there is nothing supernatural in the fact that at the age of 30, and even with slipping muscle problems, speed and mobility are gradually leaving a football player.
Zoran TOSHICH. Photo by Alexander FEDOROV, "SE"
THE SICK IS GETTING MORE BIGGER
Fortunately, Tosic avoided serious injuries that would mow down for months or even years, but he would not be able to call himself a perfectly healthy footballer. Last season alone, he accumulated five muscle injuries: in August, September, November, January (at the training camp) and April. It seems that it's okay, every time the Serb dropped out for a week or two and quickly returned, but constant hits in the infirmary prevented him from staying in optimal shape.
Zoran, on the other hand, is just one of the category of players who can help the team only when they are in excellent condition. Tosic had no feats of the kind, who could not train for a month, and then go out on one leg and score the decisive goal in the Champions League.
Zoran TOSICH (right) and Leonid SLUTSKY. Photo by Alexander FEDOROV, "SE"
DID NOT FIT IN THE NEW MODEL
Tosic was the perfect midfielder in tactical formations. That asymmetrical flanking game, where the movement on the left went as if on rails, and on the right, Zoran shifted to the center under a blow or a short perepassovka with partners and freed up the zone for a high-spirited one, was fascinating and was one of the most effective and unpredictable weapons in the Premier League.
But Viktor Goncharenko is building a new CSKA, and Tosic did not find a stable place in his 3-5-2. Serbian footballer tried on the main problematic position of the left lateral, where right after the winter break he left from the first minutes in matches with, and. Not to say that he completely failed, because the army team won, and Zoran himself collected rebounds, usefully accelerated counterattacks, performed crossings. But there was no continuation of practice, I began to try and, then I even got to, and it became clear that the coaching staff in this role needed a player with different parameters: more tenacious in the selection, more "voluminous" and, in the end, more stable. Such as Mario Fernandez.
Was there any other place for Tosic in this model? In the center of the field, where versatility is needed, all competitors look preferable. One of the two forwards? Probably not the best option either. Most likely, in the new CSKA, the Serb would finally turn into a substitute, who would enter the field in the attacking group or on the flank in order to plug the resulting hole.
Zoran TOSICH (left) and Viktor GONCHARENKO. Photo by Alexey IVANOV, "SE"
FINANCIAL FACTOR
Money in this case is also far from the last question, if not one of the key ones at all. We all know perfectly well that at CSKA they know how to appreciate people who have done a lot for the club, and often try to keep them in the team, even when they can no longer bring as much benefit on the field as before. The reasons lie in the microclimate, which I really do not want to violate, and one of the illustrative examples is the extension of the contract in November 2015, which by that time had long ceased to enter the field.
We were ready to keep Tosic in CSKA, but on different financial terms. Firstly, the term of the new contract would be one year ("We do not offer an agreement for a longer period in such cases, the standard story", -), and secondly, the salary would also change significantly ("We are all objectively, "Babaev added).
Apparently, Tosic found a more interesting and more attractive option, since in the end he refused the proposed conditions, and in the near future we will find out where he will continue his career. Obviously, this will not be a Russian club, so today we can all breathe a sad sigh and warmly review the best video clips with his actions. Zoran has built an excellent career at the army club and may the new challenge cheer him up and help prolong his football life.
On the fact of negotiations between Zoran Tosic and Arsenal are not shy about talking. Last season, the Tula team barely retained a place in the Premier League, but now they are solving slightly different problems, claiming the status of a strong middle peasant. In addition, Tosic will be comfortable working with the new coach of Arsenal. Miodrag Bozovic- in fact, his fellow countryman.
But despite the fact that Zoran himself really wants to continue his career in Russia, negotiations with the Tula club have reached an impasse. According to Arsenal fan sites, Tosic is asking for too high a salary. The leadership of CSKA, by the way, offered to the Serb.
How will we remember Zoran Tosic
On the eve of the "Championship" announced the departure of Zoran Tosic from CSKA. Today this was officially announced at the club.
"Dynamo"
After seven years at CSKA, Tosic is not interested in playing in a team that is an outsider in the Russian championship. The first five of the RFPL does not need the Serb himself too much. But Dynamo Zoran could come in handy. The team has just left the FNL, and therefore there is still room for a quality legionnaire in the roster. In addition, a 30-year-old experienced footballer could become a good mentor for young and promising Tashaev and Katrich.
Turkey
This summer, the Turkish championship has again become popular with players who do not want to end up with football in China, but are looking for a good salary by European standards. Now they play in the local Super League Pepe and Gaelle Clichy, Mathieu Valbuena and even Vitaly Dyakov... Undoubtedly, they are interested in Turkey and free Tosic.
The most passive Turkish team in terms of transfers is still Galatasaray. It is the Istanbul club that is still considered the favorite in the fight for the ex-CSKA player. So, very soon Tosic can become a teammate Nigela de Jonga and Fernando Muslera.
Dyakov: the general director of Dynamo repeated three times: "I will spread rot on you"
The first interview with defender Vitaly Dyakov after leaving Dynamo - about the transfer to the brace, training with Khokhlov and moving to Turkey.
UAE
An even more exotic championship, where Tosic can move, is the Arab League. Here he can join the ex-"railwayman" Lassana Diarra, who plays for Al-Jazeera, and a former Dynamo player Balash Dzhudzhak from the Al-Wahda team. Here are Moussa Sow, Mirko Vucinic, Marcus Berg and Denilson- perhaps this is where the list of more or less well-known players in Europe ends. Well, the salaries are big.
Hull City
Rumors in the British and Russian media sent almost all CSKA players in turn to Slutsky's new team. At the same time, the transfer of Tosic to Hull looks much more real than the transfer of Nababkin or Shchennikov. First, the Serb has already played in England and is ready for some tough power football. Secondly, in "Halle" Zoran will again have to solve serious problems, and not just receive money. Thirdly, Tosic was one of Slutsky's favorite players at CSKA. Fourthly, Hull's roster is still not strong enough - the Russian coach just lacks flank midfielders.
Slutsky: I am slowly explaining my philosophy to the Hull players
Leonid Slutsky held his first training session at Hull City and spoke about his feelings.
Bundesliga
Another option for Tosic to return to a serious championship is Germany. He already played here when he left for Cologne from Manchester United in 2010 and was the main star of the team after Lucas Podolski... Now the Serbian midfielder's agents are trying to get him to Hannover, which has just risen to the top division from the second Bundesliga. It seems that this is also a great challenge for Tosic.
Serbian midfielder Zoran Tosic was born on April 28, 1987 and began his football career in his hometown of Zrenjanin: his first teams were Proleter, and a little later - Banat. In 2007, Tosic signed a contract with Belgrade Partizan, and in the first year of his tenure in the team, he helped the black-and-white win the championship. Thanks to his excellent game, Zoran almost immediately got into the pencil of the scouts of many European teams, including Manchester United. The interest of the Mankunians turned out to be substantive: in the fall of 2008, the club achieved that Zoran was issued a work permit in the UK, and in January 2009, Tosic officially moved to Old Trafford.
In the face of a tough struggle for a place in the squad (one of Zoran's direct competitors was Cristiano Ronaldo), it was hard for the young Serb to prove himself, but later he repeatedly stated that the Manchester stage of his career gave him a lot as a football player. “Working side by side with the best players in Europe was very important for my professional growth,” Zoran recalled in an interview with the PFC CSKA official magazine Red-Blue Tribune. “With the same Ronaldo, we spent a lot of time together after training, fulfilled the standards, and I learned everything from him - not only football things, but also how to behave outside the field”.
In January 2010, Tosic went on loan to the German "Cologne", during the performances of which he was already closely watched by the breeders of PFC CSKA. In the same summer, the army club makes an offer to Manchester United, after which Tosic agrees with the red and blue on the terms of a personal contract. Zoran's debut falls on the country's main football derby. In the away match against Spartak, the Serb spends more than an hour on the field and helps the army team to achieve an important victory - 2: 1.
Zoran Tosic is able to act equally productively on any of the sidelines. Over the years of his performances, the PFC CSKA midfielder has become one of the symbols of our club. Fans remember well a number of his magnificent goals: Real Madrid in the 1/8 finals of the Champions League in 2012, a series of goals for Spartak Moscow, a hat-trick against Krasnodar in the fall of 2013, and of course , The “golden” goal for Lokomotiv, which decided the fate of the 2013/14 championship.
Tosic has two victories in the championship and the Cup of Russia, and also won the Super Cup of the country with our club.
Curious fact
At the end of 2014, Zoran Tosic was named the best footballer in Serbia according to the sports publication Sportski Žurnal.
Numbers
3
In the 2011/12 Russian Championship, he hit the gates of Spartak Moscow in three games
The current agreement between Zoran Tosic and CSKA Moscow expired on July 30. The parties did not wait for the end date of the contract and terminated it by mutual agreement, freeing themselves from obligations to each other.
Earlier, the footballer said that he would like to continue playing for the army club, but he was not satisfied with CSKA's proposal, which included a 30 percent reduction in wages.
Under the expiring agreement, the midfielder earned € 2.2 million a year.
Now Zoran will fly off on a short-term vacation to his native Serbia, after which he will return to Moscow to settle the details of the termination of the agreement, and will start looking for a new team.
Carier start
Tosic came to CSKA in June 2010, signing an agreement for five years. The transfer from English cost the president of the club, according to media reports, € 8 million.
Having started his career in his native Proleter from Zrenyanin, the footballer gained fame during his performances in Belgrade Partizan, with fans of which CSKA fans are friendly.
It was from one of the two flagships of Serbian football that after the season with the “golden double” Tosic was acquired by Manchester United, where he managed to play three times in the second half of the 2008/09 season, including two matches in the Premier League.
The following winter season, the young midfielder was loaned to German FC Cologne, and the right winger had an excellent stretch in the Bundesliga, having played in 13 meetings and scored five goals in them.
It was after this that he was bought by the best Russian club at that time to replace his compatriot who had left for the Italian Juventus.
Golden years in Russia
The Russian period in Tosic's career, which has become the most significant for him at the moment, turned out to be bright and successful. Quickly becoming his own in the red and blue, the motor and technical midfielder blew up the right flank of CSKA's attack, playing in a different, but no less effective style than Krasic.
As part of the army team, he played 236 matches, scored 46 goals in them, won the national championship three times, won the Russian Cup twice and won the Super Cup once.
Without Tosic during all these years it was impossible to imagine CSKA of the era of Leonid Slutsky. However, even after the specialist left the club last winter, the Serb remained a player starting line-up y, although he could not score goals or assists with him.
Perhaps the most memorable events during Tosic's performances at the Moscow club were the hat-trick against Krasnodar and the golden goal against Lokomotiv in the 2013/14 season.
Then the midfielder was the real leader of CSKA, having scored 11 goals and two assists in the championship.
Tosic also has three matches for the national team of Serbia and Montenegro and 76 meetings for the national team of Serbia, in which he scored 11 accurate strikes.
With the departure of the Serb, CSKA lost a player who played an important role, although recently it did not fully fit into Viktor Goncharenko's scheme. However, the big question is whether CSKA, which has not had a large transfer budget in recent years, will be able to compensate for the loss of one of its long-term leaders in the market.
"CSKA would be still useful"
“Such an experienced footballer with such a good level of training would be useful to CSKA anyway. It is another matter that, assessing the age of the player and his requirements, the club made such a decision, - the former army team midfielder and head coach youth team of Russia.
- The salary cut that was offered to the footballer is what happens everywhere, unless, of course, we are talking about a world-class star.
Tosic left a good memory of himself in CSKA. He was a footballer who devoted himself completely to playing for the club over the years, so I think fans will always remember him fondly. In Russia, Tosic can still play in any club that does not set the task of winning the national championship. In any other team, he will be very useful.
Maybe he will play in the European top championships, again, in clubs that do not set themselves the task of winning the title. In any middle peasant, he is able to play at least another year. "
You can get acquainted with other materials, news and statistics at the Russian Football Championship, as well as in the sports department groups on social networks
