Aleksandr Mostovoi

Aleksandr Vladimirovich Mostovoi (Russian: Алекса́ндр Влади́мирович Мостово́й [ɐlʲɪkˈsandr vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvʲɪtɕ məstɐˈvoj]; born 22 August 1968) is a Russian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.

In this name that follows Eastern Slavic naming conventions, the patronymic is Vladimirovich and the family name is Mostovoi.
Aleksandr Mostovoi
Mostovoi in 2008
Personal information
Full name Aleksandr Vladimirovich Mostovoi
Date of birth (1968-08-22) 22 August 1968
Place of birth Lomonosov, Soviet Union
Height 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s) Attacking midfielder
Youth career
Krasnaya Presnya
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1985–1986 Krasnaya Presnya 19 (7)
1986–1991 Spartak Moscow 106 (34)
1992–1994 Benfica 9 (0)
1993–1994 → Caen (loan) 15 (3)
1994–1996 Strasbourg 61 (15)
1996–2004 Celta 235 (56)
2005 Alavés 1 (1)
Total 446 (116)
International career
1990–1991 USSR 13 (3)
1992 CIS 2 (0)
1992–2004 Russia 50 (10)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Known as O Zar de Balaídos ("The Tsar of Balaídos") from his lengthy spell at Celta de Vigo, he was often referred to as a 'genius playmaker' during his time there, in addition to a volatile temperament.[1][2] He also played professionally in his own country, Portugal and France.

Mostovoi earned 50 caps for Russia in a 12-year international career, being chosen for two World Cups and as many European Championships. He previously represented the Soviet Union and the CIS.

Club career

Spartak and first abroad spell

Born in Lomonosov, Russia, Soviet Union, Mostovoi signed for national giants FC Spartak Moscow from second division club FC Presnya Moscow, quickly making an impression. In January 1992, he joined compatriots Vasili Kulkov and Sergei Yuran at S.L. Benfica; months before arriving, he was controversially awarded Portuguese citizenship through marriage, but never imposed himself in the first team.[2]

Midway through 1993–94 Mostovoi joined Ligue 1 side Stade Malherbe Caen, then left after the sole season to fellow French side RC Strasbourg, rejoining coach Daniel Jeandupeux. With the latter, he first displayed glimpses of an emerging talent.

Celta

Mostovoi's big break came when he signed for Celta de Vigo in 1996, for 325 million pesetas (about €1.95 million). He made his debut for the Galicians in a 2–0 home defeat against Real Betis, and his creative play and key goals made him a cult figure at Balaídos as the club rose to near the top of La Liga standings year after year.

Affectionately nicknamed 'The Tsar of Balaídos' by the fans, Mostovoi formed an impressive midfield society with, amongst others, compatriot Valery Karpin, and helped Celta win the 2000 UEFA Intertoto Cup; the final was a 4–3 aggregate win over his hometown club FC Zenit Saint Petersburg.[3] However, he could not help the freefall that hit the team in the 2003–04 season, relegating it to the second division after the player appeared in a career-worst (in his Celta career) 24 matches.[4] His top-flight tally of 235 games for Celta was a club record until Hugo Mallo broke it in 2021.[5]

Alavés

Having not played for over eight months, and at the age of 36, Mostovoi signed a contract with Dmitry Pietrman's Deportivo Alavés in early March 2005, initially until the end of the second level campaign.[6] His first and only game came in a league game against Cádiz CF in which he came on as a substitute, in the 78th minute – he scored the Basques' only goal (and nearly added a second) in an eventual 1–3 defeat.

Having been with the club for only 30 days, Mostovoi told the club directors of his intention to retire claiming he was suffering from back problems.[2]

International career

Mostovoi played for the Soviet national team, the CIS and Russia internationally. In another temper tantrum, he was sent home by team manager Georgi Yartsev during the latter's trip to UEFA Euro 2004, after questioning his methods.[6] He played in the Euro 1996 and the 1994 FIFA World Cup and was also picked for the 2002 World Cup, but did not play in the latter tournament due to injury.[7]

Mostovoi's exclusion from Euro 2004's national squad happened after the 0–1 group stage loss to Spain. Supposedly, the player talked with the media after the match and gave an interview saying that Yartsev was not a good coach and did not understand anything. This was later proven false, after Mostovoi gave another interview and explained he merely said that Yartsev overworked the players during practice, so they didn't have the necessary energy to play well in matches.[8] All in all, group morale dropped after the incident, and Russia lost the second game to hosts Portugal.

In 2009, Mostovoi was part of the Russia squad that won the Legends Cup.

Retirement

After retiring as a player, he repeatedly stated his desire and willingness to lead a football club as a manager. However, Mostovoi does not have the necessary UEFA coaching licences, which he does not want to obtain. Since 2011, he has expressed various versions of this decision: from doubts about obtaining new knowledge in coaching courses to corrupt schemes to obtain this licence by other specialists.[9][10]

Personal life
Mostovoi (right) and musician Igor Butman at a celebrity ice hockey match in 2017

Mostovoi graduated from college as an electrician, and later joined a sports academy in Moscow, which provided coaching to young players with a university education.

After losing the 2001 Copa del Rey Final, a group of Celta supporters raised four million pesetas to commission a statue of Mostovoi. The player approved and Maxín Picallo was chosen as the sculptor, but the project was never finished; he believed that his dip in form in 2003 affected enthusiasm in the endeavour.[11]

He married Stéphanie in Strasbourg during his time playing in the city.[12] His son of the same name, known by the hypocorism Sacha, trialled with S.L. Benfica B in 2016.[13]

Career statistics

Club
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition[14]
Club Season League National cup[lower-alpha 1] Continental Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Krasnaya Presnya 1986 Soviet Second League 19710–207
Spartak Moscow 1987 Soviet Top League 186404[lower-alpha 2]3269
1988 273424[lower-alpha 3]0355
1989 113202[lower-alpha 2]0153
1990 239354[lower-alpha 2]03014
1991 2713217[lower-alpha 4]33617
Total 1063415821614248
Benfica 1992–93 Primeira Liga 90323[lower-alpha 3]0152
1993–94 00100000
Total 904230162
Caen (loan) 1993–94 Division 1 15300–153
Strasbourg 1994–95 Division 1 29641–337
1995–96 329316[lower-alpha 3]24112
Total 611572627419
Celta 1996–97 La Liga 31561–376
1997–98 34831–379
1998–99 336107[lower-alpha 3]3419
1999–2000 266107[lower-alpha 3]2348
2000–01 309629[lower-alpha 3]24513
2001–02 3010001[lower-alpha 3]133113
2002–03 275004[lower-alpha 3]1316
2003–04 246208[lower-alpha 5]2348
Total 23555194361329072
Alavés 2004–05 Segunda División 1100–11
Career total 44611642146420552150
  1. Includes Soviet Cup, Taça de Portugal, Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, Coupe de France, Copa del Rey
  2. Appearances in European Cup
  3. Appearances in UEFA Cup
  4. Appearances in European Cup Winners' Cup
  5. Appearances in UEFA Champions League

International
Alexander Mostovoi: International goals
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
130 November 1990Estadio Mateo Flores, Guatemala City, Guatemala Guatemala0–10–3Friendly
230 May 1991Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, Soviet Union Cyprus1–04–0Euro 1992 qualifying
328 August 1991Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway Norway0–10–1Euro 1992 qualifying
16 October 1993King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia0–14–2Friendly
26 October 1993King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia3–24–2Friendly
36 September 1995Svangaskarð, Toftir, Faroe Islands Faroe Islands0–12–5Euro 1996 qualifying
49 February 1996Lansdowne Road, Dublin, Ireland Republic of Ireland0–10–2Friendly
525 May 1996Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar Qatar2–5Friendly
619 June 1996Anfield, Liverpool, England Czech Republic2–13–3UEFA Euro 1996
710 October 1998Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, Russia France2–22–3Euro 2000 qualifying
819 May 1999Arsenal Stadium (Tula), Tula, Russia Belarus1–1Friendly
928 March 2001Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, Russia Faroe Islands1–01–02002 World Cup qualification
1010 September 2003Lokomotiv Stadium (Moscow), Moscow, Russia  Switzerland4–14–1Euro 2004 qualifying

Honours

Club

Spartak Moscow

Benfica

Strasbourg

Celta

Country

Soviet Union

Russia

References
  1. Lotina fights for Vigo job, but CV lacks imagination; Scotsman, 28 November 2002
  2. Qué fue de... Mostovoi, el 'Zar de Balaídos' (What happened to... Mostovoi, the 'Tsar of Balaídos') Archived 23 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine; Diario AS, 23 January 2009 (in Spanish)
  3. Bravo, Alberto (22 August 2020). "La Intertoto celeste cumple 20 años" [20th anniversary of the sky-blue Intertoto] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
  4. "Alexander Mostovoi" (in Spanish). Yo Jugué en el Celta. 2 April 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2015.
  5. Valero, Rafa (23 June 2021). "Hugo Mallo llega a la treintena batiendo récords" [Hugo Mallo gets to thirty beating records]. Marca. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  6. Mostovoi makes a comeback; UEFA.com, 12 March 2005
  7. Aleksandr Mostovoi – International Appearances; at RSSSF
  8. Zlatan lovers; UEFA.com, 19 June 2004
  9. "«Всю жизнь играл в футбол, а бумажки нет этой». Вечная преграда Мостового – лицензия PRO" ["All my life I've been playing football, but I don't have that piece of paper. Mostovoi's eternal obstacle is the PRO license]. Sports.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 31 October 2022.
  10. Петерсон, Григорий. "Александр Мостовой рассказал, почему не получил тренерскую лицензию" [Alexander Mostovoi told why he did not get a coaching license]. www.championat.com (in Russian). Retrieved 31 October 2022.
  11. Martín Reboredo, Marcos (22 August 2021). "La estatua de Mostovoi que nunca fue" [The statue of Mostovoi that never was]. Atlántico Diario (in Spanish). Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  12. Larsimont, Frédéric (13 June 2002). "La Belgique a brisé le rêve d'ado de Mostovoï" [Belgium shattered Mostovoi's teenage dream]. Le Soir (in French). Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  13. Bravo, Alberto (26 February 2016). "Sacha Mostovoi a prueba en el Benfica" [Sacha Mostovoi on trial at Benfica] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
  14. Aleksandr Mostovoi at FootballDatabase.eu
  15. "Strasbourg-Wacker 1995". uefa.com. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
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