Spartak found a replacement for Sánchez and Erakovic. Is a Bundesliga defender coming to Abascal?
Nikita Paglazov Aug 1, 2023 10:00 UTC Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
Erhan Mashovich had a strong season together with the former Dynamo defender, and now clubs in Italy and England want him.
Spartak is actively looking for reinforcements for the central defense position. Previously, the rojiblancos did not agree on two candidates: Davinson Sanchez and Strahina Erakovich. According to Fernando Villarreal, the Colombian’s agent, the reason for the Tottenham player’s refusal to leave for Russia is “social life and, in general, the life and future of his wife and his son.” And Erakovic from Red Star was taken by Zenit. The inhabitants of St. Petersburg had a priority right to buy a Serb from a partner club, and they took advantage of it. “Spartacus” continued the search. And maybe he found an impulse. Although it is too early to talk about the transition. After all, not only the club’s unwillingness to let go of the defender can interfere, but, perhaps, the unwillingness to let him go specifically to Russia, as already happened with Sassuolo.
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According to the German edition of Sport1, Spartak is in contact with Bochum about defender Erhan Mašović. The Muscovites have also already contacted the player’s representatives. According to the source, the rojiblancos are willing to pay between 8 and 10 million euros for Mashovich. The same Serb agrees to move to Russia.
But for the footballer, a struggle developed. West Bromwich, Torino, Monza, Gent and Anderlecht, as well as Copenhagen, also apply for Erhan. At the same time, Bochum is in no hurry to sell Mashovich. The 24-year-old’s contract with the club is designed for two more years. Bochum is ready to part only in case of a worthy offer. Interestingly, last season Mašovic became the team’s third goalscorer in the Bundesliga: in 29 games, he scored four goals!
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How did Mashovich’s career develop in the face of interest from Spartak?
Erhan is a student of the middle peasants of the Serbian football club “Cukarički”. He ended up in the club system at the age of 15 (in 2013), and three years later he made his first-team debut in the championship game with Radnik. For a season and a half he played for Cukarichki, until in the summer of 2017 a great club, Brugge, arrived for Mashovich. The amount of the transfer was 1.6 million euros. It is curious, but in the end, the Serb never played in the Belgian giant. At the same time, the team won the Belgian championship in the 2017/2018 season, and Erhan was even awarded a gold medal.
After that, Mašović went on loan. He was first sent to Trencin from Slovakia (17 games in the 2018/2019 season), and the following year he went to Danish Horsens (22 games). In parallel, Erhan played for the Serbian national teams of various ages. For example, for the U-21 team, he scored 21 games.
Erhan Masovic
Photo: David Inderlied/Getty Images
At the end of the 2019/2020 season, Mashovich’s contract with Club Bruges ended. The defender remained a free agent for three months and in October 2020 signed a contract with Bochum. As it turns out later, the club received a quality player for free. In the first season, Mašović got used to German football: he played only 11 games, playing 277 minutes in total.
Bochum rose to the First Bundesliga, and much more trust was placed in Mašović in the 2021/2022 season. In the German championship he played 20 matches, adding to them two Cup matches. In the next game year, Erhan fully became a leader in defense. In the 2022/2023 season, he teamed up with former Dynamo football player Ivan Ordets. Mašović made 32 appearances in all competitions, scoring four goals and receiving just three yellow cards. It is noteworthy that sometimes the Serb went to the position of the opornik. So Mašović is a wagon (he can still appear on the right flank of the defense).
Erhan Masovic
Photo: Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images
Note that in the summer of 2022, Erhan made his debut for the Serbian main team. He already has three games on his account: in the League of Nations with Slovenia (4-1) and Sweden (4-1), as well as a friendly with Jordan (3-2). However, the defender was not taken to the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
What are Mashovich’s strengths and weaknesses?
Erhan is a right-footed defender. Height – 189 cm, everything here is standard for a center back. Mashovich’s strongest quality is selection. Last season, he averaged 2.07 tackles (included in the top 17% of players in the top 5 leagues for this indicator, according to FbRef). Erhan likes to connect with the standards, as evidenced by the four goals scored. Mashovich as a whole goes boldly on the attack: he averages 1.16 touches in the opponent’s box per game (included in the top 18% of defenders on this indicator).
“Spartak” in the face of Mashovich will receive an additional threat to the opponent. It is difficult to call a Serb a footballer through whom you need to build an exit to the defense. Passing is not his strongest quality (he makes only 33.93 passes per game, he is in the bottom 2% of defenders). Erhan also does not have the best performance in interceptions (this can be attributed to Bochum’s poor defense line) and martial arts wins (1.90 average per game, lower than 59% of defenders).
In total: Spartak in the person of Mashovich will get a defender famous for removing, physically strong, but weak when playing a pass and not very accustomed to aggressive actions. For the current level of RPL, quite a worthwhile option. Another thing is that for 13 million euros Spartak could get a top defender from Tottenham.
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