When Victor Moses joined Spartak Moscow for his sixth loan spell since joining Chelsea in 2012, many felt the former Nigerian international might have found a home in Moscow considering that he settled down fast in the Russian capital. However, the former Chelsea winger may just be setting for another loan spell in the approaching summer, but not because of non-performance but rather for financial reasons
From being voted man-of-the-match to severally inspiring his team to victory, Victor Moses has been impressive since joining Spartak Moscow at the beginning of the season, so-much-so that Spartak Moscow manager Domenico Tedesco revealed how Moses had been a great help to his side since his arrival from Chelsea.
The 30-year-old joined the Red and Whites on a season-long loan from the Blues last summer for his sixth spell away from the Stamford Bridge outfit.
The former Nigerian international has continued to prove his worth at the club, helping them to their current second spot on the league table scoring three goals and assisting four others, including his two assists against Arsenal Tula on Monday.
Moses’ temporary deal is set to expire this summer but the Red and Whites have an option to buy the versatile winger permanently.
Although Tedesco has revealed the business of triggering the forward’s buyout option rests with the club’s financial authority, he has, however, praised the winger’s addition to his side.
“The buyout of Moses is the club’s business, I can’t give advice. I think his arrival was a very good decision, Victor helped us a lot,” Tedesco said.
“In some episodes, it is seen that this is a player of a different class. Today he played a great game, played well both attacking and defensively.”
Moses’ performance against Arsenal Tula earned him the man-of-the-match award and has revealed his desire to help Spartak Moscow.
“I try to do everything in my power to help the team. The main thing is that we took three points,” Moses told the Match Premier League channel.
“The game was not easy. The field was hard. We showed character, both team and individual and they deservedly took three points.”
Moses will hope to continue his impressive performances when Spartak Moscow take on Khimki in their next league game on May 10.
The winger has been with Chelsea since 2012 when he teamed up with the Premier League side from Wigan Athletic.
He started his career with the Crystal Palace academy before his promotion to the first team, and his dazzling moves and top-notch displays have continued to mark him out for excellence.
Prior to the current season, Moses was on the books of Inter Milan on loan from Chelsea and he played 12 matches in the Italia Serie A and registered three assists.
Before then, Moses had been shipped to Liverpool, Stoke City, West Ham, and Fenerbahce at different times from Chelsea.
Since the exit of Antonio Conte from Chelsea, it was obvious that subsequent Blues managers have no place for him, culminating in a loan stint in Turkey and Italy. With the egg heads of Spartak Moscow ready to make his latest loan move permanent if he impresses, the question then was if Moses can make a home in Russia as his chances of playing at Stanford Bridge was almost zero.
One thing was obvious after Moses completed his loan spell at Inter Milan and returned to Chelsea, that another loan was in the offing as he was never in former Blues’ Manager, Frank Lampard’s plan.
Speaking via his media team, after his move to Russia, Moses said he was excited about the new challenge and also described Spartak Moscow as one of the biggest clubs in Europe.
“It’s a pleasure for me to sign for Spartak Moscow, one of the greatest clubs in Europe, I can’t wait to get started and meet my teammates. It’s going to be an interesting season,” he said.
Moses attended Stanley Technical High School, now known as the Harris Academy, in South Norwood. Scouted playing football in the local Tandridge League for Cosmos 90 FC Crystal Palace approached him, with the club’s Selhurst Park stadium just streets away from his school.
Moses first came to prominence at 14 after scoring 50 goals for Palace’s under-14s side. Playing for three years at both Whitgift and Palace, Moses scored over 100 goals as well as helping Whitgift win many School Cups, including a National Cup where he scored all five goals in the final against Healing School of Grimsby at the Walkers Stadium, Leicester.
Moses was born in Nigeria, before moving to an early age and he represented the European country’s youth teams at U-16, U-17, U-19 and U-21 levels.
However, Moses opted to play for Nigeria as opposed to being fully capped for England. He made his debut for the Nigerian senior team in 2012 and earned 38 caps and scored 12 times before retiring from international matches in 2018.
He played in Nigeria’s winning campaign at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, as well as the campaign in the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
