Serdar Tasci

Serdar Tasci (Turkish: Taşçı, [ˈtaʃtʃɯ]; German: [taskiː]) (born 24 April 1987) is a German professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Russian club Spartak Moscow.
Tasci started his career with VfB Stuttgart in 2006 and played with the club until 2013, captaining the side from 2011. He played for the club nearly 250 times and helped them win the 2006–07 Bundesliga. He missed a large part of the 2013–14 season with an injury in his first season with his new club, Spartak Moscow. He represented the Germany national team from 2008 and 2010, gaining 14 caps, including the 2010 FIFA World Cup, in which Germany came third.

VfB Stuttgart

Tasci was born in Esslingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, to Turkish parents from Artvin. He started playing football when he was six; he then played for the youth teams of SC Altbach, Stuttgarter Kickers and VfB Stuttgart. Before the 2005–06 season, he joined Stuttgart's second team, playing in the Regionalliga (third division). Prior to 2006–07, he was promoted to the club's Bundesliga side. In October 2006, he signed a contract that ran until 2010 with the club.

After being included as an unused substitute in a match against 1. FC Nürnberg, Tasci had his professional debut against Arminia Bielefeld on 20 August 2006; the match—the second of the season—was a 3–2 win in which Tasci was sustituted for injured Danish striker Jon Dahl Tomasson in the 68th minute. Tasci's first goal followed a week later in a game against Borussia Dortmund in a 1–3 defeat. Tasci's second goal of the season came on 29 October 2006, in a 3–0 win over Schalke 04. At the end of the season, Tasci had made 26 appearances and scored twice; he helped the club win the Bundesliga. He came on for Sami Khedira in extra time when Stuttgart lost 3–2 to Nürnberg in the final of the DFB-Pokal. Manager Armin Veh said of Tasci, "He is a big surprise and with his 20 years plays well beyond his years."

Tasci celebrating with the Meisterschale, the German championship trophy

In the 2007–08 season, Tasci made a strong performance against Schalke in the opening game; kicker described his performance as clever and cool. Tasci made his Champions League debut on matchday one, as Stuttgart lost 2–1 to Rangers. He scored his first goal of the season in a 4–1 loss against Hamburger SV on 20 October 2007. Tasci made 21 appearances that season, most of which he missed due to injuries.

In the 2008–09 season, Tasci found was paired with Khalid Boulahrouz in the centre-back position. In the qualification round of the UEFA Cup against Hungarian side Győri ETO, Tasci scored his first European goal in a 2–1 victory, taking his club to the next round. In December 2008, Tasci's manager and mentor Armin Veh was sacked. On 4 April 2009, Tasci scored his first league goal of the season in a 2–1 win over VfL Bochum. Tasci missed the rest of the season after injuring his knee in a 2–0 loss against Eintracht Frankfurt. He required surgery but decided not to have it, ending his 2008–09 season.

At the start of the 2009–10 season, on 29 August 2009, Tasci extended his contract with Stuttgart until the summer of 2014. A buy-out clause was included as part of signing a new contract. He scored his first Champions League goal as Stuttgart drew 1–1 with Romanian side Unirea Urziceni in the group stage matchday two on 29 September 2009. In his first half of the season, Tasci captained three matches as a replacement for Thomas Hitzlsperger. Tasci, however, sustained "a stress fracture in his foot" that could have put him out for the reminder of the season. He recovered after a few weeks and returned to the first team, where he scored his first goal of the Bundesliga season, in a 1–1 draw against VfL Bochum on 5 December 2009. Following Hitzlsperger removal of captaincy, Tasci was reportedly furious over not being chosen as a vice-captain. On 12 March 2010, Tasci scored his second league goal of the season, in a 2–1 loss against Schalke 04. A week later on 19, Tasci was declared injured as he suffered a adductor problem. Six days later, he was declared fit, and was an unused substitute in a match against Bayern Munich. That season, Tasci made twenty-seven appearance despite recurrence of injuries he sustained during the 2009–10 season.

Tasci in 2010

At the start of the 2010–11 season, Tasci attracted interest from clubs around Europe. Stuttgart's league rival Hamburger SV as well as foreign clubs such as Tottenham Hotspur and Juventus reportedly expressed their desire to sign Tasci. This move was denied by his agent; he said that Tasci would stay at Stuttgart only. On 15 July 2010, Tasci expressed his desire to stay at the club. After being excluded from the opening game of the season, Tasci made his first appearance in a 3–2 loss against Borussia Dortmund. He scored his first goal for the club in the Europa League group stage matchday one in a 3–0 win over Young Boys. He then suffered a thigh problem that kept him out for a long time. In late November, Tasci returned to training with a bandage on his right knee. Once again, he was on the sideline after experiencing ongoing problems with his thigh injury despite reporting himself fit. He returned to the field on 19 December 2010 in the match against Bayern Munich, which Stuttgart lost 5–3. Despite his injury, Tasci would go on to make 26 league appearances. He continued to attract interest from Zenit Saint Petersburg, Tottenham, Málaga and Arsenal.

In the 2011–12 season, Tasci scored his first goal of the season in a 3–0 win over Hannover 96 on 10 September. and scored his second in a 1–1 draw against Borussia Dortmund on 29 October 2011. Halfway through the 2011–12 season, on 12 January 2012, Tasci was appointed the new captain of VfB Stuttgart by Bruno Labbadia. Seven days before being appointed, Tasci and Cristian Molinaro were involved in an incident at training. Tasci third goal came on 10 April 2012 in a 3–1 win over FC Augsburg. Despite injuries, he appeared 28 times that season.

In the 2012–13 season, Tasci revealed that Spanish club Barcelona was interested in signing him. But in late July, he said that though he was linked with a move to Barcelona, Milan and Manchester City, the clubs had not officially approached him. This occurred as the club was making budget cuts, including the wages bill. As the season started, Tasci remained as captain of Stuttgart. In October, Tasci injured his Achilles tendon that kept him out for a short while; he made his return against Hamburger SV on 21 October 2012. Tasci scored his first goal for the club in an Europa League 5–1 win over Steaua București to help the club progress to the knockout stage. On 1 December 2012, Tasci received a straight red card for a serious foul play on Milorad Peković in a 1–0 victory over SpVgg Greuther Fürth. Later in April 2013, he was sidelined as he suffered from an achilles tendon rupture. Tasci made his return a week later as Stuttgart beat Schalke 04 2–1 on 11 May 2013. In the DFB-Pokal final, Tasci captained Stuttgart for the match, which the club lost 3–2 to Bayern Munich.

In the 2013–14 season, Tasci sustained an injury during a match against Mainz 05 in the opening game of the season and was replaced by Konstantin Rausch. At treatment, it was revealed that Tasci had torn his lateral meniscus. With one year left on his contract, Tasci said he was aiming to make progress to sign a new contract, having expressed a desire to prolong his contract to stay at Stuttgart.

Spartak Moscow

Tasci in action for Spartak against Zenit in May 2015.

On 30 August 2013, Tasci moved to Russian Premier League side Spartak Moscow for an undisclosed fee. Upon leaving Stuttgart, Tasci told the press, "It was not an easy decision. The present decision is not a decision against VfB, but for the new task. I had an incredibly great time at VfB, have played in the youth here, then I turned pro and recently been the captain. I have always said that I am a VfBler and that I will remain." Immediately after joining the club, his debut was delayed by the injuries he sustained while at Stuttgart and he did not play for three weeks. He made his first appearance with the club on 2 October 2013 when he appeared in training. After damaging his meniscus, Tasci announced he would return in January following an operation. Tasci made his debut for the club on 17 March 2014 in a 2–2 draw against Anzhi Makhachkala. Tasci would make three more appearances that season.

In April 2014, Izvestia reported that Tasci could be leaving Spartak Moscow, leading to interest from Turkish sides Fenerbahçe and Beşiktaş. Despite making four appearances during the 2013–14 season, Tasci said he was learning Russian, though he communicates well in German with his teammates Lucas Barrios, José Manuel Jurado and Patrick Ebert. He could also communicate in Turkish with his new manager Murat Yakin.

Under the management of Yakin, Tasci made his first appearance of the season against Dynamo Moscow on 10 August 2014, only to come off in the 23rd minutes following an injury, as Spartak Moscow won 2–1. Tasci then scored his first Spartak goal on 2 November 2014, in a 3–3 draw against Kuban Krasnodar. After making 23 appearance and scoring once in all competitions, Tasci was offered a new contract by the club.

Bayern Munich

On 1 February 2016, Tasci returned to the Bundesliga, signing for the title holders and league leaders Bayern Munich on loan for the rest of the season, amid an injury crisis in defence. He made his debut on 20 February, starting in a 3–1 home win over Darmstadt 98 at the Allianz Arena and playing 53 minutes before being replaced by Juan Bernat.

Because of his Turkish descent and German birth, he is eligible to play for either Germany or Turkey, but in October 2006 he decided to pursue a career in Germany despite interest from Turkey. Tasci explained his decision to pursue his career in Germany, saying, "It was a decision for Germany and not against Turkey, but in the end, it's German coach Joachim Löw, who made the most effort for me to come."

Tasci made his debut for the Germany under-21 team on 6 February 2007 in a 2–0 win against Scotland and went on to make his senior international debut for Germany on 20 August 2008 in a friendly match against Belgium in Nuremberg, which they won 2–0. The debut came exactly two years after his Bundesliga debut.

He was called up to the Germany squad for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa by coach Löw, being the second player of Turkish extraction in the squad, along with Mesut Özil. Tasci made his World Cup debut as a substitute in Germany's third place match, against Uruguay, coming on in the 91st minute for Mesut Özil. His World Cup debut was a disappointment: he struggled to touch the ball in his 125 seconds on the pitch, prompting VfB Stuttgart sporting director Jochen Schneider to say, "But for Serdar Tasci[,] the World Cup from a purely personal point of view was certainly not satisfactory."

While playing for Stuttgart, Tasci left school in February 2007, four months before he was due to leave. Despite this choice, he said he intended to study sports management. He has one sister.

In August 2013, the owner of a website faced legal action when he used Tasci's name on his social network page.

Club statistics

As of 30 April 2016.

• 1.^ Includes DFB-Pokal and Russian Cup.
• 2.^ Includes UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup/Europa League.

International appearances

As of 19 August 2013

VfB Stuttgart

• Bundesliga: 2006–07

Bayern Munich

• Bundesliga: 2015–16
• DFB-Pokal: 2015–16

• "UEFA profile". UEFA. Retrieved 27 March 2015.