Mucha chose fairness

In the summer of 2010, the darling of Slovak football fans, Ján Mucha, chose Liverpool’s Everton. Although cautious voices warned that competing with Tim Howard could be ruinous for him, he went for it. He acted like a man.

Three years at Goodison Park proved the sceptics right – coach David Moyes preferred the American Howard under all circumstances, and Mucha became accustomed to the substitute’s bench. Or rather – he never got used to it! In those 36 months, his life changed in other ways: he had children, recently got married, and – after his own mistakes – lost his position as the undisputed No. 1 in the national team. In the autumn of 2012, he decided to give up the No. 1 jersey for Slovakia. His stance on the matter was clear: only when he was playing regularly at club level could he lay claim to the national team – even at the risk that by then, interest in him might have faded.

Together with his agent Jozef Tokos, Mucha had been working for about a year and a half on leaving Everton. The bench frustrated him, but the club’s position was understandable: having such a strong backup goalkeeper was a gift from heaven, and if they were to lose him, it would only be through a contract buyout – a tough condition in the current football economy. As transfer windows came and went, it became clear to both Mucha and Tokos – from as early as summer 2011 – that if the goalkeeper’s career was to have any future, he had to leave. Staying in Liverpool meant having none.

This year, several opportunities arose: interest came from a top English Championship side, French club Evian, a Belgian team, and even from Russia. The Mucha–Tokos duo weighed the options, considered the circumstances, navigated at times tense negotiations, and eventually chose Krylia Sovetov Samara. The goalkeeper left England for Russia, for less money, under considerable outside pressure, and into direct competition with Belarusian keeper Sergey Veremko.

At a career crossroads, Ján Mucha chose the harder road – but the fairer one. It will show (not only to him) what he is truly capable of after three years on the bench.