Valeriy Maslov

Valeriy Pavlovich Maslov was born on April 28, 1940. He spent his childhood in the Perovo area, and in 1952 he joined the football section of the Frezer plant. Two years later, he also began playing for the children's team Trud from Zhukovsky.

Maslov began his adult career in the Moscow region's Vympel, where he played football and bandy at the same time. He did not want to choose between the two sports and played both in parallel until the end of his career.

The white-blues invited the versatile player in 1961 — by that time Maslov had already won his first gold at the World Bandy Championship. Everything was going well for him in football, too. Valeriy Pavlovich scored a goal in the 28th minute of his debut match as part of Dynamo.

Over 11 years, he played 351 matches for the white-blues, which is the fifth highest figure in the club's history. Together with the team, he became the USSR champion in 1963, won silver medals three times and took the country's Cup twice. Six times he was included in the list of 33 best football players of the season in the USSR.

If in the 1950s many athletes still combined high-level performances in football and bandy, then in the next decade there were practically none left. Maslov lasted longer than anyone else.

He played for the Dynamo bandy team from 1961 to 1979. He won 10 USSR championships and three European Champions Cups. Together with the national team, he became an eight-time world champion. Valeriy Pavlovich could have won the ninth trophy, but in 1969 he chose to go on a tour of South America with the football team.

Maslov moved from one sport to another with surprising ease. So in 1964, the last match of the football tour of South America took place on December 22, and five days later in Moscow he scored two goals against Vodnik Arkhangelsk. Six years later, Maslov took part in the golden match with CSKA on December 6, and on the 9th he took to the ice in a game with Yenisei.

"For me, it was an ordinary thing. Switching from football to bandy only made me feel better. All I had to do was have a few training sessions on the ice, remember how my partners play," Maslov noted.

After finishing his career, Valeriy Pavlovich graduated from the Higher School of Coaches and alternately worked in football and bandy clubs. In 1994, he led the Russian national bandy team to victory at the World Junior Championship.

In 2011, Maslov moved to coaching at the Dynamo football school, and later became an advisor to the director of the Lev Yashin Academy, remaining faithful to the white and blue colors until the very end.

Valeriy Pavlovich had a great sense of humor and never missed a chance to show off his wit even on the football field. In one of the matches, he asked Dynamo goalkeeper Mikhail Skokov for a pass, then fell awkwardly, and the ball ended up with the opponent. The goalkeeper managed to parry the difficult shot, after which he heard the following phrase: “You see, Misha, you played great only thanks to me. Appreciate my help.”

— People like him are usually called the engine of the team. He worked hard, because a midfielder has to run more than others. And what do you think: he worked hard the whole game, and on a sticky field, and in the rain or snow — we didn’t feel our feet under us in the locker room, but Valera didn’t give a damn: he joked and joked. He was never discouraged, a 100% optimist, — said Dynamo forward Valeriy Fadeyev.

"Dynamo Constellation" is a unique project launched on the day of Alexey Khomich's 100th anniversary in March 2020. Based on the results of the fan vote, the final roster of 11 outstanding Dynamo players was formed. During 2020 and 2021, 11 stars included in the constellation were named after legendary Dynamo football players: Alexey Khomich, Lev Yashin, Mikhail Yakushin, Konstantin Beskov, Mikhail Semichastny, Igor Chislenko, Sergei Solovyov, Valery Maslov, Viktor Tsarev, Igor Dobrovolsky and Alexander Novikov.