Muhamed Bešić (; born 10 September 1992) is a Bosnian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who plays as a

defensive midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

for

Nemzeti Bajnokság I The Nemzeti Bajnokság (, "National Championship"), also known as NB I, is the top level of the Hungarian football league system. The league is officially named OTP Bank Liga after its title sponsor OTP Bank. UEFA currently ranks the league 28th ...

club

Ferencváros Ferencváros () is the 9th district of Budapest ( hu, Budapest IX. kerülete), Hungary. Name The southern suburb of Pest was named after King Francis I on 4 December 1792 when he was crowned king of Hungary. History The development of Fe ...

and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. Bešić started his professional career at

Hamburger SV Hamburger Sport-Verein e.V. (), commonly known as Hamburger SV () or Hamburg (), is a German sports club based in Hamburg, with its largest branch being its football section. Though the current HSV was founded in June 1919 from a merger of three ...

, playing mainly in its

reserve team In sports, a reserve team is a team composed of players under contract to a club but who do not normally play in matches for the first team. Reserve teams often include back-up players from the first team, young players who need playing time to i ...

, before joining Ferencváros in 2012. Two years later, he moved to Everton, who loaned him to

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

in 2018 and to

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

in 2019. He went back to Ferencváros in 2021. A former youth international for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bešić made his senior international debut in 2010, earning over 40

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...

since. He represented the nation at their first major championship, the

2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...

Club career

Early career

Bešić started playing football at local clubs, before joining

's youth academy in 2009. He made his professional debut against

Borussia Dortmund Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund (), BVB (), or simply Dortmund (), is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its men's professional footb ...

on 12 November 2010 at the age of 18. In August 2012, he moved to Hungarian team

. On 5 May 2013, he scored his first professional goal against

Debrecen Debrecen ( , is Hungary's second-largest city, after Budapest, the regional centre of the Northern Great Plain region and the seat of Hajdú-Bihar County. A city with county rights, it was the largest Hungarian city in the 18th century and i ...

Everton

In July 2014, Bešić was transferred to English side Everton for an undisclosed fee, speculated to be in the region of €5 million.

2014–15 season

He made his official debut for the club on 30 August in a loss to

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

. On 27 September, he started his first game for Everton against biggest rivals

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

2015–16 season

In July 2015, Bešić picked up a

hamstring In human anatomy, a hamstring () is any one of the three posterior thigh muscles in between the hip and the knee (from medial to lateral: semimembranosus, semitendinosus and biceps femoris). The hamstrings are susceptible to injury. In quadrupeds, ...

injury during pre-season game against

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club has played home matches at ...

, which ruled him out for the start of season. He made his season debut in

EFL Cup The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...

game against

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...

on 26 August. In February 2016, he was voted Everton's Player of the Month for January. In March, he extended his contract until June 2021. Bešić's season was marked by hamstring injuries, which limited his playing time and appearances. Alongside the one picked up during pre-season, he had two more, in both legs.

2016–17 season

In July 2016, Bešić changed his shirt number from 17 he wore for previous two seasons to 21. In August, he suffered a severe knee injury, which was diagnosed as anterior cruciate ligament tear and was ruled out for at least six months. He began with light training in late December, and he was given medical all-clear in March 2017. However, he did not play any official games for Everton until the end of season.

2017–18 season

Bešić returned to the pitch on 17 August in

UEFA Europa League play-offs Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs fo ...

against

Hajduk Split Hrvatski nogometni klub Hajduk Split, commonly referred to as Hajduk Split () or simply Hajduk, is a Croatian professional football club based in Split, that competes in the Croatian First League, the top tier in Croatian football. Since 1979, t ...

, over a year after the injury. In February 2018, Bešić was loaned to

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

outfit

until the end of season. He made his competitive debut for the team on 17 February against

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

. On 21 April, he scored his first goal for Middlesbrough in a triumph over

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 1884 ...

2018–19 season

In August, his loan to Middlesbrough was extended for an additional season. He made his season debut on 24 August against

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...

. On 2 October, he scored his first goal of the campaign in a defeat of

Ipswich Town Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...

2019–20 season

In August 2019, Bešić was sent on a season-long to

. He debuted officially for the team in

game against

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...

on 27 August. Two months later, he made his league debut against

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...

. On 25 January 2020, he scored his first goal for Sheffield United in

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

tie against

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...

2020–21 season

In spite of not being registered for Premier League games, Bešić decided to stay at Everton until the end of his contract. In February 2021, team manager

Carlo Ancelotti Carlo Ancelotti , (born 10 June 1959) is an Italian professional football manager and former player who is the manager of La Liga club Real Madrid. Regarded as one of the greatest managers of all time, Ancelotti is the most decorated manager ...

decided to include him in the squad list for domestic games. Nevertheless, he finished the season not having played a single game and was released by the club.

Return to Ferencváros

In September, Bešić returned to Ferencváros on a multi-year deal. On 22 September, he played his first competitive game for the team since coming back against Fehérvár. He won his first trophy with the club after returning on 24 April 2022, when they were crowned league champions. On 29 April, he scored first goal for Ferencváros since his comeback in a victory over

Paks Paks is a small town in Tolna county, in the south of Hungary, on the right bank of the Danube River, 100 km south of Budapest. Paks as a former agricultural settlement is now the home of the only Hungarian nuclear power plant, which provi ...

. In February 2023, he again ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament and was shut down for at least half a year.

International career

Bešić was a member of Bosnia and Herzegovina under-21 team for several years. In November 2010, he received his first senior call-up, for a friendly game against

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

, and debuted in that game on 17 November. He thereby became the youngest player to ever play for Bosnia and Herzegovina at senior level, breaking the previous record held by

Miralem Pjanić Miralem Pjanić (born 2 April 1990) is a Bosnian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for UAE Pro League club Sharjah and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. Pjanić started his professional career at Metz being there for one ...

. In June 2014, Bešić was named in Bosnia and Herzegovina's squad for

, country's first major competition. He made his tournament debut in the opening group match against

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

on 15 June.

Style of play

During his career, Bešić has been deployed as a

right-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

and as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

, although his natural position in his own words is

. He was described by then Everton manager

Roberto Martínez Roberto Martínez Montoliu (born 13 July 1973) is a Spanish football coach and former professional player, currently as head coach of the Portugal national team. Martínez played as a defensive midfielder and began his career at Real Zaragoza ...

as a "very complete footballer", who "has got a very natural balance about knowing that he can be strong and aggressive but in the same way he's a technical player on the ball."

Personal life

Bešić has three children with his long-time girlfriend Jessica, two daughters and one son. He is a practising

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

; along with international teammates

Ibrahim Šehić Ibrahim Šehić (; born 2 September 1988) is a Bosnian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Süper Lig club Konyaspor and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. Šehić started his professional career at Željezničar, bef ...

Armin Hodžić Armin Hodžić (; born 17 November 1994) is a Bosnian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Bosnian Premier League club Željezničar. Hodžić started his professional career at Željezničar, before joining Dinamo Zagreb in 2014 ...

Izet Hajrović Izet Hajrović (; born 4 August 1991) is a Bosnian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Super League Greece club Aris and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. Hajrović started his professional career at Grasshoppers, befor ...

Sead Kolašinac Sead Kolašinac (; born 20 June 1993) is a Bosnian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Defender (association football)#Full-back, left-back for Ligue 1 club Olympique de Marseille, Marseille and the Bosnia and Herzegovin ...

Edin Višća Edin Višća (; born 17 February 1990) is a Bosnian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Midfielder#Winger, winger for Süper Lig club Trabzonspor. Višća started his professional career at FK Budućnost Banovići, Budu ...

and Ervin Zukanović he visited a

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

Zenica Zenica ( ; ; ) is a city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and an administrative and economic center of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Zenica-Doboj Canton. It is located in the Bosna (river), Bosna river valley, about north of Sarajevo. Th ...

during national team concentration. Bešić has many

tattoos A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, and/or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing pr ...

, his first being the word ''Bosanac'' ( Bosnian). Some of many are also names of his parents and brother.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Ferencváros *

: 2021–22 *

Magyar Kupa The Hungarian Cup ( hu, Magyar Kupa) is the Hungarian cup competition for football clubs. It was started by the Hungarian Football Association, the ''Magyar Labdarúgó Szövetség,'' in 1909, eight years after the commencement of the Hungarian ...

: 2021–22 *

Ligakupa The Hungarian League Cup ( hu, Magyar Ligakupa) was an annual football tournament contested by clubs in the Hungarian League. It was created in 2007 and the competition only lasted for 8 seasons, being cancelled in 2015/2016. Ligakupa Finals The ...

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

References

External links