| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ivan Kamenov Ivanov | ||
| Date of birth | 25 February 1988 | ||
| Place of birth | Zlatitsa, Bulgaria | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Playing position | Centre back | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Partizan Belgrade | ||
| Number | 15 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2004–2005 | Pirin 1922 | 6 | (0) |
| 2005–2010 | CSKA Sofia | 53 | (6) |
| 2007–2008 | → Lokomotiv Plovdiv (loan) | 24 | (0) |
| 2010–2011 | Alania Vladikavkaz | 24 | (2) |
| 2011– | Partizan | 15 | (1) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2006–2009 | Bulgaria U21 | 11 | (1) |
| 2008– | Bulgaria | 22 | (1) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 16 October 2011. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Ivan Ivanov (Bulgarian: Иван Иванов, born 25 February 1988 in Zlatitsa, Bulgaria) is a Bulgarian footballer, currently playing for Serbian club Partizan Belgrade. He is a centre-back who started his career playing as a left-back.
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Ivan Ivanov was born in Zlatitsa and was inspired to become a footballer after watching the matches from the 1994 World Cup.[1] Ivanov is an ex-Pirin 1922 player. He moved to CSKA Sofia in 2005. As a player of CSKA Sofia he was a Bulgarian Cup winner in 2006 and Bulgarian Super Cup winner of the same year. In August 2007 he went on loan to Lokomotiv Plovdiv. In winter 2008 it was reported in the Bulgarian media that he was a target for English side Derby County, but problems with the work permit stopped the transfer.[2]
He was in the starting line-up vs. Litex Lovech in the match for the Supercup of Bulgaria, which they won with 1–0. After the many sold players in the summer break in 2008, he had become an integral part together with Kiril Kotev in the heart of CSKA Sofia’s defence, showing his great talent. On 19 September 2008, Ivanov scored his first goal for CSKA against Minyor Pernik. He headed in a goal after a corner kick in the 67th minute. The result of the match was a 2–0 win for CSKA. On 18 March 2009, he scored his second goal for CSKA Sofia, helping the club from the Bulgarian capital to secure a 3–1 win against Ivanov's former club Lokomotiv Plovdiv. He continued his goalscoring run against Spartak Varna on 21 March 2009 to consolidate a 2–0 away win for the "redmen". On 11 April 2009, Ivanov scored the winning goal for the "armymen" in the away game against Minyor Pernik. Ivanov continued his scoring spree in the match against Vihren Sandanski on 22 April 2009, he scored the first goal of the match and CSKA won 4–1.
Ivanov further consolidated his place as a first choice defender in the CSKA lineup. On 15 August 2009, Ivanov scored his first goal in the A PFG for the new season in a 3–0 home win against Beroe. On August 27, 2009, Ivanov scored the winning goal in the away game against Dynamo Moscow in the UEFA Europa League play off round to help his team to a 2–1 aggregate win and an entry into the group stages of the tournament.[3] On 1 November 2009, he was indefinitely banned from the first team, along with 8 other players, following a breach of discipline. On 20 November 2009, he was reinstated to the first team and a day later came on as a substitute for Aleksandar Branekov in a 2–2 away draw with Lokomotiv Sofia.
On 25 February 2010, Alania Vladikavkaz signed the Bulgarian international from CSKA Sofia on a four-year deal.[4]
On 17 June 2011, Ivanov signed a three-year deal with Partizan Belgrade.[5] On 13 July, he made his competitive debut in a 4–0 home win over Škendija Tetovo in the second qualifying round of the Champions League. On 3 December, he scored his first goal for Partizan in a 3–0 home win over Radnički Kragujevac.
In 2008, he captained the Bulgaria U21 on a number of occasions.[6] On 10 June 2009, Ivanov scored his only goal for the side in the 3–4 loss against Israel U21. Ivanov made his debut for the senior team on 20 August 2008, in a 2–1 win against Bosnia and Herzegovina, during which he entered the game as a substitute in the 67th minute.[7] Ivanov also came on as a substitute for the naturalized Brazilian Lucio Wagner in the World Cup qualifier against Italy on 10 October 2008.[8] He played the full 90 minutes in the World Cup qualifier against Georgia five days later, which also ended in a scoreless draw. On 10 October 2009, he earned his fourth cap in a 1–4 away loss against Cyprus in a World Cup qualifier, attracting some criticism from the media for defensive mistakes. Nonetheless, his performances make it likely that he will be part of the national team for the future. He played in the next game against Georgia four days later and put in a good performance. Ivanov has now firmly established himself as part of Bulgaria's starting line-up.
On 6 September 2011, Ivanov netted his first goal for the national side, opening the scoring in a 1–3 away loss against Switzerland in a Euro 2012 qualifier.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | September 6, 2011 | St. Jakob Park, Basel, Switzerland | Switzerland | 1–0 | 1–3 | Euro 2012 qualifier |
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