PFC Ludogorets Razgrad
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| Full name |
Професионален футболен клуб Лудогорец Разград (Professional Football Club Ludogorets Razgrad) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Eagles | |||
| Founded | 18 June 2001 | |||
| Ground | Ludogorets Arena, Razgrad | |||
| Capacity | 12,500 | |||
| Owner | Kiril Domuschiev | |||
| Chairman | Aleksandar Aleksandrov | |||
| Manager | Georgi Dermendzhiev | |||
| League | A Group | |||
| 2013–14 | A Group, 1st | |||
| Website | Club home page | |||
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PFC Ludogorets Razgrad (Bulgarian: ПФК Лудогорец Разград) or simply Ludogorets is a Bulgarian football club based in Razgrad, which currently competes in A Group, the top division of the Bulgarian football league system.
The club was founded in 2001 as Ludogorie Football Club. It adopted its current name from one of the first football clubs in the town, founded in 1945 and dissolved in 2006. In their first season in A Group, Ludogorets became only the third Bulgarian team, after CSKA Sofia and Levski Sofia, to achieve a treble by winning the league, the Bulgarian Cup and the Bulgarian Supercup. Subsequently, the club also made a significant impact in the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League, where it reached the round of 16. Ludogorets are the second Bulgarian team (after Levski Sofia) to reach the group stage of the Champions League, a feat which they achieved in the following 2014–15 season. During that same season they became the first Bulgarian team to score points in the modern Champions League group stages when they defeated FC Basel 1-0 in Sofia.
The club's name comes from the name of the region in which Razgrad is located – the Ludogorie region (meaning "region of wild forests") of north-eastern Bulgaria. The club is nicknamed "the Eagles", and in 2014 it was presented with a live eagle by Europa League opponents Lazio;[1] the mascot was named Fortuna.[2]
The club's home colors are green and white. Ludogorets' home base is the Ludogorets Arena in Razgrad, a stadium with capacity of 6,500 seats and electric floodlights.[3]
History
Previous club
The first Ludogorets Razgrad was founded in 1945. Involved mainly in Bulgarian lower leagues, Ludogorets earned promotion to B Group in 1961. In 1961–62, Ludogorets was one of the main teams in contention for promotion, but failed to reach A Group. After 45 years in the Bulgarian second division, it was dissolved in 2006.
Foundation
The current club was founded on 18 June 2001 as Ludogorie Football Club by Aleksandar Aleksandrov and Vladimir Dimitrov. In 2002 it was renamed to Razgrad 2000 after a merger with a youth football team. Razgrad 2000 won its group a couple of years in a row, but did not have a big enough budget to enter the higher division. It was promoted to the top division of amateur football in Bulgaria, V Group (third division) at the end of the 2005–06 season. In the 2009–10 season, Razgrad 2000 won promotion again, this time to the professional B Group (second division). In 2010, the club acquired the license of Ludogorets 1945 Razgrad, which had been dissolved four years previously. The year 1945 still appears on the club crest. In July 2010, Ivaylo Petev was appointed as manager.
Domuschiev era (2010–present)
In September 2010, the club was purchased by the businessman Kiril Domuschiev, with the clear intention to bring Ludogorets to A Group. The takeover was followed by a flurry of bids for high-profile players. In May 2011, the club completed this feat in Domuschiev's first season by winning promotion to A Group for the first time in the club's history.[4]
Prior to the start of season 2011–12, Ludogorets completed the transfers of Emil Gargorov, Alexandre Barthe, Stanislav Genchev, Svetoslav Dyakov, Uroš Golubović, Ľubomír Guldan and Marcelinho. Ivan Stoyanov signed during the first month of the season. Ludogorets were unbeaten in the first nine games of the season before losing 2-1 to Litex Lovech. In the last game before the winter break, Ludogorets drew 2-2 with CSKA Sofia, ending the autumn half of the season in first place. But, with three losses in a row in the middle of the spring half-season (to Lokomotiv Plovdiv, Slavia Sofia and Cherno More Varna), Ludogorets lost their lead in the standings to CSKA Sofia up until the end of the season. On the last day of season 2011–12 they won the game with CSKA Sofia 1-0, with a goal scored by former Levski striker Miroslav Ivanov. The game was effectively a champions title match since Ludogorets were two points behind the team from Sofia, and the victory made them champions of Bulgaria in their first season in the top division, just one point ahead of CSKA.[5] In May 2012, Ludogorets completed the domestic double when they won their first Bulgarian Cup title, after a 2-1 victory against Lokomotiv Plovdiv at Lazur Stadium in Burgas,[6] and in August 2012, they won the Bulgarian Supercup, beating Lokomotiv 3-1, and becoming the first team to win a treble in its first season in A Group.
Ludogorets started the 2012–13 season with eight wins in a row and nine matches without a loss, and finished the half-season in first place, as in the previous season, with just one loss and seven goals conceded out of 15 matches. But for the Bulgarian Cup the team was eliminated in the Round of 32 by CSKA Sofia with an aggregate score of 2-2 from the two legs and CSKA continuing into the next round on away goals. In the spring half-season Ludogorets occupied the first place with just three matches to go before the end of the season. Nevertheless, they were defeated 1-0 by Levski Sofia, and Levski took the lead of A Group. On the final day of the season Ludogorets had to beat the already relegated team Montana and to hope that Slavia Sofia would prevent Levski from winning the match. In the last minutes of the Levski-Slavia match Levski conceived an own goal which making the end result a 1-1 draw, allowing Ludogorets to win their second championship title. In the 2013 Supercup, they lost 5-3 on penalties to Beroe Stara Zagora after a 1-1 draw in regular time. In 2014 the team won their third consecutive championship title since promotion, two rounds before the end of the regular season.[7] They finished nine points ahead of runners-up CSKA Sofia. The team also secured a second domestic double, beating Botev Plovdiv 1-0 in the 2014 Bulgarian Cup Final.[8]
In Europe
After winning the 2011–12 Bulgarian title, Ludogorets entered in the second qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League for the 2012–13 season, but were eliminated 3-4 on aggregate and with a last minute goad by Dinamo Zagreb.
As 2012–13 Bulgarian champions, Ludogorets played in the 2013–14 Champions League where they came through the qualifiers, beating subsequently Slovan Bratislava and Partizan Belgrade. Ludogorets then lost to FC Basel in the play-offs, but earned the right to play in the Europa League.
Ludogorets played in Group B of the 2013–14 Europa League. They were unbeaten in the group stage finishing first in the group with five wins in six games, including both home and away victories over the prominent PSV Eindhoven and Dinamo Zagreb.[9] Their only dropped points were a 1-1 home draw with Chornomorets Odesa. In the knockout phase, Ludogorets beat the Italian cup holders, Lazio, 1-0 away and drew 3-3 at home, for a 4-3 aggregate win,[10] but then lost 0-3 at home, and 0-4 on aggregate to Valencia in the round of 16.[11]
In the 2014–15 Champions League, Ludogorets again won both their qualifiers, against F91 Dudelange of Luxembourg and Partizan Belgrade.[12][13] In the play-off they defeated Steaua București in dramatic fashion to reach the group stage for the first time.[14] Goalkeeper Vladislav Stoyanov was dismissed for a second yellow card in the last minute of extra time in the second leg, when Ludogorets had used all their substitutes. In the penalty shoot-out, centre-back Cosmin Moți, having converted the first penalty, went in goal and made two saves to put Ludogorets through 6-5 on penalties.[15]
Ludogorets made their debut in the 2014–15 Champions League group phase on 16 September 2014, grabbing a 1-1 equalizer away against Liverpool in the 90th minute scored by Dani Abalo, but in an eventual 1-2 loss,[16] because the newly signed goalkeeper Milan Borjan then gave away a penalty with a foul on Javi Manquillo, which Steven Gerrard converted to give Liverpool the victory.[17] Ludogorets made their home debut in the 2014–15 Champions League group phase on 1 October 2014, scoring a stunning goal in the 6th minute through Ludogorets' attacking midfielder Marcelinho against the current Champions League champion Real Madrid, but in an eventual 1-2 loss.[18] Interestingly, in this game Cristiano Ronaldo took two penalties, with first saved by the Ludogorets' goalkeeper Vladislav Stoyanov and second converted into goal for a 1-1 equalizer.[19] On 22 October 2014, Yordan Minev scored his first goal for Ludogorets, scoring a crucial last-minute winning goal in a 1-0 home win over Basel in the group stage of the Champions League.[20] On 26 November 2014, Dani Abalo scored in the 3rd minute and Georgi Terziev scored his first goal in the 88th minute, grabbing a 2-2 equalizer against Liverpool, in an eventual 2-2 draw.[21]
Crest, shirt and mascot
Ludogorets colours are green and white.
| Period | Kit manufacturer | Shirt partner |
|---|---|---|
| 2006–10 |  Tomy Sport |
None |
| 2010–12 |  Adidas |
Huvepharma |
| 2012–14 | Navibulgar / Huvepharma | |
| 2014– |  Macron |
eCasino.bg |
Since 2014, the mascot of the team has been a female eagle called Fortuna, which was originally a gift from Lazio.[22]
Honours
Bulgarian A Group:
- Winners (1): 2010–11
European tournaments
UEFA Europa League
- Round of 16 : 2013–14
UEFA Champions League
- Group stage : 2014–15
European record
Matches
| Season | Competition | Round | Club | Home | Away | Aggregate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | UEFA Champions League | 2Q |  Dinamo Zagreb |
1–1 | 2–3 | 3–4 |
| 2013–14 | UEFA Champions League | 2Q |  Slovan Bratislava |
3–0 | 1–2 | 4–2 |
| 3Q |  Partizan |
2–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | ||
| PO |  Basel |
2–4 | 0–2 | 2–6 | ||
| UEFA Europa League | Group B |  PSV Eindhoven |
2–0 | 2–0 | 1st | |
| Dinamo Zagreb |
3–0 | 2–1 | ||||
 Chornomorets Odesa |
1–1 | 1–0 | ||||
| Round of 32 | Lazio |
3–3 | 1–0 | 4–3 | ||
| Round of 16 |  Valencia |
0–3 | 0–1 | 0–4 | ||
| 2014–15 | UEFA Champions League | 2Q |  F91 Dudelange |
4–0 | 1–1 | 5–1 |
| 3Q | Partizan |
0–0 | 2–2 | 2–2 (a) | ||
| PO |  Steaua București |
1–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 (6–5 p.) | ||
| Group B | Real Madrid |
1–2 | 0–4 | 4th | ||
| Basel |
1–0 | 0–4 | ||||
 Liverpool |
2–2 | 1–2 | ||||
- Notes
- 2Q: Second qualifying round
- 3Q: Third qualifying round
- PO: Play-off round
UEFA ranking
As of 17 March 2015[23]
| Rank | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 77 |  Dynamo Moscow | 26.499 |
| 78 | Real Sociedad | 25.471 |
| 79 | Ludogorets Razgrad | 25.350 |
| 80 | .svg.png){kind=small} Standard Liège | 25.280 |
| 81 |  Legia Warsaw | 24.800 |
Players
First-team squad
- As of 14 February 2015 [24]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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For recent transfers, see Transfers summer 2014 and Transfers winter 2014–15.
Out on loan
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Ludogorets U21 squad
Ludogorets's reserve team play in the Bulgarian U21 League. They are coached by Atanas Dimov.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Foreign players
Up to five non-EU nationals can be registered and given a squad number for the first team in the A PFG however only three can be used during a match day. Those non-EU nationals with European ancestry can claim citizenship from the nation their ancestors came from. If a player does not have European ancestry he can claim Bulgarian citizenship after playing in Bulgaria for 5 years.
|
EU Nationals |
EU Nationals (Dual citizenship)
|
Non-EU Nationals |
Recent seasons
| Season | Group | Position | M | W | D | L | G | D | P | Bulgarian Cup | Bulgarian Super Cup | UEFA Champions League | UEFA Europa League | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009-10 | North-East V Group | 2 | 34 | 26 | 2 | 6 | 79 | 28 | 80 | Did not participate | Did not participate | Did not participate | Did not participate | Promoted |
| 2010-11 | East B Group | 1 | 24 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 38 | 16 | 44 | Round of 32 | Did not participate | Did not participate | Did not participate | Promoted |
| 2011-12 | A Group | 1 | 30 | 22 | 4 | 4 | 73 | 16 | 70 | Winner | Winner | Did not participate | Did not participate | Achieved treble |
| 2012-13 | A Group | 1 | 30 | 22 | 6 | 2 | 58 | 13 | 72 | Round of 32 | Finalist | First round | Did not participate | |
| 2013-14 | A Group | 1 | 38 | 25 | 9 | 4 | 74 | 20 | 84 | Winner | Winner | Play-off round | Round of 16 | Achieved treble |
| 2014-15 | A Group | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | To be determined | To be determined | Group Stage | Did not participate |
Records and notable stats
- Biggest win in A group: Ludogorets 6–0 Slavia Sofia (11 September 2011)
- Biggest loss in A group: Ludogorets 0–2 Cherno More Varna (29 March 2012), Cherno More - Ludogorets 3-1 (31 August 2013), Ludogorets 2-4 Litex Lovech (20 October 2013)
- Biggest European home win: Ludogorets 4–0 F91 Dudelange (16 July 2014, UEFA Champions league qualifying round first leg)
- Biggest European away win: PSV Eindhoven 0–2 Ludogorets (19 September 2013, UEFA Europa League Group Stage)
- Biggest European home defeat: Ludogorets 0–3 Valencia (13 March 2014, UEFA Europa League Round of 16)
- Biggest European away defeat: Basel 4–0 Ludogorets (4 November 2014, UEFA Champions League group stage), Real Madrid 4–0 Ludogorets (09.12.2014, UEFA Champions League group stage)
- Most league appearances:
Marcelinho (100) - Most league goals: Marcelinho (30)
- Most capped foreign player:
Milan Borjan, 20 caps, Canada - Most capped Bulgarian player: Emil Gargorov, Svetoslav Dyakov - 22 caps
- Ludogorets is the second team in the world, together with Levadia Tallinn from Estonia, that after promoting from the second to the first level of the football league pyramid of its country, wins a treble, capturing all of the local trophies - the league, the national cup and the supercup.
- Ludogorets is the first team in Bulgaria, that won two promotions in a row and then succeeded in achieving a treble.
- Ludogorets became the first Bulgarian team to begin their group stage participation in European tournaments with 3 consecutive wins, when in the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League group stage they recorded consecutive wins against PSV Eindhoven (2-0), Dinamo Zagreb (3-0) and Chornomorets Odesa (1-0), without conceding a goal in any of the games.
- After the end of the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League group stage, Ludogorets became the first Bulgarian team to record 9 wins in European competitions in a single season, as well as the first Bulgarian team to record 5 away wins in European competitions in a single season.
- After the end of the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League group stage, Ludogorets became the first Bulgarian team to record points in that competition when they defeated Basel 1-0 at home. This was also the first home win for a Bulgarian team in the UEFA Champions League, and was followed by a 2-2 home draw with Liverpool. Thus, as of the 2014–15 season Ludogorets holds the record for most points scored in the group stage by a Bulgarian team with 4.
Goalscoring and appearance records
- As of 28 April 2015
|
Most appearances for the club in league
|
Most goals for the club in league
|
- Players in bold are still playing for Ludogorets.
Personnel
Board of directors
| Position | Name | Nationality |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | Kiril Domuschiev | |
| President | Alexander Alexandrov | |
| Chairman of the Board of Directors | Temenuga Gazdova | |
| Managing Director | Angel Petrichev | |
| Director Youth Academy | Yakov Paparkov | |
| Public Relations | Vladislav Trifonov | |
Current technical body
| Position | Name | Nationality |
|---|---|---|
| Sports Director | Metodi Tomanov | |
| Head Coach | Georgi Dermendzhiev | |
| Assistant Coach | Stefan Genov | |
| U19/U21 Coach | Atanas Dimov | |
| Goalkeeper coach | Nikolay Donev | |
| Physical Coach | Sergio Matri | |
| Physical Coach | Javier Ramos | |
| Physiotherapist | Toni Todorov | |
| Physiotherapist | Petko Petrov | |
| Physiotherapist | Stoyan Aleksiev | |
| Doctor | Yavor Yakimov | |
| Administrator | Plamen Yordanov | |
| Housekeeper | Dimitar Mihov | |
Managers
| Dates | Name | Honours |
|---|---|---|
| 2001–10 | Unknown | |
| 2010–13 | Ivaylo Petev |
2 A Group titles 1 B Group 1 Bulgarian Cup 1 Bulgarian Supercup |
| 2013–14 | Stoycho Stoev |
1 A Group title 1 Bulgarian Cup |
| 2014– | Georgi Dermendzhiev |
1 Bulgarian Supercup |
References
- ↑ Meranzov, Martin (26 March 2014). "Lazio sent an eagle to the Bulgarian Eagles". Lazioland.com. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ↑ "Fortuna is the name of the Ludogorets eagle". Ludogorets.com. 30 March 2014. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ↑ Ludogorets arena with the best electric floodlights in the league (in Bulgarian)
- ↑ "Ludogorets crash the party in Bulgaria". uefa.com. Retrieved 2011-10-24.
- ↑ "Ludogorets celebrate maiden Bulgarian title". uefa.com. Retrieved 2012-05-23.
- ↑ "Ludogorets clinch maiden Bulgarian Cup". uefa.com. Retrieved 2012-05-16.
- ↑ Невиждано постижение! Лудогорец ликува! Три сезона в елита - три титли! (видео) (Sportal.bg, 7 May 2014) (in Bulgarian)
- ↑ "Ludogorets secure double, fans pelt players with seats and stones". uefa.com. Retrieved 2014-05-16.
- ↑ Europa League: Ludogorets win 2-1 at Dinamo Zagreb in Group B, Sky Sports, 12 December 2013
- ↑ Europa League: Ludogorets progress after 4-3 victory over Lazio, Sky Sports, 27 February 2014
- ↑ Europa League: Valencia beat Ludogorets 1-0 to reach quarter-finals, Sky Sports, 20 March 2014
- ↑ Dudelange striker Turpel frustrates Ludogorets, UEFA.com, 22 July 2014
- ↑ Ludogorets squeeze out Partizan, UEFA.com, 6 August 2014
- ↑ Ludogorets Razgrad win 6-5 on penalties, BBC, 27 August 2014
- ↑ "Ludogorets defender Cosmin Moti stands in for sent off goalkeeper before making vital penalty shootout saves to send Bulgarians through to Champions League group stage". Daily Mail. 27 August 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
- ↑ "Liverpool 2–1 Ludo Razgd". BBC Sport. 16 September 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- ↑ "Liverpool 2-1 Ludo Razgd". BBC Sport. 16 September 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
- ↑ Real Madrid recover to down dogged Ludogorets
- ↑ Real Madrid recover to down dogged Ludogorets
- ↑ "Ludogorets 1-0 Basel: Minev snatches victory at the death against 10-man Swiss champions". goal.com. 22 October 2014.
- ↑ "Liverpool hit by late Ludogorets leveller". UEFA.com. 26 November 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ↑ Орлицата Фортуна в неизвестност! Птицата с нов опит за бягство, topsport.bg, 18 April 2014
- ↑ UEFA Team Ranking 2015 (http://kassiesa.home.xs4all.nl/bert)
- ↑ "А отбор" [A team]. PFC Ludogorets Razgrad (in Bulgarian). ludogorets.com. Retrieved 31 August 2013.
External links
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