Diniyar Rinatovich Bilyaletdinov (russian: link=no, Динияр Ринатович Билялетдинов, tt-Cyrl, Динияр Ринат улы Билалетдинев, translit=Diniyar Rinat Uly Bilaletdinev; born 27 February 1985) is a Russian former
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 ...
.
He began his career at
Lokomotiv Moscow
FC Lokomotiv Moscow (''FC Lokomotiv Moskva'', russian: link=no, Футбольный клуб "Локомотив" Москва, ) is a Russian professional football club based in Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москв ...
, where he made 185 appearances and scored 38 goals across six seasons, winning four major honours. In August 2009 he was signed by
Everton of the
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
for a reported £9 million fee. He returned to Russia in January 2012 when he signed for
Spartak Moscow Spartak Moscow may refer to the following teams based or formerly based in Moscow, Russia:
* FC Spartak Moscow, an association football club
* HC Spartak Moscow, a professional ice hockey team
* Spartak GM Moscow, a semi-professional rugby club
* WB ...
, who loaned him out several times.
Bilyaletdinov played for
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
from 2005 to 2012, earning 46 caps and scoring 6 goals. He was part of their team which reached the semi-finals at
Euro 2008
The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2008 or simply Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by the member nations of UEFA (the Union of European ...
.
Club career
Lokomotiv Moscow
A native of Moscow, Bilyaletdinov began his career in the Lokomotiv Moscow youth teams. After making his debut in 2004 at age of 19, he became a first team regular. In his first season the club won the
Russian Premier League
The Russian Premier League (RPL; russian: Российская премьер-лига; РПЛ), also written as Russian Premier Liga, is the top division professional association football league in Russia. It was established at the end of 2001 ...
and was named the league's Young Player of the Year.
He was the Lokomotiv
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
for the 2007 season.
Everton
Bilyaletdinov signed a four-year contract with English club
Everton in August 2009 for an undisclosed fee – believed to be £9 million – upon recommendation from national team manager
Guus Hiddink
Guus Hiddink (; born 8 November 1946) is a Dutch former football manager and professional player. He enjoyed a long career playing as a midfielder in his native Netherlands. Retired as player in 1982, Hiddink went into management, leading both c ...
, who was at
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 ...
at that time. The move made him Everton's third most expensive signing in their history.
He made his debut for Everton coming on as an 89th-minute substitute in a 2–1 win over
Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system.
Founded in 1932, ...
later in the month. On 17 October 2009, Bilyaletdinov scored his first goal for the club in a 1–1 draw against
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...
and scored again on the following week in a 1–1 draw against
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
, but received his first red card in the Premier League later on in the match.
He contributed two assists in his first-ever start for Everton in the inaugural
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
in a 4–0 win over
AEK Athens
A.E.K ( el, AEK , formally Αθλητική Ένωσις Κωνσταντινουπόλεως; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople''), known as A.E.K, is a major Greece, Greek multi-sport club based in Nea ...
, and scored against them again in the last group stage game. Bilyaletdinov scored seven goals in his first season in England, including one against
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
that was voted the club's goal of the season. On the final day of the
2009–10 which is 9 May 2010, he scored another brilliant goal in Everton's 1–0 win over
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
which was arguably better than the goal of the season he scored.
The following season, Bilyaletdinov began to find himself on the bench, but in the second half of the season, he made more appearances following the departure of
Steven Pienaar
Steven Jerome Pienaar (; born 17 March 1982) is a South African former professional footballer and current assistant coach of the U18 team of the Ajax Youth Academy.
He was a captain of the South African national team. He primarily played as ...
to
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
. Bilyaletdinov scored his first goal of the 2010-11 Premier League season coming on as a substitute 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 ...
which was arguably even better than the other two we were on about. He scored his second against Wolverhampton Wanderers. In the final game of the
2010–11
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 ...
season, on 14 May, Bilyaletdinov received another red card in a 1–0 loss against
West Brom. After the game, the club decided not to appeal his sending off, so he served a three-match ban ahead of the new season.
However, despite scoring 9 goals in 77 appearances, he failed to make a major impact during his time at Everton and had been on the fringes of the first team squad during the
2011–12 season after finding himself playing in the reserves. In November 2011, Bilyaletdinov said that he sought to leave the club if he did not get a first team place, as he feared losing his place in the national team. Bilyaletdinov made his last appearance for Everton in a 1–1 draw against
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
on 14 January 2012. After leaving Everton, Bilyaletdinov spoke out by criticising their tactics and lack of creativity with a problem of scoring.
Spartak Moscow
In January 2012, Bilyaletdinov was sold to
Spartak Moscow Spartak Moscow may refer to the following teams based or formerly based in Moscow, Russia:
* FC Spartak Moscow, an association football club
* HC Spartak Moscow, a professional ice hockey team
* Spartak GM Moscow, a semi-professional rugby club
* WB ...
for an undisclosed fee, as Everton wished to raise funds to buy other players. After his move to Spartak Moscow, Bilyaletdinov was given the number 25 shirt.
Bilyaletdinov made his debut for Spartak Moscow in a 1–1 draw against
Rubin Kazan
FC Rubin Kazan (russian: Футбо́льный клуб Руби́н Каза́нь, ''Futbolny klub Rubin Kazan'' , Tatar: Рубин Казан) is a Russian professional football club based in the city of Kazan. They play in the second-tier ...
on 5 March 2012. On 6 May 2012, Bilyaletdinov scored his first goal in over three years since leaving the country and first for the club in a 3–2 win over
Zenit Saint Petersburg
Football Club Zenit (russian: link=no, Футбольный клуб «Зенит» ), also known as Zenit Saint Petersburg or simply Zenit, is a Russian professional football club based in Saint Petersburg. Founded in 1925 (or in 1914, acco ...
.
In January 2014, Bilyaletdinov was loaned to fellow league team
Anzhi Makhachkala
Football Club Anzhi Makhachkala (russian: link=no, Футбо́льный клуб «Анжи́» Махачкала́, ), known simply as FC Anji, was a Russian professional football club based in the Dagestani capital of Makhachkala. Founded ...
.
On 23 July 2015, Bilyaletdinov's contract with Spartak was terminated by mutual consent.
Trakai
On 19 September 2017, he signed with the
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
n club
FK Trakai
Futbolo Klubas Riteriai, also known as FK Riteriai or as Riteriai, is a Lithuanian professional football club based in Vilnius. The team has been playing in the top level of Lithuanian football, the A Lyga, since 2014. Until 21 February 2019, t ...
. After the 2018 season he left the club.
International career
After Russia failed to qualify for the
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
, he and several younger players were recalled to the U-21 squad for the
2006 UEFA U21 championship playoffs against Denmark but lost out to the Danes.
Bilyaletdinov played in ten out of twelve
UEFA Euro 2008
The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2008 or simply Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by the member nations of UEFA (the Union of European ...
qualifiers.
[ He scored the equalising goal against ]Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, but the team lost in final minutes, 1–2. In the following match against Andorra
, image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Andorra.svg
, symbol_type = Coat of arms
, national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none (Latin)"United virtue is stro ...
, he assisted Dmitri Sychev
Dmitri Yevgenyevich Sychev ( rus, Дми́трий Евге́ньевич Сычёв, Dmitriy Yevgen’yevich Sychyov, ˈdmʲitrʲɪj jɪvˈgʲenʲɪvʲɪtɕ sɨˈtɕɵf, Ru-Dmitri Yevgenyevich Sychev.ogg; born 26 October 1983) is a former Russi ...
in scoring the winning goal, resulting in the team qualifying for the tournament proper. He was called up to Russia's squad for Euro 2008 and played in all of Russia's run to the tournament's semi-final.[ For the FIFA 2010 World Cup qualification he was called up for six of the ten matches and scored twice in the play-off first leg against ]Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
, which Russia won 2–1. His two goals were not enough as Russia lost the second leg 1–0 and Slovenia progressed to the World Cup on the away goals rule
The away goals rule is a method of tiebreaker, tiebreaking in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. Under the away goals rule, if the total goals scored by each team are equal, the ...
.
Personal life
Bilyaletdinov is an ethnic Tatar
The Tatars ()[Tatar]
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different . His father Rinat Bilyaletdinov
Rinat Sayarovich Bilyaletdinov ( tt-Cyrl, Ринат Сәйяр улы Биләлетдинев, russian: Ринат Саярович Билялетдинов; born 17 August 1957) is a Russian professional football coach and a former player wh ...
was also a professional footballer and is now a coach.[
On 11 June 2011, Bilyaletdinov married Maria, a former cheerleader for the basketball club ]CSKA Moscow
CSKA Moscow (russian: ЦСКА Москва) is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. It was created in 1911 in the Russian Empire on base of OLLS (Skiing Society, founded 1901). Later, during the Soviet Union, Soviet era, it was a central piece ...
. Their first son, Timur, was born on 21 March 2012.
It was reported on 28 September 2022, that Diniyar Bilyaletdinov has been drafted into the Russian army following the partial mobilization announcement made by President Putin. Diniyar clarified on the next day that he won't be called up at this time, after his military registration data was brought up-to-date during a visit to the military commissariat.
Career statistics
Club
International
:''Scores and results list Russia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Bilyaletdinov goal''.
Honours
Club
;Lokomotiv Moscow
* Russian Premier League
The Russian Premier League (RPL; russian: Российская премьер-лига; РПЛ), also written as Russian Premier Liga, is the top division professional association football league in Russia. It was established at the end of 2001 ...
: 2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
* Russian Cup: 2006–07
* Russian Super Cup
The Russian Super Cup () is a one-match football annual competition. Its official sponsored name is ''OLIMPBET Russian Supercup'' (). The two participating clubs are the Russian Premier League champions and the Russian Cup winners. If the Premie ...
: 2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
* CIS Cup
The Commonwealth of Independent States Cup (russian: Кубок чемпионов Содружества, Кубок Содружества, Кубок чемпионов содружества стран СНГ и Балтии) is a defunct ann ...
: 2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
International
Russia
* UEFA European Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition is contes ...
bronze medalist: 2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
Individual
* Everton Goal of the Season: 2009–10 vs. Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
References
External links
EvertonFC.com profile
Bilyaletdinov's Instagram account
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bilyaletdinov, Diniyar
1985 births
Living people
FC Lokomotiv Moscow players
Everton F.C. players
FC Spartak Moscow players
FC Anzhi Makhachkala players
FC Torpedo Moscow players
FC Rubin Kazan players
FK Riteriai players
Association football midfielders
Russia under-21 international footballers
Russia international footballers
Russian footballers
Russian Premier League players
Premier League players
UEFA Euro 2008 players
Russian expatriate footballers
Expatriate footballers in England
Russian expatriate sportspeople in England
Expatriate footballers in Lithuania
Footballers from Moscow
Tatar people of Russia
Tatar sportspeople
A Lyga players
Moscow State University of Economics, Statistics, and Informatics alumni