Ismail Isa Mustafa ( bg, Исмаил Иса Мустафа; born 26 June 1989) is a
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
n 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
forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forward (basketball), including:
** Point forward
** Power forward (basketball)
** Sm ...
for
Cherno More Varna.
Career
Born in
Targovishte, Isa started playing football at
PFC Svetkavitsa
Profesionalen futbolen klub Svetkavitsa 1922 ( bg, Професионален футболен клуб „Светкавица 1922“; en, Svetkavitsa 1922 Professional Football Club) is a Bulgarian football club based in Targovishte, which cu ...
's youth teams.
Levski Sofia
Isa with Levski Sofia
Ismail Isa made his unofficial debut for Levski in a friendly match against
Dynamo Kyiv
Football Club Dynamo Kyiv (, ) is a Ukrainian professional Association football, football club based in Kyiv. Founded in 1927 as a Kyivan football team of republican branch of the bigger Soviet Union, Soviet Dynamo Sports Club, Dynamo Sports Soc ...
on 20 January 2008. He played for 33 minutes. The result was a 1–2 loss for Levski. On 20 February, he scored his first goals in a friendly against
Vidima-Rakovski Sevlievo
PFC Vidima-Rakovski Sevlievo ( bg, ПФК Видима-Раковски Севлиево) was a Bulgarian football club based in Sevlievo- Balabanica, which competed in various Bulgarian football leagues (ultimately the North-West V AFG, the thi ...
. He scored two goals in the 75th and 85th minute. The result of the match was a 3–0 win for Levski. He made his official debut in a 1–0 defeat away to Lokomotiv Plovdiv.
During the 2008–09 season, he was loaned to
OFC Sliven 2000. Anyway, after the end of the season, he returned to Levski.
Isa re-debuted for Levski on 15 July 2009 in the 2nd Qualifying round of
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
, where Levski defeated the team of
UE Sant Julià. The result of the match was 4–0 with a home win for Levski. On 21 July, he was
sent off at the stroke of half time for a second
bookable offense in the return leg against the
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 ...
n side, but despite playing a man down his team won 5–0. His return was in a match against
Dundalk
Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...
– a second qualifying round of
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 ...
. Levski won the first match and the result was 6:0. Isa scored two of the goals. He further added to his tally in the 5–2 home win against the Swedish
Kalmar FF, where he scored another two goals.
Isa scored his first goal for Levski in the
Bulgarian A Professional Football Group
The First Professional Football League ( bg, Първа професионална футболна лига, Parva Profesionalna Futbolna Liga), also known as the Bulgarian First League or Parva Liga, currently known as the efbet League for spon ...
on 23 August 2010 against
Kaliakra Kavarna.
Lokomotiv Mezdra (loan)
On 2 August 2009, Ismail Isa was loaned for half a season in
Lokomotiv Mezdra
FC Lokomotiv Mezdra (ФК Локомотив Мездра) is a Bulgarian football club from the town of Mezdra, which currently playing in the Third League, the third tier of Bulgarian football. The club's home ground is the Lokomotiv Stadium ...
. After matches, in which he scored 7 goals in 12 matches, Isa returned to Levski. Shortly afterwards on 11 January 2010, though, he was loaned out to Lokomotiv Mezdra again.
On 21 March 2010, he scored the only goal for his side to give the team from
Mezdra a 1:0 lead against the other Bulgarian top team
CSKA Sofia. This goal got him in the news since just a few minutes after it the CSKA supporters flooded the field and stopped the match, earning their team a 3–0 disciplinary loss (4:0 aggregate loss). After scoring 11 goals in 25 caps Isa was brought back to Levski on 24 May.
Karabükspor
In June 2011, Isa joined
Turkish Super League club
Karabükspor. Media reports estimated the transfer fee to be around €200,000. On 22 October 2011, Isa made his official debut for his new team, playing the first 85 minutes and earning himself a yellow card in the 2:0 home win over
Istanbul B.B. in a
Turkish Süper Lig
Turkish may refer to:
*a Turkic language spoken by the Turks
* of or about Turkey
** Turkish language
*** Turkish alphabet
** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
*** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey
*** Turkish communities and mi ...
match.
Litex
Isa was signed by Litex Lovech for the 2012/2013 season and netted 7 goals in 11 appearances during the first half of
the season. He finished the 2012/2013
A PFG season as the fifth highest goal scorer in the league, having managed 11 goals.
Sheriff Tiraspol
In June 2013, Isa signed a contract with
Moldova
Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The List of states ...
n club
Sheriff Tiraspol
Fotbal Club Sheriff (russian: ФК Шериф Тирасполь), commonly known as Sheriff Tiraspol or simply Sheriff, is a Moldovan professional football club based in Tiraspol, a city located in the unrecognised breakaway state of Transnist ...
. He marked his debut by scoring a goal in the 2:0 win over
FC Tiraspol
FC Tiraspol was a Moldovan football (soccer), football club based in Tiraspol, Moldova. They played in the Moldovan National Division, Divizia Naţională, the top division in Moldovan football.
Founded in 1992 as ''Constructorul Chișinău'', it ...
in a
Moldovan Super Cup
Moldovan Super Cup ( ro, Supercupa Moldovei) is the national football (soccer), football super cup competition in Moldova, officially having the winners of the previous season's Moldovan National Division and Moldovan Cup face-off against each oth ...
match that was held on 29 June.
Beroe
Isa returned to
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
, joining
Beroe Stara Zagora
Beroe ( bg, Берое) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Stara Zagora, that competes in the First League, the top division of the Bulgarian football league system. The club was founded in 1916 under the name ''Vere ...
in September 2015.
Vereya
On 19 October 2017, Isa signed with
First League side
Vereya.
International career
Isa was a part of the
Bulgaria national under-19 football team. During his time with the team he played in the
2008 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship
The final tournament of the 2008 UEFA European Under-19 Championship was the 24th UEFA European Under-19 Championship, UEFA's premier competition for players under the age of 19. The tournament was held in the Czech Republic with matches played fro ...
in the Czech Republic. On 29 April 2008, he scored a goal in qualifying match against Norway.
On 7 February 2015, Isa made his first appearance for
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
, in the 0–0 draw against
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
in a non-official
friendly match
An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...
, playing over the course of the first 70 minutes. He was recalled to the national team in May 2019 by new manager
Krasimir Balakov
Krasimir Genchev Balakov ( bg, Красимир Генчев Балъков, ; born 29 March 1966) is a Bulgarian professional football manager and former player who last served as the head coach of Bulgarian club CSKA 1948. A former attacking ...
and played as a starter in the 1–2 away loss against the
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
in a
Euro 2020 qualifier on 7 June 2019, opening the scoring with his first international goal.
International goals
:''Scores and results list Bulgaria's goal tally first.''
Personal life
His father is of
Turkish
Turkish may refer to:
*a Turkic language spoken by the Turks
* of or about Turkey
** Turkish language
*** Turkish alphabet
** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
*** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey
*** Turkish communities and mi ...
descent and his mother is of Bulgarian descent.
Career statistics
Honours
Levski Sofia
*
Bulgarian A Football Group
The First Professional Football League ( bg, Първа професионална футболна лига, Parva Profesionalna Futbolna Liga), also known as the Bulgarian First League or Parva Liga, currently known as the efbet League for spon ...
(1) -
2008-09
*
Bulgarian Supercup
The Bulgarian Supercup ( bg, Суперкупа на България) is the trophy won in a football match held between the football club that has won the Bulgarian first football division in the season that ended in the year of the match and ...
(1) -
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
FC Sheriff Tiraspol
*
Moldovan Super Cup
Moldovan Super Cup ( ro, Supercupa Moldovei) is the national football (soccer), football super cup competition in Moldova, officially having the winners of the previous season's Moldovan National Division and Moldovan Cup face-off against each oth ...
(1) - 2013
*
Moldovan National Division:
2013–14
References
External links
*
*
Profile at LevskiSofia.info
{{DEFAULTSORT:Isa, Ismail
1989 births
Living people
People from Targovishte
Bulgarian people of Turkish descent
Association football forwards
Bulgarian footballers
Bulgaria youth international footballers
Bulgaria under-21 international footballers
Bulgaria international footballers
Bulgarian expatriate footballers
PFC Svetkavitsa players
FC Haskovo players
PFC Levski Sofia players
OFC Sliven 2000 players
PFC Lokomotiv Mezdra players
Kardemir Karabükspor footballers
Elazığspor footballers
PFC Litex Lovech players
FC Sheriff Tiraspol players
PFC Beroe Stara Zagora players
FC Dacia Chișinău players
FC Vereya players
FC Dunav Ruse players
PFC Cherno More Varna players
First Professional Football League (Bulgaria) players
Süper Lig players
TFF First League players
Moldovan Super Liga players
Bulgarian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey
Bulgarian expatriate sportspeople in Moldova
Expatriate footballers in Turkey
Expatriate footballers in Moldova