Ivelin Ivanov Popov ( bg, Ивелин Иванов Попов; born 26 October 1987) is a Bulgarian 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 an
attacking midfielder
A midfielder is an Glossary of association football terms#O, 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 #Cent ...
for
Levski Sofia
Levski Sofia ( bg, Левски София) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia, which competes in the First League, the top division of the Bulgarian football league system. The club was founded on 24 May 1914 b ...
.
Club career
Youth career
![Ivelin Popov](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c6/Ivelin_Popov.JPG)
Born in
Sofia
Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...
, Popov started to play football in
Septemvri Sofia
Septemvri ( bg, Септември) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia, which currently competes in the First League, the first tier of Bulgarian football. Its home ground is the Septemvri Stadium, but due to i ...
's academy. Then he played for the youth formations of
Levski Sofia
Levski Sofia ( bg, Левски София) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia, which competes in the First League, the top division of the Bulgarian football league system. The club was founded on 24 May 1914 b ...
from 1999 to 2004. In 2005, he trained for four months with
Feyenoord
Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names before settling on being called after its ...
but did not sign with the team because he was not 18 years old. After that, he returned to Bulgaria and played in a tournament for Beroe's youth team and there he was spotted by the
Litex Lovech
Litex ( bg, Литекс) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Lovech, which currently competes in the Second League. The club was founded in 1921 as Hisarya Sports Club.
The club's home ground is the Gradski Stadion ...
scouts. On 14 July 2005, he even scored a goal for
Beroe in a friendly game.
Litex Lovech
Popov signed his first professional contract with
Litex Lovech
Litex ( bg, Литекс) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Lovech, which currently competes in the Second League. The club was founded in 1921 as Hisarya Sports Club.
The club's home ground is the Gradski Stadion ...
in December 2005. He made his European debut in the first leg of Round of 32 Stage in a 0–0 draw against
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
; he made his official debut in the
Bulgarian top division in a match against
CSKA Sofia
CSKA Sofia ( bg, ЦСКА София) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia and currently competing in the country's premier football competition, the First League. ''CSKA'' is an abbreviation for ''Central Sport ...
on 12 March 2006. He played 59 minutes. The result of the match was a 1–1 draw. On 9 April 2006, he scored his first goal in professional football against
Lokomotiv Sofia
Lokomotiv 1929 ( bg, Локомотив 1929) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia, which currently plays in the First League, the top tier of Bulgarian football.
Founded as Railway Sports Club in 1929, and refou ...
. The result of the match was a 3–1 win for Litex. The same season, Popov played in 11 matches and scored five goals. In two consecutive seasons, Popov was third placed in the voting for
Young player of the year award in 2005–06 and 2006–07 seasons. In the
2007–08 UEFA Cup
The 2007–08 UEFA Cup was the 37th edition of the UEFA Cup, UEFA's second-tier club football tournament. The final was played at the City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester, England on 14 May 2008 between Rangers of Scotland and Zenit Saint Pet ...
, Popov scored a brace, in a first leg of second round, in a 3–0 win over
Besa Kavajë Besa or BESA may refer to:
Arts & entertainment
* ''Besa'' (newspaper), a newspaper published in Albania
* ''Besa'' (TV series), a Serbian-British television series produced by Adrenalin and Red Planet Pictures
* ''The Besa'', a novel by Albanian ...
. Eventually, Litex Lovech advanced to the next round, losing to
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 ...
in two's leg.
On 18 September 2008, Popov scored a goal in the first round of the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
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 ...
. In July 2009, Popov was given the captain's armband. At the end of the season, Popov was awarded A League's player of the season after having the most votes in the poll.
In August 2010, he went on trial to
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 ...
club
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 ...
. He impressed the club, whereafter he received a contract offer, but the move collapsed over his work permit rejected by the British Government, having not played enough international matches.
Gaziantepspor
Kuban Krasnodar
On 25 August 2012, Popov joined
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 ...
club
Kuban Krasnodar on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee. According to Chempionat.com, the fee was worth €2 million. He made his debut for the club, coming on as a substitute for
Marcos Pizzelli
Marcos Pinheiro Pizzelli (; hy, Մարկոս Պինեյրո Պիզզելլի; born 3 October 1984), commonly known as Marcos, is a former professional footballer. Born in Brazil, Marcos represented Armenia internationally between 2008 and 2019 ...
, in a 2–1 win over
Dynamo Moscow
MGO VFSO "Dynamo" (russian: МГО ВФСО «Динамо»), commonly known as Dynamo Moscow (russian: Динамо Москва) is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. Founded by Felix Dzerzhinsky on 18 April 1923, Dynamo Moscow was the first ...
on 2 September 2012. On 26 October 2012, Popov scored his first goal for the club in a 1–0 win over
Rostov
Rostov ( rus, Росто́в, p=rɐˈstof) is a town in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, one of the oldest in the country and a tourist center of the Golden Ring. It is located on the shores of Lake Nero, northeast of Moscow. Population:
While t ...
. Less than a month later he scored his first brace, putting two goals past
Krylia Sovetov and contributing with an assist in a 4–1 home victory. On 13 April 2013, Popov scored a late equalizer in a 2–2 draw away from home to
Terek Grozny
Republican Football Club Akhmat ( ce, футболан клуб Ахмат Соьлжа-ГӀала; russian: Республиканский футбольный клуб Ахмат Грозный), commonly known as Akhmat Grozny, is a Russian ...
. On 4 May, he scored a brace as Kuban beat Rostov 2–0 away from home on. On the last day of the
2012–13 season, Popov scored the only goal in a vital 1–0 home victory over
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 ...
, securing Kuban a European debut in the Third Qualifying Round of the
2013–14 UEFA Europa League
The 2013–14 UEFA Europa League was the 43rd season of Europe's secondary club association football, football tournament organised by UEFA, and the fifth season under its current title.
The 2014 UEFA Europa League Final was played between Sevil ...
and earning them their best ever finish in the top flight at fifth, having the same points as fourth-placed
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 ...
. He finished the season with 9 goals as the club's top goalscorer together with
Aras Özbiliz
Aras Özbiliz ( hy, Արաս Օզբիլիզ; born 9 March 1990) is an Armenian professional footballer who plays as a winger for FC Pyunik and the Armenia national team.
Early life
Özbiliz was born on 9 March 1990 in the Bakırköy distric ...
.
Because of his outstanding performance in the 2012–13 season, Popov was appointed captain of Kuban Krasnodar for the
2013–14 season. He captained his team to its first away victory of the season over Russian Premier League newcomer,
Tom Tomsk
FC Tom Tomsk (russian: Футбольный клуб Томь Томск) is a Russian professional football club, based in the Siberian city of Tomsk. The team plays in Trud Stadium (Tomsk).
History
The team was previously named ''Burevestnik'' ...
, by contributing with a pair of assists. The match ended with a 2–1 score. His first brace came shortly after, in a historical first ever match in a European championship for Kuban. He netted two goals in a 2–0 away victory over
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was the top level league competition for professional football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football' ...
runners-up
Motherwell
Motherwell ( sco, Mitherwall, gd, Tobar na Màthar) is a town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Historically in the parish of Dalziel and part of Lanarks ...
in the
first leg of a qualifying match for the
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 ...
. Both goals were assisted by teammate
Ibrahima Baldé Ibrahima Baldé may refer to:
* Ibrahima Baldé (footballer, born 1989), Senegalese football forward for Boluspor
* Ibrahima Baldé (footballer, born 2003), French football forward for Annecy
See also
* Ibraima Baldé (born 1986), Bissau-Gu ...
. This resulted in his jersey being displayed in the National football museum.
On 28 April 2014, Ivelin Popov scored an away brace against strong
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 ...
in a 2–0 victory. This outstanding performance got him voted as player of week 27 in 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 ...
. He continued his good run the week after, which saw him providing two assists, marking a 4–0 victory over
Krylia Sovetov. The first assist was turned into a goal, scored by fellow Bulgarian teammate
Stanislav Manolev, marking his first goal for the club after recently being transferred from
PSV Eindhoven
Philips Sport Vereniging (; en, Philips Sports Association ), abbreviated as PSV and internationally known as PSV Eindhoven (), is a Dutch sports club from Eindhoven, Netherlands. It is best known for its professional football department, whi ...
. Popov was named
man of the match
In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...
for the second time in a row, earning him a spot in Russian premier league team of the week. He finished his season in Russia having provided 12 assists; making him the joint top assists provider of the season, alongside
Danny
Danny is a masculine given name. It is related to the male name Daniel. It may refer to:
People
* Danny Altmann, British immunologist
*Danny Antonucci, Canadian animator, director, producer, and writer
*Danny Baker (born 1957), English journal ...
from
Zenit St. Petersburg
Football Club Zenit (russian: link=no, Футбольный клуб «Зенит» ), also known as Zenit Saint Petersburg or simply Zenit, is a Russian professional association football, football club based in Saint Petersburg. Founded in ...
. He was also included in the team of the season 2013–14, because of his consistency throughout the whole campaign.
Spartak Moscow
![Spar-Rub15 (6)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/Spar-Rub15_%286%29.jpg)
On 3 June 2015, it was announced that Popov had signed a long-term contract with
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 ...
.
It was reported that the signing fee cost the club about €7 million.
Popov made his league debut for Spartak as a starter in a 2–2 home draw to
Ufa
Ufa ( ba, Өфө , Öfö; russian: Уфа́, r=Ufá, p=ʊˈfa) is the largest city and capital of Bashkortostan, Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Belaya and Ufa rivers, in the centre-north of Bashkortostan, on hills forming the ...
on 17 July. He scored his first two official goals for the club on 23 September, in a 7–0 win away to
Volga Nizhny Novgorod
The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Caspian Sea. The Volga has a length of , and a catchmen ...
in the
Round of 32 in the Russian Cup. He followed that with his first league goal for the club, coming against
Zenit
Zenit, meaning "zenith", may refer to:
Spaceflight and rocketry
* Zenit (rocket family), a Soviet family of space launch vehicles
* Zenit (satellite), a type of Soviet spy satellite
* Zenit sounding rocket, a Swiss rocket
Sports
* Zenit (sports ...
as Spartak drew 2–2 at home. The goal featured a spectacular lob over Zenit defender
Javi García
Francisco Javier "Javi" García Fernández (; born 8 February 1987) is a Spanish former professional footballer who is an assistant manager for Benfica. A defensive midfielder by nature, he could also appear as a central defender.
He started ...
, followed by another lob over the goalkeeper
Yuri Lodigin
Yuri Vladimirovich Lodygin (russian: Юрий Владимирович Лодыгин, el, Γιούρι Λοντίγκιν; born 26 May 1990) is a Russian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Super League club Panathinaikos. Al ...
. Popov's performance earned him the Best Player award for the tenth round of the
2015–16 Russian Premier League
The 2015–16 Russian Premier League was the 24th season of the premier football competition in Russia since the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the 14th under the current Russian Premier League name.
Zenit Saint Petersburg came into the seas ...
, as well as the
most valuable player
In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...
award for the month of September.
He scored for the third consecutive game on 3 October, netting the only goal in a 1–0 win away to
Mordovia Saransk
FC Mordovia Saransk (russian: ФК Мордовия Саранск) is a Russian association football club from Saransk, Republic of Mordovia. In its current state it was formed in 2005, through the merge of Biokhimik-Mordovia and Lisma-Mordov ...
.
On 30 April 2017, he provided two assists in a 2–1 away victory over city rivals,
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 ...
, which earned him a spot in the Russian Premier League team of the week for matchday 26.
On 8 January 2019, he was released from his Spartak contract by mutual consent.
Rubin Kazan
On 12 January 2018, he joined
FC Rubin Kazan
FC Rubin Kazan (russian: Футбо́льный клуб Руби́н Каза́нь, ''Futbolny klub Rubin Kazan'' , Tatar language, Tatar: Рубин Казан) is a Russian professional association football, football club based in the city o ...
on loan until the end of the 2017–18 season. He scored on his debut for the club, in a 1–1 away draw against
Anzhi
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. Founde ...
on 2 March 2018. On 7 April 2018, he scored a brace in a 3–2 home win against
Akhmat, which saw him being named
Man of the Match
In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...
for the second match in a row.
Rostov
On 24 January 2019, he signed a 2.5-year contract with Russian club
FC Rostov
FC Rostov (russian: link=no, Футбольный клуб Ростов) is a Russian professional football club based in Rostov-on-Don, Rostov Oblast. The club are members of the Russian Premier League, and play at the Rostov Arena. After the 20 ...
.
Sochi
On 23 August 2020, he moved to another Russian club
PFC Sochi
Football Club Sochi (russian: Футбольный клуб Сочи, Futbolny Klub Sochi), is a Russian professional football club based in Sochi. The club is playing its home matches at the 47,000-capacity Fisht Stadium.
History
FC Sochi was ...
in exchange for
Dmitry Poloz
Dmitry Dmitriyevich Poloz (russian: Дми́трий Дми́триевич По́лоз; born 12 July 1991) is a Russian professional footballer who plays as a winger or second striker for FC Rostov.
Club career
Poloz was born in Stavropol. H ...
moving the other way.
Levski Sofia
On 28 April 2022, Popov signed a two-year contract with
Levski Sofia
Levski Sofia ( bg, Левски София) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia, which competes in the First League, the top division of the Bulgarian football league system. The club was founded on 24 May 1914 b ...
beginning from the 2022–23 season, thus returning to his home country after 12 years.
International career
![Ivelin Popov - 2011 (2)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Ivelin_Popov_-_2011_%282%29.jpg)
In August 2007,
Dimitar Penev
Dimitar Dushkov Penev ( bg, Димитър Душков Пенев, born 12 July 1945) is a Bulgarian football coach and former player and central defender of CSKA Sofia. He played 90 games for Bulgaria national football team and scored two goals. ...
called-up Popov in the
Bulgaria national team for the friendly match with
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
. On 11 February 2009, he scored his first goal for Bulgaria against Switzerland. On 2 April 2009, Popov scored the first of two goals for Bulgaria in the 2–0 win against Cyprus. On 17 September 2010, during a friendly match against
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
, he became the youngest player to
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 ...
the national side.
On 9 February 2011, Popov scored twice from the
penalty spot
The penalty area or 18-yard box (also known less formally as the penalty box or simply box) is an area of an association football pitch. It is rectangular and extends 16.5m (18 yd) to each side of the goal and 16.5m (18 yd) in front of it.
Wit ...
in a 2–2 friendly draw with
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
, but the result was subsequently declared void by FIFA and expunged from the records due to suspicions of match fixing with the involvement of the game officials. He captained the national team during the
2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
The 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA#Structure, FIFA confederations. The 2014 FIFA World Cup featured 32 teams, with one place reserved for the host nation, Brazil national football team, Bra ...
, providing his team with two goals, including a 25-yard free kick goal against
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
, throughout a tough campaign, having to face strong national teams like those of Italy, the Czech Republic and Denmark.
In 2015, Popov was a crucial figure in the 2–2 home draw versus
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
. He hit the back of the net to tie the score at 1–1 in the 11th minute, raising the spirits of his compatriots after a disappointing own-goal in the 4th minute. This resulted in a series of swift attacks from the home team which saw them grab the lead in the 17th minute. They were able to keep their lead until the 84th minute, but in the end had to settle for a 2–2 draw after a late equalizer. In the next official match, he once again proved his worth after the only goal in a tough but decisive 0–1 away win against
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
, keeping the hopes alive of his national team qualifying for
Euro 2016
The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...
.
On 31 August 2017, Ivelin Popov provided two decisive assists in a 3–2 home win against
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
. He announced his retirement from international football in November 2019.
Controversies
Popov's name became associated with scandal early in his career and became synonymous with irresponsibility and lack of discipline. In April 2007, he was removed from
Litex
Litex ( bg, Литекс) is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Lovech, which currently competes in the Second League. The club was founded in 1921 as Hisarya Sports Club.
The club's home ground is the Gradski Stadion ...
's starting roster due to bad form.
In September 2008, Popov was banned from the youth national team following an incident on the team bus, where he threw a bottle at the bus driver–-hitting him on the head–-who then lost control, narrowly avoiding a crash.
In September 2010, just days before the Euro 2012 qualifier against England, Popov led a group of teammates out of the training camp in
Pravets
Pravets or Pravetz ( bg, Правец, also transliterated as Pravec, ) is a town in Pravets Municipality in central western Bulgaria, located approximately from the capital Sofia. Pravets is home town of Pravetz computers.
Pravets has a populat ...
and took them to
Botevgrad
Botevgrad ( bg, Ботевград ) is a town in western Bulgaria. It is located in Sofia Province and is close to Pravets. Botevgrad lies 47 km from Sofia.
History and name
The village was called Samundzhievo (Самунджиево) until ...
so they could celebrate
Valeri Bojinov
Valeri Emilov Bojinov ( bg, Валери Емилов Божинов, ; born 15 February 1986) is a Bulgarian professional footballer who plays as a striker.
Throughout his career, Bojinov has played for seventeen different clubs during his ...
's birthday, where the players consumed large amounts of alcohol. Days later, Bulgaria lost to England 4–0. In September 2011, as Bulgaria was preparing to host England for the second leg of the Euro 2012 qualifier, Popov again led a group of players to a bar, where they drank until 4 am, angering then coach
Lothar Matthäus
Lothar Herbert Matthäus (; born 21 March 1961) is a German association football, football pundit and former professional player and manager. After captaining Germany national football team, West Germany to victory in the 1990 FIFA World Cup whe ...
. Bulgaria lost to England 3–0 at home.
On 16 November 2014, Popov missed a
penalty
Penalty or The Penalty may refer to:
Sports
* Penalty (golf)
* Penalty (gridiron football)
* Penalty (ice hockey)
* Penalty (rugby)
* Penalty (rugby union)
* Penalty kick (association football)
* Penalty shoot-out (association football)
A p ...
against Malta in a Euro 2016 qualifier, allowing for the match to end in a 1–1 draw. Following the game, Popov was accused of missing the penalty on purpose. Days later, it came to light that Popov had abused and humiliated the national team masseuse on several occasions, forcing him to do pushups in front of the other players. At this point, the executive committee of the Bulgarian Football Union had seen enough and proceeded to ban Popov from the national team for life.
In 2015, newly appointed head coach
Ivaylo Petev
Ivaylo Bogdanov Petev ( bg, Ивайло Богданов Петев; born 9 July 1975) is a Bulgarian professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team.
He spent his whole caree ...
reinstated Popov to the squad. The
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 ...
's band, however, went to midfielder
Svetoslav Dyakov
Svetoslav Dyakov ( bg, Светослав Дяков; born 31 May 1984) is a Bulgarian professional retired footballer who played as a midfielder. He was the club captain of Ludogorets Razgrad and, between 2015 and 2017, was the captain of th ...
.
Career statistics
Club
International
:''Scores and results list Bulgaria's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Popov goal.''
Honours
;Litex Lovech
*
Bulgarian A PFG
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 ...
:
2009–10
*
Bulgarian Cup
The Bulgarian Cup ( bg, Купа на България, Kupa na Bulgaria) is a Bulgarian annual football competition. It is the country's main cup competition and all officially registered Bulgarian football teams take part in it.
The tournament ...
:
2007–08,
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 ...
:
2010
File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
;Spartak 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 ...
:
2016–17
*
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 ...
:
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
;Individual
* Bulgarian Players' Player of the Year: 2009–10
*
Bulgarian Footballer of the Year
Bulgarian Footballer of the Year ( bg, Футболист №1 на България, ''Futbolist №1 na Balgariya'') is an annual title awarded to the best Bulgarian association football player of the year. The award has been given since 1961, an ...
: 2015, 2016, 2017
* List of 33 top players of the Russian league: 2013–14
*
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 ...
Player of the Month: September 2015
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Popov, Ivelin
1987 births
Living people
Bulgarian footballers
Bulgaria international footballers
Bulgaria under-21 international footballers
First Professional Football League (Bulgaria) players
Süper Lig players
Russian Premier League players
PFC Litex Lovech players
Gaziantepspor footballers
FC Kuban Krasnodar players
FC Spartak Moscow players
FC Rubin Kazan players
FC Rostov players
PFC Sochi players
PFC Levski Sofia players
Bulgarian expatriate footballers
Expatriate footballers in Turkey
Expatriate footballers in Russia
Bulgarian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey
Bulgarian expatriate sportspeople in Russia
Footballers from Sofia
Association football midfielders