Todor Lyubchev Nedelev (; born 7 February 1993) is a Bulgarian professional footballer who plays as a winger or

attacking midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

for

Ludogorets Razgrad Professional Football Club Ludogorets 1945 (), commonly known as Ludogorets Razgrad or simply Ludogorets, is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Razgrad, which currently competes in the First Professional Football League ...

Early life

Nedelev was born on 7 February 1993, and raised in the village of Belozem,

Plovdiv Province Plovdiv Province (: ''Oblast Plovdiv'', former name okrug, Plovdiv okrug) is a provinces of Bulgaria, province in central southern Bulgaria. It comprises 18 municipalities (общини, ''obshtini'', sing. общинa, ''obshtina'') on a territ ...

Club career

Botev Plovdiv

Nedelev started to play football at his local club and then joined the Botev 2002 Academy in 2004 when he was discovered by the owner Mr. Andrey Pavlov. On 27 June 2011, Nedelev signed a professional contract with

Botev Plovdiv Profesionalen Futbolen Klub Botev AD, commonly referred to as Botev Plovdiv (, ), or simply Botev (within its associated city), is a Bulgarian professional Association football, football club based in Plovdiv. It competes in the First Professiona ...

. He made his first league appearance in Botev's 1–0 away win over Dobrudzha Dobrich on 13 August, coming on as a 70th-minute substitute. A week later he made his first start in a game versus Spartak Varna. On 3 September, Nedelev scored his first goal to secure a 1–1 draw against Chernomorets Pomorie. He finished his first season with 2 goals in 23 matches, as Botev clinched promotion to the

A PFG The First Professional Football League (), commonly known as Parva Liga or Bulgarian First League (currently known as the efbet League for sponsorship reasons), is a professional association football league in Bulgaria and the highest level of t ...

. On 11 August 2012, Nedelev marked his A PFG debut with a three assists for an Ivan Tsvetkov hat-trick in a 3–0 home win over Slavia Sofia. On 19 December, it was announced that Botev had renewed the contract of Nedelev, extending it until 31 December 2015. He ended his first season in A PFG with 9 goals and 12 assists. Nedelev scored his first-ever European goals on 11 July 2013, scoring twice in a 5–0 home win over

Astana Astana is the capital city of Kazakhstan. With a population of 1,423,726 within the city limits, it is the second-largest in the country after Almaty, which had been the capital until 1997. The city lies on the banks of the Ishim (river), Ishim ...

in their first qualifying round-match of Europa League. He then scored two goals in Botev's 2–1 win over Levski Sofia on 21 July, in their opening game of the 2013–14 season in the domestic league.

Mainz 05

On 1 September 2013, Nedelev signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with Mainz 05, joining the team on 1 January 2014. Nedelev made his official league debut on 25 March 2014, in the 1–3 away loss against Eintracht Braunschweig after coming on as a second-half substitute for Julian Koch. Todor nedelev

Loan to Botev Plovdiv

=2015-16

= After only two matches for the first team of Mainz, Nedelev was loaned until the end of season 2015–16. On 23 January 2016, he joined his previous club

in search of more playing time. Nedelev made his second debut for the team during 1-0 home win in the local derby match against

Lokomotiv Plovdiv PFC Lokomotiv Plovdiv (), commonly known as Loko Plovdiv, is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Plovdiv. Lokomotiv's home ground is the Stadion Lokomotiv (Plovdiv), Lokomotiv Stadium which is situated in Lauta Park and ha ...

. On 28 February, after almost two years since his last goal, Nedelev scored during the 2-2 draw of

with PFC Pirin Blagoevgrad and he was elected for "man of the match". On 16 April, Nedelev scored an injury-time equaliser during the 2-2 draw with PFC Montana. A couple of weeks later, on 29 April, Nedelev scored a goal from a direct free kick against FC Pirin Blagoevgrad. In the last game of the season, on 27 May 2016, Nedelev provided the assists for both goals during the 2-1 home win over the champions from

=2016-17

On 9 July 2016, Nedelev's loan was extended until 30 June 2017. On 15 August 2016, Nedelev scored twice for the 3-2 win over Slavia Sofia and was elected for "man of the match". On 27 August, Nedelev provided an assist for the first goal during the 2-1 home victory over PFC Neftochimic Burgas and again received the award for "man of the match". On 1 October, Nedelev was selected for "man of the match" during the 0-0 home draw with CSKA Sofia. On 16 October 2016, Nedelev scored 2 goals during the tremendous 3-4 away win over Beroe Stara Zagora. Following his excellent performance, he won the award for the best player of 10th round of

First Professional Football League (Bulgaria) The First Professional Football League (), commonly known as Parva Liga or Bulgarian First League (currently known as the efbet League for sponsorship reasons), is a professional association football league in Bulgaria and the highest level of t ...

. In the next round, on 22 October, Nedelev made an assist for Radoslav Terziev goal during the 2-3 home defeat from Cherno More Varna. On 30 October, Nedelev provided a phenomenal assist to João Paulo who scored in the 13th second of the 1-1 draw with Levski Sofia. In November and December 2016, Nedelev scored goals against Slavia Sofia, FC Vereya, and Pirin Blagoevgrad. Nedelev started 2017 with assists during the 2-0 win over Beroe on 6 March and the 1-1 draw with Cherno More Varna on 11 March. On 31 March, Nedelev scored a penalty during the 2-0 win over PFC Montana. A few days later, on 8 April, Nedelev scored twice and made an assist during the 7-1 win over the same opponent. On 19 April, Nedelev scored from a penalty kick in the final minute and

achieved a 0-1 away victory over FC Vereya in the first leg of the semi-finals of the Bulgarian Cup. On 24 May 2017

achieved tremendous success by winning with 2-1 against

. Nedelev and his teammates lifted the Bulgarian Cup for the third time in the history of the club.

Permanent return to Botev

2017-18

On 22 June 2017, Nedelev moved to

permanently, signing a contract for 3 years with Mainz 05, keeping the right to take half or more from the next transfer fee of the player. On 29 June, Nedelev scored a goal for the 3-1 away win over Partizani Tirana in the 1st qualifying round of

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

. On 20 July, he provided assists for two of the goals during the 4-0 win over Beitar Jerusalem in the 2nd qualifying round of

. On 9 August, Nedelev scored a spectacular goal from a free kick against

, and a penalty shootout later,

won the Bulgarian Supercup for the first time in its history. On 13 August, Nedelev scored a goal to secure the 1-1 away draw with Beroe Stara Zagora. He received the award for

man of the match In team sport, a player of the match award (also known as man of the match or woman of the match) 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 chose ...

. On 10 September, Nedelev was the key player and scored a goal for the spectacular 2-1 win over

PFC Levski Sofia PFC Levski Sofia () is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia, which competes in the First Professional Football League (Bulgaria), First League, the top division of the Bulgarian football league system. The club was ...

. He again received the award for man of the match. After missing a couple of games due to an injury, on 24 September, Nedelev returned in the starting lineup with an assist and a goal for the 3-0 win in the derby game against

. This game became known as the "silent derby" because due to a ban no supporters were allowed on the stadium. Once again, Nedelev earned the award for "man of the match" thanks to his extraordinary performance. On 27 October, Nedelev scored for 1-2 away win over Pirin Blagoevgrad and was selected for man of the match. On 18 November, Nedelev scored a penalty for the 1-1 away draw against CSKA Sofia.Ботев изпусна ЦСКА в София
/ref> A week later, during his 100th appearance for

, Nedelev scored a penalty for the 1-1 away draw against Septemvri Sofia. On 18 November, Nedelev scored a penalty during the first half of the 1-1 draw with CSKA Sofia. On 12 December, Nedelev scored a goal and provided 3 assists for the 5-0 win over Litex Lovech in the quarter-final of the Bulgarian Cup. On 12 March, the day when

celebrated 106 years from its foundation, Nedelev scored a goal for a dramatic 2-4 away win over FC Vereya. Later on during the same month, his goal against Dunav Ruse was voted as the best goal of the round in Parva Liga. On 6 April, Nedelev provided a wonderful assist for Steven Petkov who scored the winning goal for the 1-0 victory over Levski Sofia. On 11 May, Nedelev again made an amazing assist for the winning goal of João Paulo da Silva Araújo and

defeated Beroe Stara Zagora with 2-1.

2018-19

On 28 July 2018, Nedelev scored his first goal for the season for the 0-2 away win over Septemvri Sofia. On 3 August, Nedelev scored a penalty for the 2-0 home win over Etar Veliko Tarnovo. He was selected for "man of the match". On 25 August, Nedelev scored from a direct free kick during the 0-2 away win over FC Vitosha Bistritsa. He was again selected for "man of the match".

2019-20

Nedelev received the Instat index award for the best player of season 2019-20 in Parva Liga.

2020-21

During the opening round of Parva Liga, on 9 August 2020, Nedelev scored a goal, provided an assist and was selected the man of the match for the 2-0 home derby win over the local rivals Locomotiv Plovdiv. A week later, on 16 August, Nedevev provided an assist but this was not enough and

lost 2-1 the away visit to CSKA Sofia. On 23 August Nedelev scored twice for the dramatic 3-3 draw with Beroe Stara Zagora. He won once again the award for man of the match.

Ludogorets Razgrad

On 28 February 2023, the last day of the transfer window, Botev accepted the offer from

and Nedelev officially joined the club for 150 000 euros. In a semi-final game for the Bulgarian Cup against Cherno More Varna that took place on 11 May 2023 he scored from a penalty in a penalty shootout that

won with a total score of 5-3 and reached the final. Todor Nedelev scored his first goal in regular time for

on 15 May against

, which turned out to be the winning goal as the game finished 1:0 for

. On 24 May 2023, Todor Nedelev won the Bulgarian Cup for a second time with

in a game in which he was a substitute. An interesting fact is that he won the other Bulgarian Cup exactly 6 years earlier - on 24 May 2017 with

International career

Nedelev earned his first cap for

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

(as a starter) on 15 August 2013 in the 0–2 away loss against Macedonia in a

friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, scrimmage, demonstration, training match, pre-season game, warmup match, or preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sport, sporting event whose prize money and impact on th ...

. On 9 September 2014, Nedelev came in as a substitute in the 74th minute and made an assist from a corner kick for the winning goal of Ventsislav Hristov in the opening game of UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Group H against

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

. Bulgaria achieved 2–1 victory away from home. On 6 October 2016, Nedelev came in as a substitute in the 75th minute during the 4–1 away defeat from the

France national football team The France national football team () represents France in men's international Association football, football. It is controlled by the French Football Federation (FFF; ), the governing body for football in France. It is a member of UEFA in Euro ...

. On 31 August 2017, Nedelev came in as a substitute during the historical 3–2 win over the

Sweden men's national football team The Sweden men's national football team () represents Sweden in men's international Association football, football and it is controlled by the Swedish Football Association, the governing body of football in Sweden. Sweden's home ground is Strawb ...

. On 7 October, Nedelev was in the starting lineup and despite losing with 0-1, he played well during the entire match against

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. On 13 October 2018, Nedelev scored his first goal for the national team in a 2–1 home win against

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

. He started the attack for the first goal and scored the decisive second goal in a match for the 2018–19 UEFA Nations League. On 10 June 2022 the bus of the national team crashed while taking the team to the hotel, before the match with

Georgia national football team The Georgia national football team ( ka, საქართველოს ეროვნული საფეხბურთო ნაკრები, tr) represents Georgia (country), Georgia in men's international association football, foo ...

. Nedelev was the only one injured and had suffered a craniocerebral injury, undergoing surgery after that. Thanks to the fast reactions of the Bulgaria team doctor, his injury was brought under control and the player was expected to return in play in 3 to 6 months.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Bulgaria's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Nedelev goal.''

Honours

Botev Plovdiv * Bulgarian Cup: 2016–17 * Bulgarian Supercup:

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

Ludogorets Razgrad *

Bulgarian First League The First Professional Football League (), commonly known as Parva Liga or Bulgarian First League (currently known as the efbet League for sponsorship reasons), is a professional association football league in Bulgaria and the highest level of t ...

: 2022–23, 2023-24 * Bulgarian Cup: 2022–23 * Bulgarian Supercup:

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

Individual *Best Young Player in Bulgaria: 2012–13 * Bulgarian Footballer of the Year Third place: 2017, 2018 *Best midfielder in the

: 2019 *Special award "Trifon Ivanov" Lionheart: 2022

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nedelev, Todor 1993 births Living people Footballers from Plovdiv Bulgarian men's footballers Bulgaria men's under-21 international footballers Bulgaria men's youth international footballers Bulgaria men's international footballers Men's association football midfielders Botev Plovdiv players 1. FSV Mainz 05 players PFC Ludogorets Razgrad players First Professional Football League (Bulgaria) players Bundesliga players 3. Liga players Bulgarian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Germany Bulgarian expatriate sportspeople in Germany 21st-century Bulgarian sportsmen