 Malinov playing for Litex in 2015 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Kristiyan Aleksandrov Malinov | ||
| Date of birth | (1994-03-30)30 March 1994 (age 31) | ||
| Place of birth | Petrich, Bulgaria | ||
| Height | 1.71 m (5 ft 7 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Botev Vratsa | ||
| Number | 33 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2004–2007 | Belasitsa Petrich | ||
| 2007–2008 | Pirin 2001 | ||
| 2008–2013 | Litex Lovech | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2011–2016 | Litex Lovech | 44 | (4) |
| 2013–2014 | →Dobrudzha (loan) | 26 | (4) |
| 2016 | Litex Lovech II | 11 | (0) |
| 2016–2020 | CSKA Sofia | 105 | (6) |
| 2016–2017 | CSKA Sofia II | 9 | (1) |
| 2020–2023 | OH Leuven | 66 | (2) |
| 2023–2024 | K.V. Kortrijk | 18 | (0) |
| 2025 | Debrecen | 11 | (1) |
| 2025– | Botev Vratsa | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2010 | Bulgaria U17 | 3 | (0) |
| 2014–2016 | Bulgaria U21 | 12 | (1) |
| 2015–2022 | Bulgaria | 29 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 19 June 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 12 June 2022 | |||
Kristiyan Aleksandrov Malinov (Bulgarian:Кристиян Александров Малинов; born 30 March 1994) is a Bulgarian professionalfootballer who plays as amidfielder forBotev Vratsa.[2]
Born inPetrich, Malinov began his youth career withBelasitsa and spent three years in the academy before moving to Pirin 2001. In 2008, he joinedLitex Lovech, where he developed in their academy and became a professional in 2013. Malinov made his senior debut while on loan atDobrudzha in the 2013–14 season, before he broke into Litex's first team during following campaign. In June 2016, he joinedCSKA Sofia.
In 2015, Malinov won his firstcap for Bulgaria, having previously played for theunder-21 team.
Malinov joinedLitex Lovech's Academy as a fourteen-year-old after playing junior football for his home-town clubBelasitsa Petrich and Pirin 2001. He progressed through the club's youth system and made his first appearance in a senior match day squad in November 2011, sitting on the bench for anA Group match againstLokomotiv Plovdiv.[3]
In July 2013, Malinov was loaned toB Group teamDobrudzha Dobrich for the 2013–14 season.[4] He made his debut in a 1–0 home win overAkademik Svishtov on 3 August 2013. Coached by former Litex's forwardSvetoslav Todorov, Malinov made an immediate impact, appearing in all 26 league matches, scoring four goals. He was substituted only once during the entire league season in the second division.
Malinov returned to Litex at the end of the season. He made his debut in the team's opening league match of the2014–15 campaign againstCSKA Sofia on 20 July 2014, playing the full 90 minutes in the centre of midfield. On 14 September, he scored his first goal in a 2–0 home win overHaskovo. On 29 November 2014, Malinov opened the scoring againstLevski Sofia atGeorgi Asparuhov Stadium. Later in the match Litex went 2–1 down, but Malinov created Litex's second goal, which was scored byKiril Despodov for a 2–2 draw.
In June 2016 Malinov and a big part of the Litex squad moved toCSKA Sofia since the team took the license of Litex forBulgarian First League.[5] For four seasons he played a total of 129 games with the club in all competitions, in which he scored 7 goals and recorded 14 assists.
Malinov joined Belgian clubOud-Heverlee Leuven on 19 August 2020.[6] On 22 August, he made his debut in a 3–1 home defeat againstCharleroi, playing the full 90 minutes.[7]
Malinov joined Hungarian clubDebrecen on 28 December 2024.[8]
On 7 February 2015, Malinov made his first appearance forBulgaria, in the 0–0 draw withRomania in a non-officialfriendly match, being replaced in the 63rd minute byStefan Velev.[9] He earned his first cap on 8 June 2015, in the 0–4 loss againstTurkey in another exhibition game, after coming on as a substitute during the second half.[10]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Litex Lovech | 2011–12 | A Group | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | |
| 2012–13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 2014–15 | 30 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 35 | 2 | |||
| 2015–16 | 14 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | – | 19 | 3 | |||
| Total | 44 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 54 | 5 | ||
| Dobrudzha (loan) | 2013–14 | B Group | 26 | 4 | 4 | 0 | – | – | 30 | 4 | ||
| Litex Lovech II | 2015–16 | B Group | 11 | 0 | – | – | – | 11 | 0 | |||
| CSKA Sofia | 2016–17 | Bulgarian First League | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 18 | 0 | ||
| 2017–18 | 29 | 3 | 3 | 0 | – | – | 32 | 3 | ||||
| 2018–19 | 31 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | – | 39 | 1 | |||
| 2019–20 | 27 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 1 | – | 39 | 3 | |||
| 2020–21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | |||
| Total | 105 | 6 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 129 | 7 | ||
| CSKA Sofia II | 2016–17 | Bulgarian Second League | 9 | 1 | – | – | – | 9 | 1 | |||
| OH Leuven | 2020–21 | Belgian First Division A | 27 | 2 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 28 | 2 | ||
| 2021–22 | 18 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 20 | 0 | ||||
| 2022–23 | 21 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 22 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 66 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 70 | 2 | ||
| KV Kortrijk | 2023–24 | Belgian Pro League | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 2 | 0 | 21 | 0 | |
| 2024–25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 21 | 0 | ||
| Debreceni VSC | 2024–25 | Nemzeti Bajnokság | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 11 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 285 | 18 | 30 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 239 | 20 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bulgaria | 2015 | 1 | 0 |
| 2016 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2020 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2022 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 29 | 0 | |