 Petrov withBolton Wanderers in 2011 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Martin Petyov Petrov | ||
| Date of birth | (1979-01-15)15 January 1979 (age 46) | ||
| Place of birth | Vratsa,PR Bulgaria | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Winger | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1995–1996 | Botev Vratsa | 18 | (4) |
| 1996–1998 | CSKA Sofia | 19 | (3) |
| 1998–2001 | Servette | 77 | (27) |
| 2001–2005 | VfL Wolfsburg | 116 | (28) |
| 2005–2007 | Atlético Madrid | 49 | (3) |
| 2007–2010 | Manchester City | 59 | (9) |
| 2010–2013 | Bolton Wanderers | 73 | (10) |
| 2013 | Espanyol | 8 | (0) |
| 2013–2014 | CSKA Sofia | 17 | (3) |
| Total | 436 | (87) | |
| International career | |||
| 1999–2011 | Bulgaria | 90 | (19) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Martin Petyov Petrov (Bulgarian:Мартин Петьов Петров; born 15 January 1979) is a Bulgarian former professionalfootballer who played as awinger, most notably forVFL Wolfsburg,Atletico Madrid,Manchester City, andBolton Wanderers. He also played 90 times forBulgaria.
Petrov began his career forBotev Vratsa. After a few good seasons, he signed withCSKA Sofia and after two successful games againstServette in theUEFA Cup, theSwiss side bought the 19-year-old for 1.2 millionGerman marks.[citation needed]
In 2001 Petrov moved toVfL Wolfsburg, where he established himself as an explosive player. He made his competitive debut on 14 July 2001 in a 4–3 home win overDinamo Minsk in theIntertoto Cup, scoring a goal and laying on an assist.[2] Petrov made his league debut for Wolfsburg on the opening day of the2001–02 Bundesliga season, in a 2–1 away loss againstBayer 04 Leverkusen on 28 July. In his first season at Wolfsburg, Petrov earned 32 appearances in the Bundesliga, scored 6 goals and provided 11 assists.
On 30 October 2004, Petrov scored all four goals in Wolfsburg's 4–3 win overMainz 05.[3] He made 30 appearances during the2004–05 season finishing as the club's top scorer with 12 goals. He also made 14 assists.
In summer 2005, Petrov was bought byAtlético Madrid for a fee of €10 million.[4]
On 14 October 2006, Petrov suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury during a game againstRecreativo de Huelva and was sidelined for more than six months.[5] He made his comeback for Atlético from a serious knee injury on 28 April 2007, playing for 56 minutes in a 0–0 draw againstReal Betis. On 6 May, Petrov netted Atlético's only goal in their 2–1 defeat atEspanyol.
On 24 July 2007, after constant press speculation about him leaving the club, it was reported thatAtlético Madrid had placed a £6.2 million price on the player. Later that day, he left the Atlético Madrid training camp to think over his future withTottenham Hotspur andManchester City reputedly interested in the player. On 25 July, reports in the Spanish press suggested that Petrov had already agreed terms and had medical tests withManchester City and that only minor details needed completing before finalising a move toEastlands. Manchester City confirmed the £4.7 million (€7 million) move on a three-year contract on 26 July 2007.[6]
His firstPremier League game was on 11 August 2007 when he started in Manchester City's 2–0 win overWest Ham United atUpton Park. His first goals came on 22 September 2007 againstFulham. After that Petrov scored two goals, one in the 3–1 win overNewcastle United the other one in the 2–1 win overReading and also notched up six assists. He was sent off by refereeRob Styles in the home loss toEverton, for kickingLeon Osman. The challenge earned him a straight red card which banned him for three games. Petrov added to his tally with a goal againstPortsmouth.
Following the influx of new players at Manchester City such asCarlos Tevez andEmmanuel Adebayor, Petrov was linked with a move away from theCity of Manchester Stadium. He was often in and out of the first team. However, he scored goals in the first two games that he had started, prompting Hughes to start Petrov in place ofShaun Wright-Phillips at home against Fulham. Though he scored, he also aggravated the knee injury that had plagued him.[7] After the sacking ofMark Hughes and arrival ofRoberto Mancini, he started both league games and scored in the 2–0 win overStoke City on 26 December. He also publicly expressed his anger against Hughes as Petrov was frequently moved in and out of the starting 11.[citation needed]
On 18 April 2010, Petrov announced that his season was over and that he would miss the four remaining Premier League games due to a knee injury.[8]
On 8 June 2010, it was announced that Petrov's contract had expired and that he would be leaving the club, along withBenjani Mwaruwari,Karl Moore andSylvinho.[9]
On 22 June 2010, it was announced that Petrov had agreed terms withBolton Wanderers,[10] and the free transfer was completed when the transfer window opened on 1 July.[11] He scored his first goal for the club againstManchester United on 26 September 2010,[12] and finished the season with three goals. His 2nd season saw him score six goals, four in the League, one in the League Cup and one in the FA Cup as Bolton were relegated from the Premier League. At the end of the season, Petrov had played enough matches (needed 30 played 35) to activate a clause in his contract, extending his contract for another season.
Petrov signed for La Liga sideRCD Espanyol for the remainder of the 2012–13 season on 14 January 2013.[13] He struggled to establish himself as part of the first team and left the club at the end of the season. He subsequently joined theManchester Saturday league to keep in shape.[14]
After 15 years abroad Petrov made his return toCSKA Sofia in October 2013.[15] On 31 October 2013, Petrov made his return debut for the "armymen" after coming on as a second-half substitute in the 1–0 home win overBeroe in anA Group match. He played for the first time as a starter on 16 November, in the 0–0 draw withLevski Sofia in aBulgarian Cup game. His first goal came in the 3–1 away win overPFC Neftochimic Burgas on 25 November. Petrov participated in his last match as a professional footballer on 17 May 2014, in the 1–1 draw againstLokomotiv Plovdiv, which was part of the last round of the2013–14 A Group season.[16]
In June 1999, he received his first call-up to theBulgarian national team for aEuro 2000 qualifier againstEngland. He came as a substitute to play alongside his idolHristo Stoichkov. However, it proved to be an inauspicious start to his international career; he wassent off for a second yellow card just eight minutes after coming on as a substitute. Petrov cried while he was leaving the pitch.[17][18]
Petrov was the key player in Bulgaria's unsuccessfulEuro 2004 participation, excelling in all three games and scoring Bulgaria's only goal at the finals; a penalty against Italy in Bulgaria's 1–2 loss.
On 2 September 2006, Petrov played a crucial role in the Bulgarian national team'sEuro 2008 opening qualifying game againstRomania inConstanţa, nailing two goals in two minutes to equalize from 2–0 in the last minutes of the game. This was seen as a remarkable comeback. He also went on to score againstSlovenia (in a 3–0 win) and theNetherlands (in a 1–1 draw). His performances in the 2006 qualifying campaign earned him the 2006Bulgarian Footballer of the Year award.On 7 September 2010, Petrov earned his 80th cap for Bulgaria in the 0–1 home loss in a UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier againstMontenegro.
| Club performance | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Bulgaria | League | Bulgarian Cup | Europe | Total | ||||||||
| 1995–96 | Botev Vratsa | V AFG | 18 | 4 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 0 | 0 | 18 | 4 |
| 1996–97 | CSKA Sofia | A Group | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 1997–98 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 1998–99 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 6 | 1 | 18 | 3 | ||
| Switzerland | League | Schweizer Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 1998–99 | Servette | Super League | 14 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 3 |
| 1999–2000 | 31 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 33 | 9 | ||
| 2000–01 | 32 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 15 | ||
| Germany | League | DFB-Pokal | DFB Ligapokal | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2001–02 | VfL Wolfsburg | Bundesliga | 32 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 39 | 9 |
| 2002–03 | 26 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 2 | ||
| 2003–04 | 28 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 36 | 13 | ||
| 2004–05 | 30 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 33 | 14 | ||
| Spain | League | Copa del Rey | Copa de la Liga | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2005–06 | Atlético Madrid | La Liga | 36 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 1 |
| 2006–07 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 2 | ||
| England | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2007–08 | Manchester City | Premier League | 34 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 5 |
| 2008–09 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 14 | 2 | ||
| 2009–10 | 16 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 5 | ||
| 2010–11 | Bolton Wanderers | 28 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 3 | |
| 2011–12 | 31 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 6 | ||
| 2012–13 | Championship | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 3 | |
| Spain | League | Copa del Rey | Copa de la Liga | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2012–13 | Espanyol | La Liga | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| Bulgaria | League | Bulgarian Cup | Europe | Total | ||||||||
| 2013–14 | CSKA Sofia | A Group | 17 | 3 | 2 | 0 | - | - | 0 | 0 | 19 | 3 |
| Country | Bulgaria | 53 | 10 | 2 | 0 | - | - | 6 | 1 | 61 | 11 | |
| Switzerland | 77 | 27 | - | - | - | - | 2 | 0 | 79 | 27 | ||
| Germany | 116 | 28 | 6 | 3 | - | - | 14 | 7 | 136 | 38 | ||
| Spain | 57 | 3 | 2 | 0 | - | - | 1 | 0 | 60 | 3 | ||
| England | 132 | 19 | 15 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 156 | 24 | ||
| Total | 435 | 87 | 25 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 28 | 10 | 481 | 103 | ||
| Bulgaria national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 1999 | 1 | 0 |
| 2000 | 10 | 1 |
| 2001 | 11 | 2 |
| 2002 | 7 | 0 |
| 2003 | 6 | 1 |
| 2004 | 10 | 2 |
| 2005 | 10 | 3 |
| 2006 | 7 | 4 |
| 2007 | 8 | 2 |
| 2008 | 5 | 1 |
| 2009 | 6 | 2 |
| 2010 | 4 | 0 |
| 2011 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 86 | 19 |
CSKA Sofia
Servette
Atlético Madrid
Individual
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