Stiliyan Petrov
Encyclopedia
Stiliyan Alyoshev Petrov (sometimes transliterated
'Stilian') (born 5 July 1979 in Montana
, Bulgaria
) is a Bulgarian
footballer who captains Aston Villa
in the Premier League and the Bulgarian national team
. He won the Bulgarian Footballer of the Year
award in 2003 when he was playing for Celtic
. Petrov had become known for his solid performances in midfield for both Celtic and Aston Villa and also for Bulgaria
. He captained the national team at Euro 2004
where he was sent off
during a match against Denmark
. He has appeared over a hundred times for his country.
In 2005, Petrov wrote his autobiography with the assistance of Sunday Mail
sports journalist Mark Guidi entitled You Can Call Me Stan, in reference to his nickname "Stan", a shortened form of his given name
. In the book, he describes how "Stiliyan" is the correct spelling, rather than "Stilian", as it is sometimes spelled in the press.
In 2003, Stiliyan Petrov was chosen as Bulgarian Footballer of the Year
. He placed second in 2000, 2001, 2005 and 2009, and third in 2002 and 2006.
, Petrov started to play football in the local team PFC Montana
. At the age of 18 he was spotted by legendary scout and coach Dimitar Penev
and signed with CSKA Sofia for fee of €30,000. With CSKA Sofia he won the Bulgarian Championship in 1997 and national cup
in 1997 and 1999.
for a fee of £2 million the highly rated Bulgarian
teenager featured prominently in a season where he won the League Cup
with Celtic, his second major honour and the first of many with Celtic. Despite the happy end to the season Petrov had a very hard time starting with the club. He was homesick and lonely at the start, and could not speak English. This was made worse by the manager playing him out of position at right back. Eventually, he improved his English by working in a friend's burger van. This hard work and determination to fit in showed in his performances for the club.
After a good first season with Celtic he enjoyed a brilliant second season under Martin O'Neill's
treble winning side, becoming a regular scorer netting 7 league goals in 28 appearances, one of which was in Celtic's 6–2 victory over Rangers. He also became the first foreign player to win the SPFA Young Player of the Year award.
The 2001/2002 season was the year when he really came into form at Celtic becoming the dynamic, hardworking box to box midfielder that Celtic badly needed and deservedly won his second SPL
medal.
In his fourth season with Celtic, Petrov continued his fine form and was being linked to some of the top clubs in Europe but after protracted contract talks he eventually agreed a new deal with Celtic. This was his highest ever goalscoring season, netting 14 in 50 appearances. He also got to the only European final of his career getting a runner's up medal in the Uefa Cup despite not winning anything else.
In his next two seasons for Celtic he continued to be an essential player making 105 appearances and scoring 19 goals. He won the Scottish Cup
twice in this time along with his third SPL medal, the 04/05 season proved to be Martin O'Neill's last at Celtic although Stiliyan Petrov would later join him at Aston Villa. The 04/05 season was also a good year for Petrov personally as he became the third player to win the Celtic Player of The Year
award.
The 2005/2006 season was a time of great change for Celtic. Martin O'Neill the club's most successful manager in 20 years left and new manager Gordon Strachan
came in. Things started badly for Celtic as they lost 5–0 to Slovakian minnows Artmedia Bratislava in Strachan's first match.Celtic then managed to throw away a 3–1 lead over Motherwell
to draw Strachan's first league match 4–4, although Petrov later helped Celtic exact revenge over the Fir Park
side by scoring his first hat-trick in a 5–0 demolition in October that year. Celtic overcame their bad start to the campaign to win the SPL and League Cup double.
The 06/07 season proved to be his last at Celtic as he re-united with former manager Martin O'Neill at Aston Villa for a fee of £6.5 million pounds rising to £8 million after clauses. This was after a long transfer saga in which Stiliyan Petrov was linked to almost every mid-table side in England. He only made 3 appearances for Celtic before leaving in the summer transfer window.
In all, Petrov made 312 appearances for Celtic over 7 years, scoring 65 goals. He won the SPL 4 times and also won both the Scottish and Scottish League Cup 3 times each. He was the tenth most prolific goalscorer in the SPL(55 goals) when he left Celtic.
who were managed by former Celtic boss Martin O'Neill
. On 30 August, Petrov completed his move to Villa Park
on a four-year deal worth £6.5million, a fee which could rise to £8million in the future. His debut was against West Ham United
on 10 September. The game finished 1–1. In 2007, Petrov changed his shirt number from 11 to 19.
Petrov scored his first Villa goal in a 2–2 draw against Sheffield United
on 11 December 2006, but suffered patchy form throughout his first two seasons at the club.
He scored a volley from the halfway line against already relegated Derby County
on 12 April 2008. This was his first goal of the season and Villa won 6–0. This goal was marked as a possible candidate for "goal of the season". It was also confirmed to be the furthest out recorded goal by an Aston Villa player since the club was formed.
The 2008–09 season saw Petrov's form improved considerably as he became a first team regular, starting Villa's six Premier League games in a row. He was named captain for the first time in the UEFA Cup game against the Bulgarian Litex Lovech on 2 October 2008 and also scored one of the goals in the game.
In May 2009, Petrov was named both Aston Villas' supporters' "Player of the year" and players' "Player of the year" for the 2008/09 season, after his notable consistency in midfield throughout the season. On the 20 May 2009 he signed a new four-year deal that is set to keep him at the club until 2013.
Following the departure of captain Martin Laursen
and his successor Gareth Barry
, Petrov was hinted as a leading candidate to become the next captain of Aston Villa. Speaking to the Sunday Mercury
regarding the matter, Petrov stated that leading a "great club with a long tradition and history" would be "a great honour". He later captained Aston Villa in the Peace Cup
against Málaga
on 25 July 2009, further hinting that he may be the next player to wear the armband.
Petrov once again captained the side during Aston Villa's opening fixture of the 2009–10 season (a 2–0 loss to Wigan Athletic
at Villa Park). Following the game, in an online match report, he was referred to as "the skipper", therefore implying his appointment as captain of Aston Villa. On the opening day of the 2010-11 season, Petrov scored his fifth goal for the club in a 3-0 win against West Ham United.
Petrov has retained the Villa captaincy after the appointment of Gérard Houllier
as manager of the club. On 23 October 2010, he sustained a knee injury in the 1-0 away loss against Sunderland A.F.C.
at the Stadium of Light
. On 26 December 2010, Petrov returned to first team action, coming on as a second half substitute for Jonathan Hogg
in the 2-1 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur at Villa Park
. On 26 February 2011, Petrov made his 150th premier league appearance for Aston Villa at Villa Park, when he came on as a second-half substitute in the 76th minute for Robert Pires
in the 4-1 win over Blackburn Rovers. As of February 2011, Petrov has made 180 appearances in total and has scored 8 goals in all competitions for Villa. On September 10 2011, Petrov scored his first goal of the season away at Everton. On October 29 2011, Petrov made his 200th appearance for Aston Villa in the Premier League clash with Sunderland
, and scored the opening goal - a terrific 20-yard strike into the top corner - of a 2-2 draw.
. The match was played in Agadir, Morocco and finished with a 4–1 win for the North Africans. He scored his first goal for the national side in another friendly match against Belarus (4–1) on March 29, 2000.
On 12 October 2006 Petrov, then captain of Bulgaria, announced his decision to retire from international football at the age of 27 as long as Hristo Stoichkov
manages the Bulgaria national team. However, on 20 March 2007 he made amends with Stoichkov and made himself available for selection again.
However, he did not recover his position as national captain because it was decided that Dimitar Berbatov
would retain the captain's armband. On 14 January 2010, it was announced that Petrov had come second in Bulgaria's Player of the Year.
Petrov was renamed captain of the Bulgarian side again following the retirement of Berbatov from international football in 2010. On 26 March 2011, Petrov earned his 100th cap for Bulgaria in the 0-0 home draw with Switzerland
in a Euro 2012 qualifier. He received a flower bouquet from Borislav Mikhailov
and was applauded by the spectators prior to the start of the match.
|1996–97||rowspan="3"|CSKA Sofia
||rowspan="3"|A PFG
||5||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||5||0
|-
|1997–98||10||2||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||10||2
|-
|1998–99||28||4||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||28||4
|-
|1999–00||rowspan="8"|Celtic
||rowspan="8"|Premier League
||26||1||colspan="2"|-||2||0||1||0||29||1
|-
|2000–01||28||7||3||0||2||0||5||1||38||8
|-
|2001–02||28||6||5||1||3||0||8||1||44||8
|-
|2002–03||34||12||colspan="2"|-||2||0||14||2||50||14
|-
|2003–04||35||6||5||3||colspan="2"|-||15||1||55||7
|-
|2004–05||37||11||5||1||1||0||6||0||50||12
|-
|2005–06||37||10||colspan="2"|-||4||0||2||0||43||10
|-
|2006–07||3||2||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||3||2
|-
|2006–07||rowspan="6"|Aston Villa
||rowspan="6"|Premier League||30||2||1||0||3||0||colspan="2"|-||34||2
|-
|2007–08||28||1||1||0||2||0||colspan="2"|-||31||1
|-
|2008–09||36||1||3||0||1||0||7||1||47||2
|-
|2009–10||37||0||3||1||6||0||1||0||47||1
|-
|2010–11||27||1||1||1||0||0||1||0||29||2
|-
|2011–12||12||2||0||0||1||0||0||0||13||2
|-
43||6||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||43||6
228||55||18||5||14||0||52||5||312||65
170||7||9||2||14||0||8||1||201||10
439||68||27||7||28||0||60||6||556||81
Transliteration
Transliteration is a subset of the science of hermeneutics. It is a form of translation, and is the practice of converting a text from one script into another...
'Stilian') (born 5 July 1979 in Montana
Montana, Bulgaria
- Elite High Scools :*Foreign Language HS "Petar Bogdan". Emphasis on English and German language proficiency. Recognized and praised for its scholars' academic accomplishments worldwide. http://gpchemont.com/sitegpche/...
, Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
) is a Bulgarian
Bulgarians
The Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...
footballer who captains Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
in the Premier League and the Bulgarian national team
Bulgaria national football team
The FIFA Bulgaria national football team is an association football team fielded by the Bulgarian Football Union, a member association of UEFA. The team's home ground is Vasil Levski in Sofia and Luboslav Penev is in charge manager after replacement of Lothar Matthäus...
. He won the Bulgarian Footballer of the Year
Bulgarian Footballer of the Year
Bulgarian Footballer of the Year is an annual title awarded to the best Bulgarian football player of the year. The award has been given since 1961, and the winner is elected by authorized journalists from the leading Bulgarian media....
award in 2003 when he was playing for Celtic
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
. Petrov had become known for his solid performances in midfield for both Celtic and Aston Villa and also for Bulgaria
Bulgaria national football team
The FIFA Bulgaria national football team is an association football team fielded by the Bulgarian Football Union, a member association of UEFA. The team's home ground is Vasil Levski in Sofia and Luboslav Penev is in charge manager after replacement of Lothar Matthäus...
. He captained the national team at Euro 2004
2004 UEFA European Football Championship
The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, better known as Euro 2004, was the 12th European Football Championship, a quadrennial football tournament for European national teams. It was hosted in Portugal, for the first time, between 12 June and 4 July 2004, following its selection by UEFA, in...
where he was sent off
Misconduct (football)
Misconduct in association football is any conduct by a player that is deemed by the referee to warrant a disciplinary sanction in accordance with Law 12 of the Laws of the Game. Misconduct may occur at any time, including when the ball is out of play, during half-time and before and after the...
during a match against Denmark
Denmark national football team
The Denmark national football team represents Denmark in association football and is controlled by the Danish Football Association , the governing body for the football clubs which are organized under DBU...
. He has appeared over a hundred times for his country.
In 2005, Petrov wrote his autobiography with the assistance of Sunday Mail
Sunday Mail (Scotland)
The Sunday Mail is a Scottish tabloid newspaper published every Sunday. It is the sister paper of the Daily Record and is owned by Trinity Mirror and as such has a left-wing outlook which in turn tends to guide Scottish political debate in that direction.The Sunday Mail is read by over one million...
sports journalist Mark Guidi entitled You Can Call Me Stan, in reference to his nickname "Stan", a shortened form of his given name
Given name
A given name, in Western contexts often referred to as a first name, is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name...
. In the book, he describes how "Stiliyan" is the correct spelling, rather than "Stilian", as it is sometimes spelled in the press.
In 2003, Stiliyan Petrov was chosen as Bulgarian Footballer of the Year
Bulgarian Footballer of the Year
Bulgarian Footballer of the Year is an annual title awarded to the best Bulgarian football player of the year. The award has been given since 1961, and the winner is elected by authorized journalists from the leading Bulgarian media....
. He placed second in 2000, 2001, 2005 and 2009, and third in 2002 and 2006.
Early career
Born in MontanaMontana, Bulgaria
- Elite High Scools :*Foreign Language HS "Petar Bogdan". Emphasis on English and German language proficiency. Recognized and praised for its scholars' academic accomplishments worldwide. http://gpchemont.com/sitegpche/...
, Petrov started to play football in the local team PFC Montana
PFC Montana
PFC Montana is a Bulgarian football club from the town of Montana, currently playing in the Bulgarian A Professional Football Group, the top division of Bulgarian football....
. At the age of 18 he was spotted by legendary scout and coach Dimitar Penev
Dimitar Penev
Dimitar Penev 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 2 goals. He is regarded as one of his country's best ever defenders, winning Bulgarian footballer of the year in 1967 and 1971, he...
and signed with CSKA Sofia for fee of €30,000. With CSKA Sofia he won the Bulgarian Championship in 1997 and national cup
Bulgarian Cup
The Bulgarian Cup 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. It is sponsored by the Bulgarian Corporate Commercial Bank....
in 1997 and 1999.
Celtic
Petrov was signed in the summer of 1999 by John BarnesJohn Barnes (footballer)
John Charles Bryan Barnes MBE is an English football manager and former player.During his playing career, Barnes had successful periods at Watford and Liverpool in the 1980s and 1990s, winning the First Division twice, the FA Cup twice, and playing for England 79 times...
for a fee of £2 million the highly rated Bulgarian
Bulgaria national football team
The FIFA Bulgaria national football team is an association football team fielded by the Bulgarian Football Union, a member association of UEFA. The team's home ground is Vasil Levski in Sofia and Luboslav Penev is in charge manager after replacement of Lothar Matthäus...
teenager featured prominently in a season where he won the League Cup
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...
with Celtic, his second major honour and the first of many with Celtic. Despite the happy end to the season Petrov had a very hard time starting with the club. He was homesick and lonely at the start, and could not speak English. This was made worse by the manager playing him out of position at right back. Eventually, he improved his English by working in a friend's burger van. This hard work and determination to fit in showed in his performances for the club.
After a good first season with Celtic he enjoyed a brilliant second season under Martin O'Neill's
Martin O'Neill
Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill, OBE, is a Northern Irish football manager and former player.Until resigning the post on 9 August 2010, he was manager of Aston Villa. Starting his career in his native Northern Ireland, O'Neill moved to England where he spent most of his playing career with Nottingham...
treble winning side, becoming a regular scorer netting 7 league goals in 28 appearances, one of which was in Celtic's 6–2 victory over Rangers. He also became the first foreign player to win the SPFA Young Player of the Year award.
The 2001/2002 season was the year when he really came into form at Celtic becoming the dynamic, hardworking box to box midfielder that Celtic badly needed and deservedly won his second SPL
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
medal.
In his fourth season with Celtic, Petrov continued his fine form and was being linked to some of the top clubs in Europe but after protracted contract talks he eventually agreed a new deal with Celtic. This was his highest ever goalscoring season, netting 14 in 50 appearances. He also got to the only European final of his career getting a runner's up medal in the Uefa Cup despite not winning anything else.
In his next two seasons for Celtic he continued to be an essential player making 105 appearances and scoring 19 goals. He won the Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
twice in this time along with his third SPL medal, the 04/05 season proved to be Martin O'Neill's last at Celtic although Stiliyan Petrov would later join him at Aston Villa. The 04/05 season was also a good year for Petrov personally as he became the third player to win the Celtic Player of The Year
Celtic Player of The Year
Celtic Player of the Year award is an annual awards ceremony held by Celtic FC. It has been held every year since 2003 when Bobo Balde was awarded the first ever Celtic Player of the Year award.-2002–03:*Celtic Player of The Year: Bobo Baldé...
award.
The 2005/2006 season was a time of great change for Celtic. Martin O'Neill the club's most successful manager in 20 years left and new manager Gordon Strachan
Gordon Strachan
Gordon David Strachan OBE is a Scottish football manager and former player. He is currently without a club, having last managed Middlesbrough. Strachan played for Dundee, Aberdeen, Manchester United, Leeds United and Coventry City, as well as the Scotland national team. Prior to Middlesbrough,...
came in. Things started badly for Celtic as they lost 5–0 to Slovakian minnows Artmedia Bratislava in Strachan's first match.Celtic then managed to throw away a 3–1 lead over Motherwell
Motherwell F.C.
Motherwell Football & Athletic Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire. The club compete in the Scottish Premier League and are one of only seven teams to have remained in this league since it was founded in 1998...
to draw Strachan's first league match 4–4, although Petrov later helped Celtic exact revenge over the Fir Park
Fir Park
Fir Park Stadium is a football stadium situated in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. The stadium plays host to the home matches of Scottish Premier League club Motherwell.- History :...
side by scoring his first hat-trick in a 5–0 demolition in October that year. Celtic overcame their bad start to the campaign to win the SPL and League Cup double.
The 06/07 season proved to be his last at Celtic as he re-united with former manager Martin O'Neill at Aston Villa for a fee of £6.5 million pounds rising to £8 million after clauses. This was after a long transfer saga in which Stiliyan Petrov was linked to almost every mid-table side in England. He only made 3 appearances for Celtic before leaving in the summer transfer window.
In all, Petrov made 312 appearances for Celtic over 7 years, scoring 65 goals. He won the SPL 4 times and also won both the Scottish and Scottish League Cup 3 times each. He was the tenth most prolific goalscorer in the SPL(55 goals) when he left Celtic.
Aston Villa
In April 2006 Celtic rejected a written transfer request submitted by Petrov, he was then linked with a transfer to move to Aston VillaAston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
who were managed by former Celtic boss Martin O'Neill
Martin O'Neill
Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill, OBE, is a Northern Irish football manager and former player.Until resigning the post on 9 August 2010, he was manager of Aston Villa. Starting his career in his native Northern Ireland, O'Neill moved to England where he spent most of his playing career with Nottingham...
. On 30 August, Petrov completed his move to Villa Park
Villa Park, England
Villa Park is an association football stadium in the district of Witton, Birmingham, England with a seating capacity of 42,786. It has been the home of Aston Villa Football Club since 1897. The team previously played at Aston Park from 1874 to 1876 and Perry Barr from 1876 to 1897...
on a four-year deal worth £6.5million, a fee which could rise to £8million in the future. His debut was against West Ham United
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
on 10 September. The game finished 1–1. In 2007, Petrov changed his shirt number from 11 to 19.
Petrov scored his first Villa goal in a 2–2 draw against Sheffield United
Sheffield United F.C.
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional English football club based in the city of Sheffield, South Yorkshire.They were the first sporting team to use the name 'United' and are nicknamed 'The Blades', thanks to Sheffield's worldwide reputation for steel production...
on 11 December 2006, but suffered patchy form throughout his first two seasons at the club.
He scored a volley from the halfway line against already relegated Derby County
Derby County F.C.
Derby County Football Club is an English football based in Derby. the club play in the Football League Championship and is notable as being one of the twelve founder members of the Football League in 1888 and is, therefore, one of only ten clubs to have competed in every season of the English...
on 12 April 2008. This was his first goal of the season and Villa won 6–0. This goal was marked as a possible candidate for "goal of the season". It was also confirmed to be the furthest out recorded goal by an Aston Villa player since the club was formed.
The 2008–09 season saw Petrov's form improved considerably as he became a first team regular, starting Villa's six Premier League games in a row. He was named captain for the first time in the UEFA Cup game against the Bulgarian Litex Lovech on 2 October 2008 and also scored one of the goals in the game.
In May 2009, Petrov was named both Aston Villas' supporters' "Player of the year" and players' "Player of the year" for the 2008/09 season, after his notable consistency in midfield throughout the season. On the 20 May 2009 he signed a new four-year deal that is set to keep him at the club until 2013.
Following the departure of captain Martin Laursen
Martin Laursen
Martin Laursen is a Danish former footballer who played in the centre back position. He played three seasons for Italian club AC Milan, with whom he won the 2003 UEFA Champions League and the 2004 Serie A championship. He also played for Italian clubs Hellas Verona and Parma FC, and was the team...
and his successor Gareth Barry
Gareth Barry
Gareth Barry is an English footballer who plays for Manchester City and the England national football team.Barry moved to Aston Villa from Brighton & Hove Albion as a youngster, and spent 12 years at the club. He captained Aston Villa, and, at the end of his career with the club, lay eighth in...
, Petrov was hinted as a leading candidate to become the next captain of Aston Villa. Speaking to the Sunday Mercury
Sunday Mercury
Sunday Mercury is a Sunday tabloid published in Birmingham, UK, and owned by Trinity Mirror.The first editor was John Turner Fearon , who left the Dublin-based Freeman's Journal to take up the position...
regarding the matter, Petrov stated that leading a "great club with a long tradition and history" would be "a great honour". He later captained Aston Villa in the Peace Cup
Peace Cup
thumb|right|400px|The opening ceremony of 2003 competitionThe Peace Cup is an invitational pre-season friendly football tournament for club teams, currently held every two years by the Sunmoon Peace Football Foundation. It is contested by the eight clubs from several continents, though 12 teams...
against Málaga
Málaga CF
Málaga Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football club based in Málaga, Andalusia. The team currently plays in Spain's La Liga.Málaga CF is generally seen as the successor to CD Málaga, one of the most historical Andalusian football clubs, by being a near-identical looking football club that even shares...
on 25 July 2009, further hinting that he may be the next player to wear the armband.
Petrov once again captained the side during Aston Villa's opening fixture of the 2009–10 season (a 2–0 loss to Wigan Athletic
Wigan Athletic F.C.
Wigan Athletic Football Club is an English Premier League Association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, having been promoted from the Championship in 2005. Wigan's current spell in the Premier League is the only top flight run in the club's history.They have played at the DW...
at Villa Park). Following the game, in an online match report, he was referred to as "the skipper", therefore implying his appointment as captain of Aston Villa. On the opening day of the 2010-11 season, Petrov scored his fifth goal for the club in a 3-0 win against West Ham United.
Petrov has retained the Villa captaincy after the appointment of Gérard Houllier
Gérard Houllier
Gérard Houllier, OBE , is a French football manager, who was last manager of Premier League club Aston Villa. He stepped down on 1 June 2011, following hospitalisation over heart problems towards the end of the 2010-2011 season....
as manager of the club. On 23 October 2010, he sustained a knee injury in the 1-0 away loss against Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear who currently play in the Premier League...
at the Stadium of Light
Stadium of Light
The Stadium of Light is an all-seater football stadium in Sunderland, England. With space for 49,000 spectators, the Stadium of Light has the fifth-largest capacity of any English football stadium. The stadium primarily hosts Sunderland A.F.C. matches...
. On 26 December 2010, Petrov returned to first team action, coming on as a second half substitute for Jonathan Hogg
Jonathan Hogg
Jonathan Lee Hogg is an English footballer who plays for Watford as a central midfielder. He previously played for Aston Villa, and spent periods on loan at Darlington and Portsmouth.-Aston Villa:...
in the 2-1 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur at Villa Park
Villa Park
Villa Park may mean:United Kingdom* Villa Park, an association football stadium in Birmingham, EnglandUnited States* Villa Park, California, a small city in Orange County* Villa Park, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago in DuPage County...
. On 26 February 2011, Petrov made his 150th premier league appearance for Aston Villa at Villa Park, when he came on as a second-half substitute in the 76th minute for Robert Pires
Robert Pirès
Robert Emmanuel Pirès is a former French international footballer. He is perhaps best known for his time with Arsenal, with whom he won three FA Cups and two FA Premier League titles including the club's famous unbeaten season of 2003–04...
in the 4-1 win over Blackburn Rovers. As of February 2011, Petrov has made 180 appearances in total and has scored 8 goals in all competitions for Villa. On September 10 2011, Petrov scored his first goal of the season away at Everton. On October 29 2011, Petrov made his 200th appearance for Aston Villa in the Premier League clash with Sunderland
Sunderland A.F.C.
Sunderland Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear who currently play in the Premier League...
, and scored the opening goal - a terrific 20-yard strike into the top corner - of a 2-2 draw.
International career
Stilyan Petrov made his debut for Bulgaria on December 23, 1998 in a friendly match against MoroccoMorocco national football team
The Morocco national football team , nicknamed أسود الأطلس , is the national team of Morocco and is managed by Eric Gerets. Winners of the African Nations Cup in 1976, they were the first African team to win a group at the World Cup, which they did in 1986, finishing ahead of Portugal, Poland, and...
. The match was played in Agadir, Morocco and finished with a 4–1 win for the North Africans. He scored his first goal for the national side in another friendly match against Belarus (4–1) on March 29, 2000.
On 12 October 2006 Petrov, then captain of Bulgaria, announced his decision to retire from international football at the age of 27 as long as Hristo Stoichkov
Hristo Stoichkov
Hristo Stoichkov Stoichkov , sometimes Stoitchkov; born 8 February 1966 in Plovdiv) is a retired Bulgarian footballer. He is regarded as one of the best footballers of his generation and the greatest Bulgarian footballer of all time. Nicknamed The Dagger , The Dog , The Modern Left...
manages the Bulgaria national team. However, on 20 March 2007 he made amends with Stoichkov and made himself available for selection again.
However, he did not recover his position as national captain because it was decided that Dimitar Berbatov
Dimitar Berbatov
Dimitar Ivanov Berbatov is a Bulgarian footballer who plays as a forward for Manchester United. He captained the Bulgarian national team from 2006 to 2010, and is its all-time leading goalscorer and has also won the Bulgarian Footballer of the Year a record seven times, surpassing the number of...
would retain the captain's armband. On 14 January 2010, it was announced that Petrov had come second in Bulgaria's Player of the Year.
Petrov was renamed captain of the Bulgarian side again following the retirement of Berbatov from international football in 2010. On 26 March 2011, Petrov earned his 100th cap for Bulgaria in the 0-0 home draw with Switzerland
Switzerland national football team
The Swiss national football team is the national football team of Switzerland...
in a Euro 2012 qualifier. He received a flower bouquet from Borislav Mikhailov
Borislav Mikhailov
Borislav Biserov Mihaylov is a former Bulgarian football goalkeeper and currently President of Bulgarian Football Union, member of the executive committee of UEFA....
and was applauded by the spectators prior to the start of the match.
Career statistics
|-|1996–97||rowspan="3"|CSKA Sofia
PFC CSKA Sofia
PFC CSKA Sofia , commonly known as CSKA or CSKA Sofia is a professional football club based in Sofia, Bulgaria. The club was officially founded on May 5, 1948. CSKA's abbreviation stands for Central Sports Club of the Army...
||rowspan="3"|A PFG
Bulgarian A Professional Football Group
The Bulgarian A Professional Football Group commonly known as A PFG is the top division of the Bulgarian football league system. The league is sponsored by Victoria FATA Insurance and therefore is officially known as Victoria A Football Group since 2011...
||5||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||5||0
|-
|1997–98||10||2||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||10||2
|-
|1998–99||28||4||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||28||4
|-
|1999–00||rowspan="8"|Celtic
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
||rowspan="8"|Premier League
Scottish Premier League
The Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
||26||1||colspan="2"|-||2||0||1||0||29||1
|-
|2000–01||28||7||3||0||2||0||5||1||38||8
|-
|2001–02||28||6||5||1||3||0||8||1||44||8
|-
|2002–03||34||12||colspan="2"|-||2||0||14||2||50||14
|-
|2003–04||35||6||5||3||colspan="2"|-||15||1||55||7
|-
|2004–05||37||11||5||1||1||0||6||0||50||12
|-
|2005–06||37||10||colspan="2"|-||4||0||2||0||43||10
|-
|2006–07||3||2||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||3||2
|-
|2006–07||rowspan="6"|Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
||rowspan="6"|Premier League||30||2||1||0||3||0||colspan="2"|-||34||2
|-
|2007–08||28||1||1||0||2||0||colspan="2"|-||31||1
|-
|2008–09||36||1||3||0||1||0||7||1||47||2
|-
|2009–10||37||0||3||1||6||0||1||0||47||1
|-
|2010–11||27||1||1||1||0||0||1||0||29||2
|-
|2011–12||12||2||0||0||1||0||0||0||13||2
|-
43||6||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||43||6
228||55||18||5||14||0||52||5||312||65
170||7||9||2||14||0||8||1||201||10
439||68||27||7||28||0||60||6||556||81
International goals
Updated to games played 9 February 2011.| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | March 29, 2000 | Sofia, Bulgaria | 4–1 | Win | Friendly | |
| 2. | January 24, 2001 | Morelia, Mexico | 2–0 | Win | Friendly | |
| 3. | February 28, 2001 | Amman, Jordan | 2–0 | Win | Friendly | |
| 4. | September 7, 2002 | Brussels, Belgium | 2–0 | Win | UEFA Euro 2004 Qualification | |
| 5. | October 12, 2002 | Sofia, Bulgaria | 2–0 | Win | UEFA Euro 2004 Qualification | |
| 6. | March 27, 2003 | Kruševac Kruševac Kruševac is a city and municipality, and the administrative center of the Rasina District, in central Serbia. According to the 2011 census, the municipality has a population of 127,429, while the town has 57,627.... , Serbia Serbia Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans... |
2–1 | Win | Friendly | |
| 7. | March 30, 2005 | Budapest, Hungary | 1–1 | Draw | FIFA World Cup 2006 Qualification 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA) Listed below are the dates and results for the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for UEFA teams. A total of 51 teams took part, divided in 8 Groups - five groups of 6 teams each and three groups of 7 teams each - competing for 13 places in the World Cup... |
|
| 8. | September 6, 2008 | Podgorica Podgorica Podgorica , is the capital and largest city of Montenegro.Podgorica's favourable position at the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers and the meeting point of the fertile Zeta Plain and Bjelopavlići Valley has encouraged settlement... , Montenegro Montenegro Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the... |
2–2 | Draw | FIFA World Cup 2010 Qualification 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA) The European zone of qualification for the 2010 FIFA World Cup saw 53 teams competing for 13 places at the finals. The qualification process started on 20 August 2008, after UEFA Euro 2008, and ended on 18 November 2009. The qualification process saw the first competitive matches of... |
|
CSKA Sofia
- Bulgarian Championship: 1997
- Bulgarian CupBulgarian CupThe Bulgarian Cup 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. It is sponsored by the Bulgarian Corporate Commercial Bank....
: 1997, 19991999 Bulgarian Cup FinalThe 1999 Bulgarian Cup Final was played at the Bulgarian Army Stadium in Sofia on May 26, 1999 and was contested between the sides of Litex Lovech and CSKA Sofia. The match was won by CSKA Sofia. Valentin Stanchev scored the winning goal in 82nd minute....
Celtic
- Scottish Premier LeagueScottish Premier LeagueThe Scottish Premier League , also known as the SPL , is a professional league competition for association football clubs in Scotland...
: 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006 - Scottish CupScottish CupThe Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
: 2001, 2004, 2005 - Scottish League CupScottish League CupThe Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...
: 2000, 2001, 2006 - UEFA CupUEFA CupThe UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...
: Runner-up 2003
Individual
- SPFA Young Player of the Year: 2001
- Celtic Player of The YearCeltic Player of The YearCeltic Player of the Year award is an annual awards ceremony held by Celtic FC. It has been held every year since 2003 when Bobo Balde was awarded the first ever Celtic Player of the Year award.-2002–03:*Celtic Player of The Year: Bobo Baldé...
: 2005 - Aston Villa Players' Player of the Year: 2009
- Aston Villa Supporters' Player of the Year: 2009
- SPL Player of the Month: (3)
- Bulgaria's Player of the year: 2003