Goran Popov
Goran Popov (Macedonian: Горан Попов; born 2 October 1984) is a retired Macedonian footballer,[2] who played as a defender for Macedonian side Vardar and the Macedonia national team.
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Goran Popov[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 2 October 1984 | ||
| Place of birth | Strumica, SFR Yugoslavia | ||
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Left back / Left midfielder | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2002–2003 | Belasica | 6 | (0) |
| 2003 | → Proodeftiki (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2004 | AEK Athens | 8 | (0) |
| 2004 | Red Star Belgrade | 0 | (0) |
| 2004–2005 | → Odra Wodzisław (loan) | 11 | (0) |
| 2005–2007 | Egaleo | 45 | (1) |
| 2007–2008 | → Levadiakos (loan) | 20 | (0) |
| 2008–2010 | Heerenveen | 51 | (2) |
| 2010–2014 | Dynamo Kyiv | 48 | (2) |
| 2012–2014 | → West Bromwich Albion (loan) | 18 | (0) |
| 2014–2017 | Vardar | 43 | (3) |
| 2017 | Doxa Katokopias | 0 | (0) |
| 2017–2019 | Vardar | 19 | (3) |
| National team | |||
| 2002 | Macedonia U-19 | 5 | (2) |
| Macedonia U-21 | 10 | (2) | |
| 2004–2014 | Macedonia | 46 | (2) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only | |||
Popov started his career with local side Belasica and moved to Greece with Proodeftiki and AEK Athens. He signed for Red Star Belgrade in 2004 but injuries prevented him from making an impact and he returned to Greek football with Egaleo after a short loan spell in Poland with Odra Wodzisław. Egaleo were relegated in 2007 and Popov joined Levadiakos before moving to Dutch club Heerenveen in July 2008. At Heerenveen he finally found some success and won the KNVB Cup in 2009 scoring in the final against FC Twente. After good form in European competitions Popov signed for Ukrainian side Dynamo Kyiv.
Life and career
Popov was born in Strumica, Socialist Republic of Macedonia, SFR Yugoslavia and played football with local club Belasica making six appearances as the side finished second in the First Macedonian Football League. He moved on to Greek side Proodeftiki and then AEK Athens. His time at Athens was short and after eight matches he left for Red Star Belgrade where he made his debut away at PSV Eindhoven in the UEFA Champions League as Red Star lost 5–0.[3] Injuries prevented him from making at impact with Red Star and he joined Polish side Odra Wodzisław on loan. At the end of the 2004–05 season Popov returned to Greek football with Egaleo spending two seasons there and then one season with Levadiakos. In 2008, he made the move to Dutch football with Heerenveen where he won the KNVB Cup in 2009 and impressed enough in European football to earn a move to Ukrainian giants Dynamo Kyiv in June 2010.[4]
On 10 August 2012, Popov initially signed for English Premier League side Stoke City on a season long loan deal,[5] but the move fell through after he failed to be granted a UK work permit.[6] On deadline day, Popov received a UK work permit and he signed instead on a season-long loan for West Bromwich Albion. After Artim Šakiri, Goran Popov is the second Macedonian football player who has ever played at West Bromwich Albion.
On 3 February 2013, Popov was dismissed by referee Mark Clattenberg for allegedly spitting at fullback Kyle Walker, in a game that ended 1–0 to Tottenham Hotspur.
On 9 July 2013, Popov signed a one-year loan deal to return to West Bromwich Albion.[7]
On 18 September, Popov signed a three-year contract with Vardar for undisclosed fee.[8] At the end of the 2018–19 season, Popov's contract with Vardar expired and he retired from football.[9]
International career
Goran Popov has been part of the Macedonian U-19 and U-21 teams before making his debut senior for the Macedonian national team in June 2004[10] in a friendly match against Estonia. He has earned a total of 46 caps, scoring 2 goals[11] and his final international was a May 2014 friendly against Cameroon.[12]
International goals
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 30 May 2004 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia |  Estonia | 2–4 | Win | Friendly | |||||
| 2. | 19 November 2008 | Estadi Comunal d'Aixovall, Andorra la Vella, Andorra |  Montenegro | 2–1 | Lost | Friendly | |||||
| Correct as of 13 January 2013[13] | |||||||||||
Career statistics
Club
Statistics accurate as of match played 4 January 2014[14]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Other[A] | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Belasica | 2002–03 | 1. MFL | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 7 | 0 | |
| AEK Athens | 2003–04 | Alpha Ethniki | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 8 | 0 | |
| Red Star Belgrade | 2004–05 | First League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | – | 3 | 0 | |
| Odra Wodzisław (loan) | 2004–05 | Ekstraklasa | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 11 | 0 | ||
| Egaleo | 2005–06 | Alpha Ethniki | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 19 | 0 | ||
| 2006–07 | Superleague Greece | 26 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 26 | 1 | |||
| Total | 45 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 1 | ||
| Levadiakos (loan) | 2007–08 | Superleague Greece | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 20 | 0 | ||
| Heerenveen | 2008–09 | Eredivisie | 24 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | – | 33 | 3 | |
| 2009–10 | Eredivisie | 27 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 2 | |
| Total | 51 | 2 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 72 | 5 | ||
| Dynamo Kyiv | 2010–11 | Ukrainian Premier League | 15 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | – | 29 | 1 | |
| 2011–12 | Ukrainian Premier League | 16 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 1 | |
| 2012–13 | Ukrainian Premier League | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 32 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 57 | 2 | ||
| West Bromwich Albion (loan) | 2012–13 | Premier League | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 13 | 0 | ||
| 2013–14 | Premier League | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 5 | 0 | |||
| Total | 14 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 187 | 5 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 35 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 241 | 8 | ||
- A. ^ The "Other" column constitutes appearances and goals in the Johan Cruijff-schaal XIV and Ukrainian Super Cup.
International
As of August 2012[15]
| Macedonia national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2004 | 2 | 1 |
| 2005 | 6 | 0 |
| 2006 | 1 | 0 |
| 2007 | 5 | 0 |
| 2008 | 5 | 1 |
| 2009 | 10 | 0 |
| 2010 | 6 | 0 |
| 2011 | 6 | 0 |
| 2012 | 3 | 0 |
| 2014 | 2 | 0 |
| Total | 46 | 2 |
Personal life
He is the younger brother of Robert Popov who is also a football player.
References
- "Barclays Premier League Squad Numbers 2013/14". Premier League. 16 August 2013. Archived from the original on 25 September 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
- Zo zette Goran Popov Friesland op stelten vice.com
- "PSV progress in style". UEFA.com. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
- Zlateski, Alexsadar. "Goran Popov made season debut for Dynamo Kyiv". Macedonian Football. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
- "Potters Swoop For Goran Popov". Stoke City F.C. Retrieved 10 August 2012.
- "Popov set to pop off after work permit blow". The Sentinel. Retrieved 16 August 2012.
- "Goran Popov rejoins West Brom on season-long loan deal". bbc.co.uk/sport/. BBC Sport. 9 July 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
- Официјално: Горан Попов во Ф.К. Вардар 3 години Archived 20 September 2014 at the Wayback Machine
- Горан Попов: "С Вукоевичем дали Гармашу прозвище "Кутия", sportarena.com, 12 August 2019
- Goran Popov at UEFA.com
- Appearances for (North) Macedonia National Team - RSSSF
- "Player Database". eu-football.info. Retrieved 2 May 2020.
- Football PLAYER: Goran Popov
- "Goran Popov". Soccerway. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
- "Popov, Goran". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmerman. Retrieved 12 August 2012.
External links
- Goran Popov at Soccerbase
- Goran Popov at National-Football-Teams.com
- Profile at MacedonianFootball (in English)