PFC Ludogorets Razgrad in European football

PFC Ludogorets Razgrad is an association football club from Razgrad, Bulgaria. Since their introduction to the Bulgarian top-flight, Ludogorets have participated in five different seasons of the UEFA club competitions - four in the Champions League and two in the UEFA Europa League.

PFC Ludogorets Razgrad in European football
The Ludogorets starting XI before a Round of 32 UEFA Europa League game against Lazio in Sofia on February 27, 2014
ClubLudogorets Razgrad
First entry2012–13 UEFA Champions League
Latest entry2020–21 UEFA Europa League

Ludogorets' first entry in the European competitions was in the 2012–13 Champions League against Dinamo Zagreb of Croatia. Since then, the club competes in Europe on an annual basis with variable success.

Ludogorets' best European performance came in the 2013–14 Europa League, when the team won their group against PSV Eindhoven, Chornomorets Odessa and Dinamo Zagreb, eventually becoming the first Bulgarian team to win a UEFA Europa League group. Subsequently, they also reached the round of 16 stage of the same competition, after playing two memorable matches against Lazio, including a 1–0 away win and a 3–3 home draw, before being eliminated by Spanish club Valencia. Then, in the 2014–15 season, Ludogorets became the second Bulgarian team to reach the UEFA Champions League group stages (the first being Levski Sofia in 2006–07) after eliminating Steaua București 6–5 at penalties and the first one to score points in this phase following a 1–0 victory over FC Basel.

History

After winning the 2011–12 A Group for the first time in their history, Ludogorets entered the second qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League for the 2012–13 season, where they lost 3–4 on aggregate by Croatian champions Dinamo Zagreb.

2013–14 Europa League round of 16 campaign

As 2012–13 Bulgarian champions, Ludogorets qualified for the 2013–14 Champions League qualifying rounds where they entered the tournament from the second preliminary round. Ludogorets were drawn against Slovan Bratislava. In the first leg in Bratislava, they recorded a 1–2 loss against the Slovak champions, keeping poor chances to advance. Despite this, Ludogorets obtained their first victory in the UEFA Champions League, after a 3–0 thrashing against Slovan at the Ludogorets Arena in the return match. As they advanced to the next round, they were drawn against Serbian champions, Partizan Belgrade. After two wins of 2–1 in Razgrad and 1–0 in the second leg, they managed to qualify for the play-off stage, obtaining indirectly their very first qualification to the group stages of a European competition. The team was drawn against FC Basel, but lost 2–4 at the Vasil Levski National Stadium in Sofia. After a second 0–2 loss in Switzerland, Ludogorets were eliminated and transferred to the Europa League for the very first time in their history.

Ludogorets were drawn in Group B of the 2013–14 Europa League, against PSV Eindhoven, Dinamo Zagreb and Chornomorets Odessa. At their debut in the competition, Ludogorets won 2–0 at Eindhoven over PSV, obtaining their first European group stages victory. On matchday 2, Ludogorets won 3–0 against Dinamo Zagreb, in a replay match from their previous Champions League season clash. On matchday 3, Ludogorets again won 1–0 against Chornomorets Odessa, becoming the first Bulgarian team to begin their group stage participation in European tournaments with three consecutive wins without conceding any goal. On matchday 4, they dropped the only points in a 1–1 home draw with Chornomorets Odesa. On matchday 5, Ludogorets win 2-1 at Zagreb against Dinamo.[1] On the last matchday, Ludogorets again won 2–0 over PSV at Sofia and qualified for the round of 32 as group winners, with 16 points, being the only Bulgarian team undefeated in UEFA Europa League group stages. In the round of 32, Ludogorets were drawn against Italian cup holders, Lazio. In the first leg, held on Stadio Olimpico at Roma, Ludogorets won 1-0, with striker Roman Bezjak scoring the winning goal in a historic win. At Vasil Levski Stadium, Ludogorets hold Lazio in a 3–3 draw, after Lazio had a 2–0 lead, until Bezjak and Hristo Zlatinski scored for 2–2. Later, Lazio scored for 3–2, but Juninho Quixada scored the equaliser for a 4–3 aggregate win,.[2] In the round of 16, Ludogorets hosted Spanish team Valencia, but were defeated 0–3, suffering their first defeat in the UEFA Europa League. In the second leg at Mestalla Stadium, Ludogorets were again defeated 0–1 by Valencia and eliminated.[3]

2014–15 Champions League group stages

In the 2014–15 Champions League, Ludogorets again won both their qualifiers, against F91 Dudelange of Luxembourg and Partizan Belgrade.[4][5] In the play-off they defeated Steaua București to reach the group stage for the first time.[6] Goalkeeper Vladislav Stoyanov was dismissed for a second yellow card in the last minute of extra time in the second leg, when Ludogorets had used all their substitutes. In the penalty shoot-out, centre-back Cosmin Moți, having converted the first penalty, went in goal and made two saves to put Ludogorets through 6–5 on penalties.[6]

Ludogorets and Steaua's starting line-ups during their play-off match of the UEFA Champions League.

Ludogorets made their debut in the 2014–15 Champions League group phase on 16 September 2014, grabbing a 1-1 equalizer away against Liverpool in the 90th minute scored by Dani Abalo, but in an eventual 1-2 loss,[7] as the newly signed goalkeeper Milan Borjan then gave away a penalty with a foul on Javi Manquillo, which Steven Gerrard converted to give Liverpool the victory.[8] Ludogorets made their home debut in the 2014–15 Champions League group phase on 1 October 2014, scoring a goal in the 6th minute through Ludogorets' attacking midfielder Marcelinho against the current Champions League champion Real Madrid, but in an eventual 1–2 loss.[9] In this game Cristiano Ronaldo took two penalties, with the first saved by the Ludogorets' goalkeeper Vladislav Stoyanov and the second converted into the goal for a 1-1 equalizer.[10] On 22 October 2014, Yordan Minev scored his first goal for Ludogorets, scoring a last-minute winning goal in a 1–0 home win over Basel in the group stage of the Champions League.[11] However, on matchday 4, Ludogorets were defeated 0-4 by Basel at St. Jakob-Park, suffering their worst defeat in the European competitions. On 26 November 2014, Dani Abalo scored in the 3rd minute and Georgi Terziev scored his first goal in the 88th minute, getting a 2–2 equalizer against Liverpool, in an eventual 2-2 draw.[12] On the last matchday, Ludogorets were beaten 0-4 at Santiago Bernabéu by Real Madrid, ending their UEFA Champions League adventure on the fourth place, with 4 points, becoming the first Bulgarian team to record points in that competition when they defeated Basel. This was also the first home win for a Bulgarian team in the UEFA Champions League, and was followed by a 2-2 home draw with Liverpool.

Total statistics

As of 10 December 2020

Competition P W D L GF GA Win%
UEFA Champions League 46151120706632.61
UEFA Europa League 53181718736433.96
Total9933283814313033.33

Statistics by country

As of 10 December 2020

Country Club P W D L GF GA GD
Austria LASK 200247−3
Subtotal 200247−3
Belarus Dynamo Brest 110020+2
Subtotal 110020+2
Belgium Antwerp 200225−3
Subtotal 200225−3
Bosnia and Herzegovina Zrinjski Mostar 211021+1
Subtotal 211021+1
Croatia Dinamo Zagreb 421185+3
Subtotal 421185+3
Czech Republic Viktoria Plzeň 211042+2
Subtotal 211042+2
Cyprus AEK Larnaca 202011±0
Subtotal 202011±0
Denmark Copenhagen 201112−1
Midtjylland 100101−1
Subtotal 301213−2
England Arsenal 200229−7
Liverpool 201134−1
Tottenham Hotspur 200217−6
Subtotal 6015620−14
France Paris Saint-Germain 201135−2
Subtotal 201135−2
Germany 1899 Hoffenheim 211032+1
Bayer Leverkusen 201134−1
Subtotal 412166±0
Georgia Torpedo Kutaisi 220050+5
Subtotal 220050+5
Hungary Videoton 201101−1
Ferencváros 411276+1
Subtotal 612377±0
Iceland Valur 211051+4
Subtotal 211051+4
Israel Hapoel Be'er Sheva 210133±0
Subtotal 210133±0
Italy Inter Milan 200214−3
Lazio 211043+1
Milan 200204−4
Subtotal 6114511−6
Lithuania Žalgiris 210153+2
Sūduva Marijampolė 211020+2
Subtotal 421173+4
Luxembourg F91 Dudelange 211051+4
Subtotal 211051+4
Moldova Milsami Orhei 200213−2
Subtotal 200213−2
Montenegro Budućnost Podgorica 110031+2
Mladost Podgorica 220050+5
Subtotal 330081+7
Netherlands PSV Eindhoven 220040+4
Subtotal 220040+4
Northern Ireland Crusaders 220090+9
Subtotal 220090+9
Portugal Braga 211031+2
Subtotal 211031+2
Romania Steaua București 210111±0
Subtotal 210111±0
Russia CSKA Moscow 211062+4
Subtotal 211062+4
Serbia Partizan 422053+2
Red Star Belgrade 211064+2
Subtotal 6330117+4
Slovakia Slovan Bratislava 210142+2
Subtotal 210142+2
Slovenia Maribor 202022±0
Subtotal 202022±0
Spain Espanyol 200207−7
Real Madrid 200216−5
Valencia 200204–4
Subtotal 6006117–17
Switzerland Basel 6123411–7
Zürich 201112−1
Subtotal 8134513–8
Turkey İstanbul Başakşehir 201112–1
Subtotal 201112–1
Ukraine Chornomorets Odesa 211021+1
Subtotal 211021+1
Wales The New Saints 220090+9
Subtotal 220090+9
Total 99332838143130+13

Match results

As of 10 December 2020
Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
2012–13 UEFA Champions League 2Q Dinamo Zagreb 1–1 2–3 3–4
2013–14 UEFA Champions League 2Q Slovan Bratislava 3–0 1–2 4–2
3Q Partizan 2–1 1–0 3–1
PO Basel 2–4 0–2 2–6
UEFA Europa League Group B PSV Eindhoven 2–0 2–0 1st
Dinamo Zagreb 3–0 2–1
Chornomorets Odesa 1–1 1–0
Round of 32 Lazio 3–3 1–0 4–3
Round of 16 Valencia 0–3 0–1 0–4
2014–15 UEFA Champions League 2Q F91 Dudelange 4–0 1–1 5–1
3Q Partizan 0–0 2–2 2–2 (a)
PO Steaua București 1–0 (a.e.t.) 0–1 1–1 (6–5 p)
Group B Real Madrid 1–2 0–4 4th
Basel 1–0 0–4
Liverpool 2–2 1–2
2015–16 UEFA Champions League 2Q Milsami Orhei 0–1 1–2 1–3
2016–17 UEFA Champions League 2Q Mladost Podgorica 2–0 3–0 5–0
3Q Red Star Belgrade 2–2 4–2 (a.e.t.) 6–4
PO Viktoria Plzeň 2–0 2–2 4–2
Group A Paris Saint-Germain 1–3 2–2 3rd
Arsenal 2–3 0–6
Basel 0–0 1–1
UEFA Europa League Round of 32 Copenhagen 1–2 0–0 1–2
2017–18 UEFA Champions League 2Q Žalgiris 4–1 1–2 5–3
3Q Hapoel Be'er Sheva 3–1 0–2 3–3 (a)
UEFA Europa League PO Sūduva Marijampolė 2–0 0–0 2–0
Group C Braga 1–1 2–0 2nd
1899 Hoffenheim 2–1 1–1
İstanbul Başakşehir 1–2 0–0
Round of 32 Milan 0–3 0–1 0–4
2018–19 UEFA Champions League 1Q Crusaders 7–0 2–0 9–0
2Q Vidi 0–0 0–1 0–1
UEFA Europa League 3Q Zrinjski Mostar 1–0 1–1 2–1
PO Torpedo Kutaisi 4–0 1–0 5–0
Group A Bayer Leverkusen 2–3 1–1 4th
Zürich 1–1 0–1
AEK Larnaca 0–0 1–1
2019–20 UEFA Champions League 1Q Ferencváros 2−3 1−2 3−5
UEFA Europa League 2Q Valur 4–0 1–1 5–1
3Q The New Saints 5–0 4–0 9–0
PO Maribor 0–0 2–2 2–2 (a)
Group H CSKA Moscow 5–1 1–1 2nd
Ferencváros 1–1 3–0
Espanyol 0–1 0–6
Round of 32 Inter Milan 0–2 1–2 1–4
2020–21 UEFA Champions League 1Q Budućnost Podgorica N/A 3–1 N/A
2Q Midtjylland 0–1 N/A N/A
UEFA Europa League 3Q Bye N/A N/A N/A
PO Dynamo Brest N/A 2–0 N/A
Group J Tottenham Hotspur 1–3 0–4 4th
LASK 1–3 3–4
Antwerp 1–2 1–3
Notes
  • 1Q: First qualifying round
  • 2Q: Second qualifying round
  • 3Q: Third qualifying round
  • PO: Play-off round

Achievements and records

  • Biggest European home win: Ludogorets 7–0 Crusaders (11 July 2018, UEFA Champions league qualifying round first leg)
  • Biggest European away win: The New Saints 0–4 Ludogorets (15 August 2019, UEFA Europa League Third qualifying round second leg)
  • Biggest European home defeat: Ludogorets 0–3 Valencia (13 March 2014, UEFA Europa League Round of 16)
  • Biggest European away defeat: Arsenal 6–0 Ludogorets (19 October 2016, UEFA Champions League group stage); Espanyol 6–0 Ludogorets (7 November 2019, UEFA Europa League group stage)
  • Ludogorets became the first Bulgarian team to begin their group stage participation in European tournaments with 3 consecutive wins, when in the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League group stage they recorded consecutive wins against PSV Eindhoven (2–0), Dinamo Zagreb (3–0) and Chornomorets Odesa (1–0), without conceding a goal in any of the games.
  • After the end of the Round of 32 in the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League, Ludogorets became the first Bulgarian team to record 9 wins in European competitions in a single season, as well as the first Bulgarian team to record 5 away wins in European competitions in a single season.
  • During the 2014-15 UEFA Champions League, Ludogorets became the second Bulgarian team to reach the group stages of the competition, the first being Levski Sofia in 2006–07.
  • During the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League group stage, Ludogorets became the first Bulgarian team to record points in that competition when they defeated Basel 1–0 at home. This was also the first home win for a Bulgarian team in the UEFA Champions League, and was followed by a 2–2 home draw with Liverpool.
  • Ludogorets became the first Bulgarian team to qualify twice for the Champions League group stage, achieving the feat during the 2016–17 season of the tournament. During that season, the team set a new record for most goals scored (6), and became the first Bulgarian team to avoid finishing last in their group.
  • As of the 2017–18 season Ludogorets holds the record for most points scored in the UEFA Champions League group stage by a Bulgarian team with 4, most goals scored with 6, and fewest goals conceded with 14.

Goalscoring and appearance records

As of 10 December 2020

Most appearances for the club in European competitions

RankNameCareerAppearances
1 Cosmin Moți2012–81
2 Marcelinho2011–202080
3 Svetoslav Dyakov2011–78
4 Wanderson2014–63
5 Claudiu Keșerü2015–56
6 Anicet Abel2014–53
7 Virgil Misidjan2013–201851
8 Cicinho2015–47
9 Vladislav Stoyanov2013–42
10 Jody Lukoki2015–202041

Most goals for the club in European competitions

RankNameCareerGoals
1 Claudiu Keșerü2015–16
2 Wanderson2014–15
3 Marcelinho2011–202014
4 Jakub Świerczok2018–10
4 Jody Lukoki2015–202010
6 Roman Bezjak2012–20158
7 Virgil Misidjan2013–20187
8 Cosmin Moți2012–6
8 Dani Abalo2013–20156
10 Elvis Manu2020–5

References

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