Top facts about Martin Petrov, Bulgarian winger

Martin Petyov Petrov (born January 15, 1979) is a retired Bulgarian footballer who played as an attacker. Petrov began his football career at Botev Vratsa.

Martin Petrov’s age

is 43. Here you can find out the most important facts about Martin Petrov, former Man City and Bolton winger.

Petrov joined

at the end of July 2005. With the move, he realized a childhood ambition of playing in Spain, where his favorite club, FC Barcelona, also competes.

The move was possible because Petrov's contract included a release clause that allowed him to leave the club for a fee of €10 million. During a game against Recreativo Huelva in October 2006, he tore his cruciate ligament and was sidelined for more than a year.

A notable fact about Martin Petrov is that he moved to England in July 2007 for £4.7 million to join

, managed by Sven-Göran Eriksson, for the 2007/08 season. His contract with Manchester City was not extended in the summer of 2010, and he left the club as a result.

Petrov signed a two-year contract with Bolton Wanderers in early July 2010. In January 2013, he moved to Espanyol Barcelona in Spain's first division, where he signed a contract until the end of the 2012/13 season. Petrov signed a contract with CSKA Sofia in October 2013. He retired from there in 2014.

Petrov played 90 times for the Bulgarian national team, including at the 2004 European Football Championship in Portugal.

Petrov scored two goals in two minutes to tie the game at 2–0 in the last minutes of the Bulgarian national team's Euro 2008 opening qualification game against Romania in Constanţa on September 2, 2006. This was seen as an incredible comeback. In addition, he scored against Slovenia (3–0) and the Netherlands (1–1) in a 1–1 tie.

An important fact about Martin Petrov is that he was named Bulgarian Footballer of the Year in 2006 for his efforts in the 2006 qualifying campaign. Petrov won his 80th cap for

in a 0–1 home defeat to Montenegro in a UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier on September 7, 2010.

On August 11, 2007, he made his Premier League debut in Manchester City's 2–0 victory against West Ham United at Upton Park. On September 22, 2007, he scored his first goal against Fulham. Following that, Petrov scored two goals, one in a 3–1 victory against

and the other in a 2–1 victory over Reading, as well as six assists.

In the home defeat to Everton, he was sent off by referee Rob Styles for kicking Leon Osman. He received a straight red card for the challenge, which resulted in a three-game suspension. Petrov added to his tally against Portsmouth with a goal.

After months of speculation in the press regarding his departure, it was announced on July 24, 2007, that Atlético Madrid had set a £6.2 million price on him. He departed the Atlético Madrid training camp later that day to consider his future, with Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City also reportedly interested in signing him.

According to rumors in the Spanish press on July 25, Petrov had already signed terms and undergone medical tests with Manchester City, and that only minor issues remained to be worked out before a transfer to Eastlands could be completed. On July 26, 2007, Manchester City announced the £4.7 million (€7 million) three-year deal. Read on to find out more facts about Martin Petrov.

Top facts about Martin Petrov:

The notable fact about Martin Petrov is that he joined CSKA Sofia while he was still a teenager. He moved to Switzerland in early 1999 to join Servette Geneva. In 2001, he joined

in the Bundesliga, where he scored 28 goals and had 36 assists in 116 games.

Martin Petrov early life

Martin Petyov Petrov began his professional career with FC Botev (Vratsa). At the age of ten, he enrolled in the "Botev" school, which was directed by Angel Tsenov - Geleto.

He started out as a left back, then a midfielder, before finding his place up front, in the attack, where he stayed until the end of his career.

Speaking about

Martin Petrov’s childhood

, it should be mentioned that he was named the best athlete at the national youth tournament in 1994. He scored nine goals in a single game for Lokomotiv (Mezdra).

There is no information available about

Martin Petrov’s parents

. He was only 16 years old when he made his debut for Botev Vratsa's men's team. He scored his first hat-trick against Suhindol's team a year later.

He balanced trainings and competitions with long days at the Vratsa Mechanical Technical School PTG "N. J. Vaptsarov." At the same time, he was a member of the junior national team.

Martin Petrov professional career

As one of the Bulgarian football's favorite sons, Martin Petrov is a former player who scored his national side's only goal the last time they qualified for a major international tournament back in 2004.

Martin Petrov club career

An important fact about Martin Petrov is that he began his professional career working for Botev Vratsa. He joined with CSKA Sofia after a few successful seasons, and the Swiss side purchased the 19-year-old for 1.2 million German marks following two successful games against Servette in the UEFA Cup.

Wolfsburg VfL

Petrov joined VfL Wolfsburg in 2001 and quickly established himself as a dynamic player. On 14 July 2001, he made his competitive debut in a 4–3 home triumph against Dinamo Minsk in the Intertoto Cup, scoring a goal and assisting on another.

On the first day of the 2001–02 Bundesliga season, Petrov made his league debut for Wolfsburg in a 2–1 away defeat to Bayer 04 Leverkusen on July 28.

Petrov made 32 Bundesliga games in his debut season with Wolfsburg, scoring six goals and providing 11 assists.

Petrov scored all four goals in Wolfsburg's 4–3 triumph against

on October 30, 2004. During the 2004–05 season, he made 30 appearances and scored 12 goals, making him the club's leading scorer. In addition, he has 14 assists.

Atletico Madrid

A notable fact about Martin Petrov is that he was purchased for €10 million by Atlético Madrid in the summer of 2005. Petrov sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury in a game against Recreativo de Huelva on October 14, 2006, and was out for more than six months.

On April 28, 2007, he returned to Atlético Madrid after a catastrophic knee injury, playing 56 minutes in a 0–0 draw against Real Betis. Petrov scored the lone goal in Atlético's 2–1 loss against Espanyol on May 6.

After months of speculation in the press regarding his departure, it was announced on July 24, 2007, that Atlético Madrid had set a £6.2 million price on him. He departed the Atlético Madrid training camp later that day to consider his future, with Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City also reportedly interested in signing him.

According to rumors in the Spanish press on July 25, Petrov had already signed terms and undergone medical tests with Manchester City, and that only minor issues remained to be worked out before a transfer to Eastlands could be completed. On July 26, 2007, Manchester City announced the £4.7 million (€7 million) three-year deal.

Manchester City

On August 11, 2007, he made his Premier League debut in Manchester City's 2–0 victory against West Ham United at Upton Park. On September 22, 2007, he scored his first goal against Fulham.

Following that, Petrov scored two goals, one in a 3–1 victory against Newcastle United and the other in a 2–1 victory over Reading, as well as six assists. In the home defeat to Everton, he was sent off by referee Rob Styles for kicking Leon Osman.

An important

fact about Martin Petrov

is that he received a straight red card for the challenge, which resulted in a three-game suspension. Petrov added to his tally against Portsmouth with a goal.

Petrov was linked with a transfer away from the City of Manchester Stadium with the arrival of new players such as

and Emmanuel Adebayor.

He went in and out of the first team on a regular basis. However, he scored goals in his first two starts, encouraging Hughes to start Petrov at home against Fulham in place of Shaun Wright-Phillips. He scored, but he also worsened his knee ailment, which had been bothering him.

After Mark Hughes was fired and

took manager, he started both league games and scored in a 2–0 victory against Stoke City on December 26. He also openly voiced his displeasure with Hughes for often moving Petrov in and out of the starting lineup.

Petrov confirmed on April 18, 2010, that his season was ended and that he would miss the last four Premier League games due to a knee injury.

Petrov's contract had ended on June 8, 2010, and he, along with Benjani Mwaruwari, Karl Moore, and Sylvinho, would be departing the club.

Bolton Wanderers

A notable

fact about Martin Petrov

is that he reached agreement with

on June 22, 2010, and the free move was finalized when the transfer window opened on July 1, 2010.

On September 26, 2010, he scored his first goal for the club against Manchester United, and he concluded the season with three goals. As Bolton were demoted from the Premier League, he scored six goals in his second season, four in the league, one in the League Cup, and one in the FA Cup.

Petrov had played enough matches at the conclusion of the season (he required 30 to trigger a provision in his contract), allowing him to extend his contract for another season.

Espanyol

On 14 January 2013, Petrov signed a contract with RCD Espanyol in La Liga for the rest of the 2012–13 season. He failed to get into the first squad and eventually departed the club at the conclusion of the season.

CSKA Sofia

Petrov returned to CSKA Sofia in October 2013 after a 15-year absence. Petrov made his comeback to the "armymen" on October 31, 2013, when he came in as a second-half replacement in a 1–0 home victory over Beroe in an A Group encounter.

On November 16, he made his debut as a starter in a 0–0 draw with Levski Sofia in a Bulgarian Cup match. On November 25, he scored his debut goal in a 3–1 away victory against PFC Neftochimic Burgas.

Petrov's last match as a professional footballer took place on May 17, 2014, in a 1–1 draw against Lokomotiv Plovdiv in the final round of the 2013–14 A Group season.

Martin Petrov international career

An important fact about Martin Petrov is that he was called up to the Bulgarian national team for the first time in June 1999, for a Euro 2000 qualifier against

. He was brought in as a stand-in for his hero, Hristo Stoichkov.

However, his international career got off to a shaky start when he was sent off for a second yellow card only eight minutes after coming in as a replacement. Petrov sobbed as he walked off the field.

Petrov was a vital player in Bulgaria's disappointing Euro 2004 campaign, performing well in all three games and scored the sole goal of the tournament, a penalty against Italy in Bulgaria's 1–2 defeat.

Petrov scored two goals in two minutes to tie the game at 2–0 in the last minutes of the Bulgarian national team's Euro 2008 opening qualification game against Romania in Constanţa on September 2, 2006. This was seen as an incredible comeback.

In addition, he scored against Slovenia (3–0) and the Netherlands (1–1) in a 1–1 tie. He was named Bulgarian Footballer of the Year in 2006 for his efforts in the 2006 qualifying campaign.

Petrov won his 80th cap for Bulgaria in a 0–1 home defeat to

in a UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier on September 7, 2010.

Martin Petrov quotes

Martin Petrov gives off the image of a guy who has rediscovered work happiness. In football, it's sometimes better to take a step back, swallow a little pride if necessary, if it means being in an environment that feels right, and Petrov's body language as a Bolton Wanderers playerwas markedly different now than it was during his difficult days at Manchester City.

The Bulgarian joined Bolton after his contract at City expired and he discovered the hard way that he would not be offered a new one.

That was a step back in terms of the club's fan base and objectives, but it doesn't concern him. Petrov had quickly established himself as a first-team option on the left side of Bolton's attack, providing breadth and penetration.

The knee ailment that plagued him at Eastlands has been addressed, and he admits that he feels compelled to prove that City made a mistake in not believing in him.

"Everyone knows they intend to use the money to build a massive club," he continues. "They've brought in a lot of players and spent a lot of money, but I don't believe that everything in this world comes with money."

"It's really difficult for us since he's the team's leading scorer," Petrov, a personal friend of the

striker, adds. "I didn't seek for an explanation when dad called to announce he was retiring since it was personal and I wasn't family. Everyone wants Berba back, but I don't believe that will happen now."

Petrov has experienced his own set of problems. "Hard and frustrating" are the words he uses to characterize his last season at City, when he was nursing a wounded knee and an even worse grudge towards Mark Hughes and, later, Mancini. You might see City responding with sour grapes, but Petrov claims there's more to it.

"Because my contract was up in June, I went to visit Mancini in January to inquire about my future. He stated it wasn't the proper moment and that they'd chat in two weeks, but nothing happened after that. Nobody ever mentioned my future to me again. Nobody ever remarked to me, Martin, thank you for your time; you are a highly professional player."

"It took me by surprise. I was not an 18-year-old; I was a 31-year-old who has represented my country and country's national team, therefore I believed I have a decent reputation and deserve to be heard."

After surgery to replace the meniscus cartilage in his knee, he hit rock bottom. "After that, I didn't play another game and instead focused only on my job.

That was a really trying period for me. In football terms, I am 31, and when you have a surgery, your contract is up, and the season is gone, it's not ideal. 'Are you OK now?' was typically the first thing other clubs asked."

Owen Coyle, who had transformed Bolton into a more appealing passing side, was one of many who saw the value in a deal. Petrov points to a ball flying past his head and adds, "I remember how Bolton used to play."

"However, when they talked to me, it was evident that they wanted to try out for more football, which helped me make up my mind."

There have been no regrets since then. "Everyone knows we don't have any huge names from the Champions League," says Coyle, "but it's a close-knit club and Owen Coyle is like a father to the players, constantly talking to everyone and making sure everything is OK."

"We're under pressure as well because we want to qualify [for Euro 2012], but England is under more," he added.

"Everyone knows England has a lot of great names and talented players, but I don't believe they have a team. I'm not sure why. If you look at each player individually, you'll see that they're all really strong players.

They have a powerful management as well, but they just do not follow through. England is going through a terrible period right now, which may be beneficial to us."

Martin Petrov believes he has come to regret joining Wanderers due to a lack of first-team chances. The Bulgarian winger, who was permitted to join

on a free transfer in January after being recruited on a Bosman from Manchester City, spent two and a half years at the Reebok.

Despite insisting that he has no grievances towards either Owen Coyle, who signed him, or Dougie Freedman, who dismissed him, the veteran confesses to being upset that he was not given a sustained run in the squad.

"To be honest, I don't believe that (signing Bolton) was a good decision for me," Petrov stated in an Omnisport syndicated video interview.

"With all due respect to the personnel at Bolton, they dealt with me in a professional manner." I didn't have any issues there, however signing there was not a smart idea for me. That is my viewpoint.

"Some unusual things occurred there, but I'm not going to talk about it right now." I'm not sure why they were so hostile toward me.

"I have nothing against the manager (Coyle) or the new manager (Freedman), but every time I show them what I can do on the field, and I know precisely what I can do in the Championship, they tell me I don't have a place to play." I'm sorry, but I'm not able to accept it."

"In my judgment, the level is lower," he said. "I was hoping for a little bit more. My football pals tell me that the Championship is a decent level, comparable to the Premier League, but I believe it is really low.

"You can see what has occurred at big-name teams like Leeds and Middlesbrough. How many years have they spent in the second division and are unable to return? If you miss the first year, the rest of your life will be extremely tough."

Some more facts about Martin Petrov:

Martin Petrov played as a winger and striker for Botev (Vratsa), CSKA (Sofia), Swiss Servette, German Wolfsburg, Spanish Atletico Madrid, and English Manchester City and Bolton during his nearly 20-year professional career.

From 1999 to 2011, he appeared in 90 games for the Bulgarian national team, scoring 19 goals. In 2004, he competed in the European Championship in Portugal.

Martin Petyov Petrov began his professional career with FC Botev (Vratsa). At the age of ten, he enrolled in the "Botev" school, which was directed by Angel Tsenov - Geleto. He starts as a left back, then a midfielder, until he finds his place in the attack, where he stays until the end of his career.

Martin Petrov was named the best athlete at the national youth tournament in 1994. He scored nine goals in a single game for Lokomotiv (Mezdra). He was only 16 years old when he made his debut for Botev Vratsa's men's team. He scored his first hat-trick against Suhindol's team a year later.

He balances trainings and competitions with long days at the Vratsa Mechanical Technical School PTG "N. J. Vaptsarov." At the same time, he is a member of the junior national team.

The good performances in FC Botev (Vratsa) do not escape the attention of observers, and he moved to CSKA in 1997 at the explicit request of the then-coach Georgi Vassilev. He played 23 games and scored 5 goals in the "A" group, and 18 games and scored 4 goals in the "B" group.

In 1999, he was purchased by Servette (Geneva), with whom he won the Swiss championship in 1999 and the national cup in 2001.

In 2001, he joined the German club Wolfsburg. In 2005, he was voted the team's number one player for the 2004/2005 season in a poll of team fans. He is also Wolfsburg's top scorer for the same season, with 12 accurate goals (as well as the central striker of the club Thomas Bardaric).

Four of Petrov's goals have come from penalties, and he has converted all four of his penalty kicks. Martin Petrov is ranked fourth in the Bundesliga in the Kicker magazine - Goal plus goal pass ranking, with a total of 26 points (12 goals + 14 assists).

He was a member of Atletico Madrid from 2005 to 2007. He was named Bulgaria's Footballer of the Year in 2006.

It was purchased by Manchester City for 4.7 million pounds in the summer of 2007. He signed as a free agent with Bolton Wanderers in 2010 for two and a half seasons.

Javier Aguirre, his former Atletico Madrid coach, enticed him to join the troubled Espanyol in early 2013. Petrov will undergo medical tests and sign until the end of the season, with Espanyol holding the option to extend his contract for another year.

He returned to Bulgaria for a brief period at the end of October 2013, where he finished the season with the CSKA Sofia team (Sofia). Martin Petrov announced his retirement from the sport on July 17, 2014, in his hometown of Vratsa.

He made the announcement to the media at the stadium where he took his first steps as a football player. "I came to Hristo Botev Stadium because I'll never forget leaving here for the big game." I will always back Botev because I am a member of this club...”

He competed in EURO 2004 in Portugal, where he scored Bulgaria's only goal from a penalty against Italy. Bulgaria was defeated in the match by a score of 1 - 2.

He also scored four goals in the 2006 World Cup qualifiers in Germany. He appeared in three matches for EURO 2008, scoring in all three. Bulgaria defeated Romania 2 - 2 in two minutes on September 2, 2006, thanks to his two goals.

He then scored 3-0 against Slovenia, 1-1 against the

, and 2-1 against Belarus. In mid-October, I ruptured my cruciate ligaments and had to recover for six months.

He returned to the field in April 2007. On March 29, 2011, he scored a goal for Cyprus in their 1:0 victory. For the national team, he has played 90 games and scored 20 goals.

An important

fact about Martin Petrov

is that he is a former student of Botewu Wraca, from which he transferred quickly to the CSKA Sofia preschool. At the age of seventeen, he made his debut in the club's senior team from the country's capital, as did his peers and later partner from the Bulgarian national team, Stilijan Petrov.

The young player impressed the officials of Servette FC, who brought him to Switzerland in the same season that Stilijan joined Celtic Glasgow.

Initially a substitute, he was quickly promoted to the first team; after the 2000-2001 season, when Servette won the national Cup and scored eleven goals in 32 league matches, he left for Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg.

With the team finishing in the middle of the table almost every season (the best result in Petrov's game - eighth place in 2004), he did not win any trophies, but thanks to playing in Wolfsburg, he became one of the most interesting and effective midfielders in Germany.

In four years he played for the club one hundred and sixteen matches, in which he scored twenty-eight goals, and at the end of the 2004–2005 season (twelve goals and eleven assists) He has been a member of Atlético Madrid since 2005.

After two years of playing in Spain, he moved to Manchester City for 4.7 million pounds in July 2007 - unexpectedly (a few days earlier he was a candidate for the new captain of Atlético) - and thus joined his teammates Stilijan Petrov and Dimityr Berbatov, who also play in the Premiership. Petrov was one of the club's first signings under new manager Sven-Göran Eriksson.

On August 11, he made his debut for the new team in a league match against West Ham United. On September 22, he scored his first goals against

. He had 34 league appearances by the end of his rookie season.

A notable fact about Martin Petrov is that he suffered a meniscus injury in October 2008, which kept him out of the game for the next four months. Bulgar signed a contract with Bolton Wanderers in June 2010.

The Bulgarian signed a contract with Espanyol Barcelona on January 14, 2013, which was valid until the end of the season. If Espanyol had avoided relegation, their contract with Bulgaria would have automatically been extended for another year.

Petrov returned to the national club where he made his first steps after fifteen years of playing abroad. Petrov made his CSKA Sofia debut on October 31 in a 1-0 league win over Beore.

On September 9, 1999, he made his Bulgarian debut at the age of twenty. He replaced Christo Jowow in the 46th minute of England's 1-1 Euro 2000 qualifying match, and he received a red card after twelve minutes.

Four years later, at Euro 2004, he played in all three matches and scored the only goal for Bulgaria; Pamen Markov's players were defeated in all three games (goals 1: 9).

In the Euro 2008 qualifiers, he was one of the team leaders (along with Stilijan Petrov and Dimityr Berbatov) and the player who scored the most goals (6), including all of them in crucial matches against

(2: 2) and the Netherlands (1: 1).

Martin Petrov social media

Regarding

Martin Petrov social media

, it should be mentioned that he has an Instagram page (

) with more than 5.5k followers. On the page, we can see various pictures of him along with his fans and family.

Martin Petrov body measurements

Speaking about

Martin Petrov body measurements

, it should be mentioned that the former player is 180cm and 76kg.

Martin Petrov net worth and salary

Martin Petrov's net worth

is estimated to be around $1.5 million, according to Wikipedia, Forbes, and Business Insider.

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