Petko Hristov

This article is about a Bulgarian football player. For Bulgarian Roman Catholic prelate, see Petko Christov.

In this Bulgarian name, the patronymic is Rosenov and the family name is Hristov.
Petko Hristov
Personal information
Full name Petko Rosenov Hristov
Date of birth (1999-03-01) 1 March 1999 (age 25)
Place of birth Sofia, Bulgaria
Height 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)[1]
Position(s) Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Spezia
Number 55
Youth career
2008–2013 Levski Sofia
2013–2016 Slavia Sofia
2017–2018 Fiorentina
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2017 Slavia Sofia 26 (1)
2017–2021 Fiorentina 0 (0)
2018–2019 → Ternana (loan) 13 (1)
2019–2020 → Bisceglie (loan) 25 (0)
2020–2021 → Pro Vercelli (loan) 33 (2)
2021– Spezia 54 (6)
2023 → Venezia (loan) 12 (0)
International career‡
2015–2016 Bulgaria U17 14 (0)
2016–2018 Bulgaria U19 15 (0)
2017–2020 Bulgaria U21 18 (0)
2021– Bulgaria 19 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 16:53, 2 September 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 20 June 2023

Petko Rosenov Hristov (Bulgarian: Петко Росенов Христов; born 1 March 1999) is a Bulgarian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Serie B club Spezia and the Bulgaria national team.[2]

Career

Slavia Sofia

Hristov started his career in Levski Sofia, before relocating to Slavia Sofia in 2013.[3] He made his senior debut for Slavia in a match of the Europa League against Polish club Zagłębie Lubin on 30 June 2016, coming on as a substitute for Georgi Yomov.[4] A month later he made his Bulgarian First League debut in the opening game of the season against CSKA Sofia.[5] He scored his first goal on 10 September in a 5–2 home win over Lokomotiv Plovdiv. On 1 October Petko was joined by his twin brother Andrea Hristov in the central defense for the very first time against Vereya in the starting line-up.[6]

On 3 April 2017, Hristov signed his first professional contract with the club until 31 July 2020.[7]

Fiorentina

On 17 July 2017, Fiorentina confirmed they had signed Hristov on a five-year contract after Firenze Viola, Fiorentina owner, himself liked the player after seeing him in action at the European Under-19 Championship.[8] On 20 August 2017, he was on the bench for the first time in the Serie A match against Inter Milan.[9] He made his unofficial debut for the club against Real Madrid on 24 August coming on as a substitute in added time for the Trofeo Bernabeu game.[10][11]

Ternana (loan)

On 16 August 2018, Hristov joined Serie C club Ternana on loan until 30 June 2019.[12] He scored his first goal for the club on 4 December 2018 in a league match against Rimini won by Ternana by 3:0.[13]

Bisceglie (loan)

On 9 August 2019, Hristov joined Serie C club Bisceglie on loan until 30 June 2020.[14]

Pro Vercelli (loan)

On 18 September 2020, Hristov joined Serie C club Pro Vercelli on loan until 30 June 2021.

Spezia

After his good performance for Pro Vercelli in Serie C, on 5 July 2021 Hristov moved to Serie A team Spezia, signing a contract until 2025.[15] He made his debut for the team on 13 August in a Coppa Italia match against Pordenone and compleated his Serie A debut on 23 August in a match against Cagliari.[16]

Venezia (loan)

On 26 January 2023, Hristov was loaned to Venezia for the rest of the 2022–23 season.[17]

International career

Youth levels

Hristov was called up for the Bulgaria U19 team for the 2017 European Under-19 Championship qualification from 22 to 27 March 2017.[18] After a draw and 2 wins the team qualified for the knockout phase which was held in July 2017.[19] Petkov played in all 3 matches from the group stage when Bulgaria were eliminated.

On 5 September 2017, he made his debut for the Bulgaria U21 in a match against Luxembourg U21.[20]

Senior team

He made his debut for the Bulgaria national football team on 31 March 2021 in a World Cup qualifier against Northern Ireland. His twin brother Andrea made his debut in the same game as well.[21]

Personal life

Petko Hristov has a twin brother, Andrea, who is also a professional footballer.[22]

Career statistics

Club

As of 1 May 2023.[2]
Club Season League Cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Slavia Sofia First League 2016–17 25 1 0 0 1 0 4[a] 0 30 1
2017–18 1 0 – – – 1 0
Total 26 1 0 0 1 0 4 0 31 1
Fiorentina Serie A 2017–18 0 0 0 0 – – 0 0
Ternana (loan) Serie C 2018–19 13 1 1[b] 0 – – 14 1
Bisceglie (loan) 2019–20 25 0 0 0 – – 25 0
Pro Vercelli (loan) 2020–21 33 2 0 0 – 3[c] 0 36 2
Spezia Serie A 2021–22 17 1 2 0 – – 19 1
2022–23 9 0 2 0 – – 11 0
Total 26 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 30 1
Venezia (loan) Serie B 2022–23 9 0 – – – 9 1
Career total 132 5 5 0 1 0 7 0 145 5
  1. ^ Relegation Play-offs
  2. ^ Appearances in Coppa Italia Serie C
  3. ^ Appearances in Serie B – Promotion play-offs

International

As of match played 20 June 2023[23]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Bulgaria 2021 9 0
2022 8 0
2023 2 0
Total 19 0

Style of play

Hristov was described from the Italian media as a physically strong defender with great air abilities and being able to read the game which has led him to be compared to legendary Brazilian defender Thiago Silva.[24]

Awards

Individual

References

  1. ^ Todorov, Nayden (6 May 2015). "Кои са те? Отборът на бъдещето!" (in Bulgarian). 24chasa.bg. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  2. ^ a b Petko Hristov at Soccerway
  3. ^ "Братята Де Бур" от Овча купел
  4. ^ Slavia VS. Lubin 1 - 0
  5. ^ CSKA VS. Slavia 2 - 0
  6. ^ Slavia vs Vereya
  7. ^ Славия подписа с трима от героите на България
  8. ^ "Fiorentina complete Hristov signing". violachannel.tv. 17 July 2017.
  9. ^ Inter beats Fiorentina by 3:0
  10. ^ Cristiano Ronaldo goal, assist as Real Madrid win Trofeo Bernabeu game
  11. ^ Real Madrid 2:1 Fiorentina
  12. ^ "UFFICIALE: Fiorentina, Hristov saluta e va in prestito alla Ternana". Retrieved 16 August 2018.
  13. ^ Fere, 3-0 al Liberati con il Rimini nel recupero della prima giornata
  14. ^ "UFFICIALE: Bisceglie, ecco il bulgaro Hristov in prestito dalla Fiorentina". Retrieved 12 August 2019.
  15. ^ Ufficiale | Petko Hristov è un nuovo calciatore dello Spezia | Spezia Calcio - Sito ufficiale
  16. ^ Петко Христов със силен дебют в Серия А при равенство на Специя
  17. ^ "PETKO HRISTOV JOINS VENEZIA FC". Venezia F.C. 26 January 2023. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
  18. ^ Съставът на България (U19) за Елитния кръг във Франция
  19. ^ Футболът ни възкръсна! 19-годишните лъвове "изядоха" всички, България с нов грандиозен успех
  20. ^ Младежите падат от Люксембург
  21. ^ "Northern Ireland v Bulgaria game report". FIFA. 31 March 2021. Archived from the original on 2 February 2021.
  22. ^ "Петко и Андреа Христови: Малки сме, за да се главозамайваме". btvnovinite.bg (in Bulgarian). bTV Media Group. 27 June 2017.
  23. ^ "Petko Hristov". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 4 May 2023.
  24. ^ Dalla Bulgaria alla Viola per stregare Pioli: ecco Petko Hristov il nuovo Thiago Silva
  25. ^ Талант №1 Петко Христов: Мечтая да играя в чужбина