Nikolay Bozhov
 |
|||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Nikolay Angelov Bozhov | ||
| Date of birth | 18 July 1977 | ||
| Place of birth | Sofia, Bulgaria | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Club information | |||
|
Current team
|
Vitosha Bistritsa | ||
| Number | 17 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –1994 | Levski Sofia | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2005–2007 | Vihar Gorublyane | ? | (?) |
| 2007–2010 | Akademik Sofia | 66 | (29) |
| 2010–2012 | Slavia Sofia | 48 | (16) |
| 2012 | Hamrun Spartans | 11 | (1) |
| 2013– | Vitosha Bistritsa | 34 | (14) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 23 May 2014. |
|||
Nikolay Bozhov (Bulgarian: Николай Божов; born 18 July 1977 in Sofia) is a Bulgarian football forward who currently plays for Vitosha Bistritsa.
Bozhov started his youth career in Bulgarian powerhouse Levski Sofia's academy. At the age of 17, he retired from football because of a waist injury. Bozhov's father died soon after Bozhov finished his compulsory military service, so he had to take charge of his father's ironmonger's shop. The business quickly developed and the shop soon grew to a full-fledged enterprise. Bozhov imported goods from China and supplied local wholesale dealers. At the time, Bozhov did not even consider a return to football, as his business provided a good source of income and his waist problems continued.
In 2005, on the insistence of a friend, Bozhov started appearing for amateur side Vihar Gorublyane, returning to football after a ten-year break. He played for the team for two seasons in the lower divisions of Bulgaria's football pyramid. While a part-time player at Vihar, Bozhov did not receive any salary. In 2007, the club merged with B PFG side Akademik Sofia, thus Bozhov indirectly became part of that team.
In June 2007, at age 30, Bozhov signed his first professional contract with Akademik Sofia. Nonetheless he was not a full-time footballer for the club and would sometimes attend training as rarely as once or twice a week. He made his debut on 18 August 2007, during the 2007–08 season, in a 1–1 away draw against Yantra Gabrovo, coming on as a substitute for Troyan Radulov. In the next week he scored his first goal for a 2–1 away win against Velbazhd Kyustendil. In his first season as a professional footballer, Bozhov made 18 appearances in the B PFG and scored six goals.
During the following 2008–09 campaign, the Akademik manager decided to use Bozhov into the starting line-up as the team's main striker. In that season, Bozhov scored eight goals in 24 appearances.
...
Wikipedia