Martin Georgiev
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Martin Pavlov Georgiev | ||
| Date of birth | 24 September 2005 | ||
| Place of birth | Sofia, Bulgaria | ||
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | AEK Athens | ||
| Number | 15 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2015–2021 | Slavia Sofia | ||
| 2022–2023 | → Barcelona (loan) | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2021–2022 | Slavia Sofia II | 17 | (0) |
| 2021–2025 | Slavia Sofia | 85 | (3) |
| 2026– | AEK Athens | 2 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2021–2022 | Bulgaria U17 | 11 | (2) |
| 2021–2023 | Bulgaria U19 | 15 | (2) |
| 2022– | Bulgaria U21 | 14 | (0) |
| 2025– | Bulgaria | 4 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 22 February 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 30 March 2026 | |||
Martin Pavlov Georgiev (Bulgarian: Мартин Павлов Георгиев; born 24 September 2005) is a Bulgarian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Super League Greece club AEK Athens and the Bulgaria national team.
He was included in The Guardian's "Next Generation" list for 2022.[2]
Club career
[edit]Born in Sofia, Georgiev started his career at the local club Slavia. He made his professional debut for the team on 11 November 2021 in a league match against CSKA Sofia.[3] One week later, he played his second league match against Ludogorets, but was sent off with a straight red after a heavy foul.[4] In May 2022, it was reported that Barcelona were interested in signing Martin.[5] On June 1, Slavia's owner, Ventseslav Stefanov, announced that the deal was almost completed and Martin would sign with Barcelona for 2 years, however, the final agreement between the two clubs ended up being a one-year loan deal with Barcelona's Juvenil A team.[6]
On 15 July 2022, Georgiev joined Barcelona Juvenil A on loan with an option to buy.[7] In September of the same year, he was named by English newspaper The Guardian as one of the best players born in 2005 worldwide.[8] On 4 July 2023, Slavia announced his return to the team from Barça following the completion of his loan.[9]
International career
[edit]Georgiev represented Bulgaria U17 at the 2022 UEFA European Under-17 Championship where the team finished last in the group stage.[10] On 14 October 2025, he earned his first cap for the senior national team, playing the full 90 minutes and conceding a last-minute penalty in the 0–4 away loss against Spain in a 2026 World Cup qualifier.[11]
Career statistics
[edit]- As of match played 8 September 2026[12]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Slavia Sofia | 2021–22 | Bulgarian First League | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 1[b] | 0 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2023–24 | Bulgarian First League | 20 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | 6[c] | 0 | 27 | 2 | ||
| 2024–25 | Bulgarian First League | 29 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 7[c] | 0 | 37 | 1 | ||
| 2025–26 | Bulgarian First League | 18 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 20 | 1 | |||
| Total | 72 | 3 | 5 | 1 | — | 14 | 0 | 91 | 4 | |||
| AEK Athens | 2025–26 | Super League Greece | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | |
| 2026–27 | Super League Greece | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 74 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 94 | 5 | ||
- ↑ Includes Bulgarian Cup, Greek Football Cup
- ↑ Appearances in Parva Liga Championship group
- 1 2 Appearances in Parva Liga Relegation group
Honours
[edit]AEK Athens
References
[edit]- ↑ "Profile at PFCSlavia.com".
- ↑ "Next Generation 2022: 60 of the best young talents in world football". The Guardian. 28 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
- ↑ ЦСКА изпусна питомното срещу Славия на Българска армия
- ↑ Мартин Георгиев остави Славия с 10 души след безумен червен картон
- ↑ Славия и Барселона се договориха за Мартин Георгиев, трансферът е въпрос на часове
- ↑ Венцеслав Стефанов: Мартин Георгиев ще бъде вторият българин в Барса
- ↑ Официално: Мартин Георгиев е футболист на Барселона
- ↑ Christenson, Marcus; Bloor, Steven; Blight, Garry (28 September 2022). "Next Generation 2022: 60 of the best young talents in world football". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
- ↑ Мартин Георгиев с горещ коментар и първи думи пред БЛИЦ TV след завръщането от Барселона!
- ↑ Ето състава на България U17 за Европейското
- ↑ Drumchev, Philip, ed. (14 October 2025). "България не издържа пред испанската класа - седми пореден Мондиал без нас". sportal.bg (in Bulgarian). Retrieved 15 October 2025.
- ↑ Martin Georgiev at Soccerway
External links
[edit]- Martin Georgiev at Soccerway.com
- Martin Georgiev at Kicker (in German)
- 2005 births
- Living people
- Footballers from Sofia
- Bulgarian men's footballers
- Men's association football defenders
- PFC Slavia Sofia players
- FC Barcelona Atlètic players
- AEK Athens F.C. players
- First Professional Football League (Bulgaria) players
- Super League Greece players
- Bulgaria men's youth international footballers
- Bulgaria men's under-21 international footballers
- Bulgaria men's international footballers
- Bulgarian expatriate men's footballers
- Bulgarian expatriate sportspeople in Spain
- Expatriate men's footballers in Spain
- Bulgarian expatriate sportspeople in Greece
- Expatriate men's footballers in Greece
- 21st-century Bulgarian sportsmen