EUROPEAN QUALIFIERS - 2019/20 SEASON MATCH PRESS KITS Gradski Stadion Podgorica - Podgorica Friday 11 October 2019 Montenegro 20.45CET (20.45 local time) Bulgaria Group A - Matchday 7 Last updated 13/11/2019 11:19CET EUROPEAN QUALIFIERS OFFICIAL SPONSORS Previous meetings 2 Squad list 3 Head coach 5 Match officials 6 Match-by-match lineups 7 Legend 9 1 Montenegro - Bulgaria Friday 11 October 2019 - 20.45CET (20.45 local time) Match press kit Gradski Stadion Podgorica, Podgorica Previous meetings Head to Head 2020 UEFA European Championship Stage Date Match Result Venue Goalscorers reached Nedelev 82 (P); 22/03/2019 QR (GS) Bulgaria - Montenegro 1-1 Sofia Mugoša 50 UEFA EURO 2012 Stage Date Match Result Venue Goalscorers reached 04/06/2011 QR (GS) Montenegro - Bulgaria 1-1 Podgorica Djalović 53; Popov 66 07/09/2010 QR (GS) Bulgaria - Montenegro 0-1 Sofia Zverotić 36 FIFA World Cup Stage Date Match Result Venue Goalscorers reached Kishishev 45, Telkiyski 49, Berbatov 05/09/2009 QR (GS) Bulgaria - Montenegro 4-1 Sofia 83, Domovchiyski 90; Jovetić 9 Vučinić 62, Jovetić 82 06/09/2008 QR (GS) Montenegro - Bulgaria 2-2 Podgorica (P); St.Petrov 11, Georgiev 90+2 Final Qualifying Total tournament Home Away Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L GF GA EURO Montenegro 1 0 1 0 2 1 1 0 - - - - 3 1 2 0 3 2 Bulgaria 2 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 - - - - 3 0 2 1 2 3 FIFA* Montenegro 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 - - - - 2 0 1 1 3 6 Bulgaria 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 - - - - 2 1 1 0 6 3 Friendlies Montenegro - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Bulgaria - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Total Montenegro 2 0 2 0 3 1 1 1 - - - - 5 1 3 1 6 8 Bulgaria 3 1 1 1 2 0 2 0 - - - - 5 1 3 1 8 6 * FIFA World Cup/FIFA Confederations Cup 2 Montenegro - Bulgaria Friday 11 October 2019 - 20.45CET (20.45 local time) Match press kit Gradski Stadion Podgorica, Podgorica Squad list Montenegro Current season Qual. FT No. Player DoB Age Club D Pld Gls Pld Gls Goalkeepers - Milan Mijatović 26/07/1987 32 Levski - 2 0 0 0 - Andrija Dragojević 25/12/1991 27 Pyunik - 0 0 0 0 - Danijel Petković 25/05/1993 26 Angers - 3 0 0 0 Defenders - Stefan Savić 08/01/1991 28 Atlético - 1 0 0 0 - Darko Bulatović 05/09/1989 30 Sutjeska - 0 0 0 0 - Marko Simić 16/06/1987 32 Pakhtakor * 3 0 0 0 - Aleksandar Šofranac 21/10/1990 28 Sutjeska - 0 0 0 0 - Nemanja Sekulić 29/03/1994 25 Zeta - 0 0 0 0 - Adam Marušić 17/10/1992 26 Lazio - 5 0 0 0 Midfielders - Aleksandar Šćekić 12/12/1991 27 Partizan - 1 0 0 0 - Nikola Vukčević 13/12/1991 27 Levante - 4 0 0 0 - Nebojša Kosović 24/02/1995 24 Kairat - 4 0 0 0 - Damir Kojašević 03/06/1987 32 Sutjeska - 0 0 0 0 - Deni Hočko 22/04/1994 25 Mouscron - 1 0 0 0 Budućnost - Luka Mirković 01/11/1990 28 - 0 0 0 0 Podgorica Standard - Aleksandar Boljević 12/12/1995 23 * 4 0 0 0 Liège - Marko Janković 09/07/1995 24 SPAL - 4 0 0 0 - Dušan Lagator 29/03/1994 25 Sochi - 1 0 0 0 Wisła - Vukan Savićević 29/01/1994 25 - 2 0 0 0 Kraków - Vladimir Jovović 26/10/1994 24 Jablonec - 4 0 0 0 Forwards M. - Fatos Bećiraj 05/05/1988 31 - 5 0 0 0 Netanya - Stefan Mugoša 26/02/1992 27 Incheon - 5 2 0 0 - Sead Hakšabanović 04/05/1999 20 Norrköping - 0 0 0 0 Coach - Faruk Hadzibegic 07/10/1957 62 - 1 0 0 0 3 Montenegro - Bulgaria Friday 11 October 2019 - 20.45CET (20.45 local time) Match press kit Gradski Stadion Podgorica, Podgorica Bulgaria Current season Qual. FT No. Player DoB Age Club D Pld Gls Pld Gls Goalkeepers - Hristo Ivanov 06/04/1982 37 Etar - 0 0 0 0 - Nikolay Mihaylov 28/06/1988 31 Levski - 4 0 0 0 - Plamen Iliev 30/11/1991 27 Ludogorets - 1 0 0 0 Defenders CSKA- - Petar Zanev 18/10/1985 33 - 2 0 0 0 Sofia Puskás - Kamen Hadzhiev 22/09/1991 28 - 0 0 0 0 Akadémia Ararat- - Georgi Pashov 04/03/1990 29 - 0 0 0 0 Armenia - Georgi Terziev 18/04/1992 27 Ludogorets - 0 0 0 0 - Ivan Goranov 10/06/1992 27 Levski - 1 0 0 0 - Anton Nedyalkov 30/04/1993 26 Ludogorets - 4 0 0 0 Botev - Kristian Dimitrov 27/02/1997 22 - 3 1 0 0 Plovdiv - Deyan Lozev 26/10/1993 25 Arda - 0 0 0 0 Midfielders - Ivelin Popov 26/10/1987 31 Rostov * 5 1 0 0 - Georgi Sarmov 07/09/1985 34 Chemnitz - 2 0 0 0 Slavia - Galin Ivanov 15/04/1988 31 - 3 0 0 0 Sofia Cherno - Vasil Panayotov 16/07/1990 29 - 0 0 0 0 More CSKA- - Kristiyan Malinov 30/03/1994 25 - 3 0 0 0 Sofia Arsenal - Georgi Kostadinov 07/09/1990 29 - 3 0 0 0 Tula - Marcelinho 24/08/1984 35 Ludogorets - 1 0 0 0 - Bozhidar Kraev 23/06/1997 22 Gil Vicente - 0 0 0 0 Lokomotiv - Birsent Karagaren 06/12/1992 26 - 0 0 0 0 Plovdiv - Wanderson 02/01/1988 31 Ludogorets - 1 0 0 0 Forwards Cherno - Ismail Isa 26/06/1989 30 - 2 1 0 0 More - Kiril Despodov 11/11/1996 22 Sturm - 3 0 0 0 Coach - Krasimir Balakov 29/03/1966 53 - 3 0 0 0 4 Montenegro - Bulgaria Friday 11 October 2019 - 20.45CET (20.45 local time) Match press kit Gradski Stadion Podgorica, Podgorica Head coach Faruk Hadžibegić Date of birth: 7 October 1957 Nationality: Bosnian-Herzegovinian Playing career: Sarajevo, Betis, Sochaux, Toulouse Coaching career: Sochaux, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Betis, Troyes, Gaziantepspor, Diyarbakirspor, Denizlispor, Niort, Dijon, Bastia, Arles-Avignon, Valenciennes, Red Star, Montenegro • One of Bosnia and Herzegovina's footballing greats, Hadžibegić won 61 caps for Yugoslavia, scoring six goals and appearing at the 1990 FIFA World Cup; he was one of three players to miss from the penalty spot in the quarter-final shoot-out defeat by Argentina. • At club level Hadžibegić spent nine years at Sarajevo, making almost 250 appearances and winning the Yugoslavian league title in 1985; then had two seasons in Spain with Betis before a seven-year spell at French club Sochaux, hanging up his boots in 1995 following a season with Toulouse. • Initially stayed in France to take the first steps in his coaching career, guiding Sochaux into Ligue 1 in 1997; took over the Bosnia and Herzegovina national side in March 1999 but stepped down seven months later after the team missed out on UEFA EURO 2000. • Went back to Betis in 2000/01, taking his former club into the Spanish top flight before returning to France with Troyes; went on to have short spells in quick succession with Turkish clubs Gaziantepspor, Diyarbakirspor and Denizlispor, resuming his career in France with Niort in 2007. • Short reigns followed at Dijon, Bastia and Arles-Avignon, whom Hadžibegić left in 2011; five years later, he returned to coaching at Valenciennes. Had six months in charge of Parisian Ligue 2 club Red Star between October 2018 and March 2019 before signing an 18-month contract to succeed Ljubiša Tumbaković as coach of Montenegro. Krassimir Balakov Date of birth: 29 March 1966 Nationality: Bulgarian Playing career: Etar Veliko Turnovo, Sporting CP, Stuttgart Coaching career: Grasshopper-Club, St Gallen, Chernomorets Burgas, Hajduk Split, Kaiserslautern, Litex Lovech, Etar Veliko Turnovo, Bulgaria • Made his name in the late 1980s as a midfielder with hometown side Etar, who won the Bulgarian title in 1990/91, but Balakov had already departed for Portuguese giants Sporting CP during the winter break. • Under Sir Bobby Robson Balakov developed into a fine playmaker, and helped Sporting to win the 1995 Portuguese Cup; he moved to Stuttgart that summer, and the club won the German Cup in 1997 before reaching the final of the European Cup Winners' Cup a year later. • Balakov was a key member of the Bulgaria side that reached the semi-finals of the 1994 FIFA World Cup – still regarded as the nation's biggest footballing achievement – and was named in the official Team of the Tournament. Bulgarian Player of the Year in 1995 and 1997, he scored 16 goals in 92 internationals between 1988 and 2003, captaining the side in the last three years. • Hung up his boots in 2003 and moved into coaching in Switzerland, leading Zurich-based Grasshoppers and then St Gallen. He was the first Bulgarian to coach in the Bundesliga when Kaiserslautern hired him in March 2012. • Ended a 16-month spell back at Etar to become Bulgaria coach on 14 May 2019, succeeding his former international team-mate Petar Hubchev. 5 Montenegro - Bulgaria Friday 11 October 2019 - 20.45CET (20.45 local time) Match press kit Gradski Stadion Podgorica, Podgorica Match officials Referee Andreas Ekberg (SWE) Assistant referees Mehmet Culum (SWE) , Stefan Hallberg (SWE) Fourth official Kaspar Sjöberg (SWE) UEFA Delegate Dane Jošt (SVN) UEFA Referee observer Matteo Trefoloni (ITA) Referee UEFA EURO Name Date of birth UEFA matches matches Andreas Ekberg 02/01/1985 1 51 Andreas Ekberg Referee since: 1998 First division: 2009 FIFA badge: 2013 Tournaments: 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, 2015 UEFA European Under-19 Championship, 2014 UEFA European Under-17 Championship Finals 2018 UEFA Youth League 2014 UEFA European Under-17 Championship UEFA European Championship matches featuring the two countries involved in this match No such matches refereed Other matches involving teams from either of the two countries involved in this match Stage Date Competition Home Away Result Venue reached 04/06/2013 U19 ELITE Portugal Bulgaria 7-0 Matosinhos 09/06/2013 U19 ELITE Bulgaria Czech Republic 1-2 Povoa do Varzim 04/07/2013 UEL 1QR Fehérvár FC OFK Titograd 2-1 Szekesfehervar 18/07/2013 UEL 2QR WKS Śląsk Wrocław FK Rudar Pljevlja 4-0 Wroclaw 10/09/2013 U21 QR Russia Bulgaria 3-1 Moscow 6 Montenegro - Bulgaria Friday 11 October 2019 - 20.45CET (20.45 local time) Match press kit Gradski Stadion Podgorica, Podgorica Match-by-match lineups Montenegro Final tournament - Qualifying round Group A Team Pld W D L GF GA Pts England 6 5 0 1 26 6 15 Czech Republic 6 4 0 2 11 9 12 Kosovo 6 3 2 1 12 10 11 Montenegro 7 0 3 4 3 15 3 Bulgaria 7 0 3 4 5 17 3 Matchday 1 (22/03/2019) Bulgaria 1-1 Montenegro Goals: 0-1 Mugoša 50, 1-1 Nedelev 82 (P) Montenegro: Petković, Stojković, N.