Goran Popov facts for kids
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Goran Popov | ||
| Date of birth | 2 October 1984 | ||
| Place of birth | Strumica, SFR Yugoslavia | ||
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Left-back / Left midfielder | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2002–2003 | Belasica | 6 | (0) |
| 2003 | → Proodeftiki (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2004 | → AEK Athens (loan) | 8 | (0) |
| 2004 | Red Star Belgrade | 0 | (0) |
| 2004–2005 | → Odra Wodzisław (loan) | 11 | (0) |
| 2005–2008 | Egaleo | 45 | (1) |
| 2007–2008 | → Levadiakos (loan) | 20 | (0) |
| 2008–2010 | Heerenveen | 51 | (2) |
| 2010–2014 | Dynamo Kyiv | 32 | (2) |
| 2012–2014 | → West Bromwich Albion (loan) | 18 | (0) |
| 2014–2017 | Vardar | 43 | (3) |
| 2017 | Doxa Katokopias | 0 | (0) |
| 2017–2019 | Vardar | 19 | (3) |
| National team | |||
| 2002 | Macedonia U19 | 5 | (2) |
| Macedonia U21 | 10 | (2) | |
| 2004–2014 | Macedonia | 46 | (2) |
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Goran Popov (born October 2, 1984) is a former professional footballer from North Macedonia. He played as a defender, usually on the left side of the field.
Popov started his football journey with his local team, Belasica, in North Macedonia. He then played for several clubs in Greece, including Proodeftiki and AEK Athens. After a brief time with Red Star Belgrade in Serbia, he moved to Poland for a short loan spell with Odra Wodzisław. He returned to Greece to play for Egaleo and Levadiakos.
In 2008, Goran joined the Dutch club Heerenveen, where he found great success. He helped them win the KNVB Cup in 2009, even scoring a goal in the final match! His strong performances in European games led him to sign with the big Ukrainian club Dynamo Kyiv in 2010.
Later, Goran Popov had a chance to play in the English Premier League. He joined West Bromwich Albion on a loan deal for two seasons. After his time in England, he returned to North Macedonia to play for Vardar. He played for Vardar for several years before retiring from professional football in 2019.
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Early Career and European Adventures
Goran Popov was born in Strumica, which was part of SFR Yugoslavia at the time. He began his football career with his hometown club, Belasica. He played six games for them when they finished second in the First Macedonian Football League.
After Belasica, Goran moved to Greece. He played for Proodeftiki and then AEK Athens. His time at AEK Athens was short, and he soon moved to Red Star Belgrade in Serbia. He even played in the UEFA Champions League for Red Star, which is a very big European competition.
Injuries made it hard for him to play much at Red Star, so he went on loan to Odra Wodzisław in Poland. After that, he returned to Greece and played for Egaleo for two seasons, and then for Levadiakos.
Success in the Netherlands and Ukraine
In 2008, Goran made a big move to the Dutch club Heerenveen. This is where he really started to shine. He helped Heerenveen win the KNVB Cup in 2009, which is a major football trophy in the Netherlands. His excellent play in European matches caught the eye of Dynamo Kyiv, one of the biggest clubs in Ukraine. He joined them in June 2010.
Playing in England
On August 10, 2012, Goran Popov was going to join Stoke City in England on a loan deal. However, the move didn't happen right away because he needed a special permission called a UK work permit. On the last day of transfers, he finally got his work permit and signed a loan deal with West Bromwich Albion instead. He was the second player from North Macedonia to play for West Bromwich Albion, after Artim Šakiri.
On July 9, 2013, Goran signed another one-year loan deal to continue playing for West Bromwich Albion.
Return to North Macedonia and Retirement
On September 18, Goran Popov signed a three-year contract with Vardar, a club in his home country. He played for Vardar until the end of the 2018–19 season. After his contract ended, Goran Popov decided to retire from professional football.
International Career
Goran Popov also played for his country, North Macedonia. Before joining the senior team, he was part of the U-19 and U-21 national teams.
He made his first appearance for the senior Macedonian national team in June 2004. This was in a friendly game against Estonia. Over his career, he played a total of 46 games for North Macedonia and scored 2 goals. His last international game was a friendly match against Cameroon in May 2014.
International Goals
Here are the goals Goran Popov scored for the Macedonian national team:
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 30 May 2004 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia |  Estonia |
2–4 | Win | Friendly | |||||
| 2. | 19 November 2008 | Estadi Comunal d'Aixovall, Andorra la Vella, Andorra |  Montenegro |
2–1 | Lost | Friendly | |||||
| Correct as of 13 January 2013 | |||||||||||
Personal Life
Goran Popov has an older brother named Robert Popov, who was also a professional football player.
Honours
Goran Popov won several trophies and championships during his career:
SC Heerenveen
- KNVB Cup: 2008–09 (Dutch Cup)
Dynamo Kyiv
- Ukrainian Super Cup: 2011
Vardar
- Macedonian First Football League: 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17 (Macedonian League Championship)
- Macedonian Supercup: 2015
See also
In Spanish: Goran Popov para niños
