Irakli Azarovi

Irakli Azarovi (Georgian: ირაკლი აზაროვი; born 21 February 2002) is a Georgian footballer who plays as a left-back for Ukrainian Premier League club Shakhtar Donetsk and the Georgia national team.[2]

Irakli Azarovi
Personal information
Date of birth (2002-02-21) 21 February 2002
Place of birth Tbilisi, Georgia
Height 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)[1]
Position(s) Left-back
Team information
Current team
 Shakhtar Donetsk
Youth career
2012–2019 Dinamo Tbilisi
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2019–2020 Dinamo Tbilisi 12 (0)
2021–2022 Dinamo Batumi 53 (3)
2022–2023 Red Star Belgrade 21 (0)
2023– Shakhtar Donetsk 5 (0)
International career‡
2017–2018 Georgia U17 9 (0)
2019 Georgia U18 1 (0)
2019 Georgia U19 4 (0)
2020– Georgia U21 7 (0)
2021– Georgia 16 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18 October 2023
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 18 October 2023

Azarovi has won Georgian and Serbian top league trophies four times combined. He has also been recognized as the Erovnuli Liga Defender of the Year and best young player of the season.[3]

Club career

Dinamo Tbilisi

Born in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, Azarovi joined FC Dinamo Tbilisi, aged 10. He trained regularly in the youth teams of the club all the way until 2019 when he debuted for the Dinamo first team. Playing mostly as a reserve, he made 7 appearances in 2019, and 5 in the 2020 season, contributing in both for Dinamo to win the Georgian national title.

Dinamo Batumi

In 2021, FC Dinamo Batumi was betting strong and bringing quality reinforcements, so Azarovi made a move that earned him much more play time and becoming a regular in the starting line-up, resulting in a successful season crowned with a 2021 Georgian championship. This also made him became a regular call in the Georgian national team, resulting in a widespread interest from clubs from abroad.

Red Star Belgrade

Soon, after a half season with Dinamo Batumi in the 2022 season, Serbian club Red Star Belgrade brought Azarovi to their ranks. In December 2022, he was announced as a top 10 most talented left-backs in world football.

Azarovi made 21 league appearances for the club, who clinched the league title this season. This success made him a four-time champion at the age of 21.

Shakhtar Donetsk

On 22 August 2023, Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk announced signing Azarovi on a five-year deal.[4]

International career

Azarovi made his international debut for Georgia on 2 June 2021, starting in a friendly match against Romania.[2]

Before that, he was a regular in all youth team squads since 2017. He also took part in all four games of the national U21 team in 2023 European U21 championship.

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 4 October 2023
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup Continental Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Dinamo Tbilisi 2019 Erovnuli Liga 70–10–80
2020 5010––60
Total 120101000140
Dinamo Batumi 2021 Erovnuli Liga 3532051–424
2022 180–401[lower-alpha 1]0230
Total 533209110654
Red Star 2022/23 Serbian Super Liga 2004010–250
2023/24 10–––10
Total 210401000260
Shakhtar Donetsk 2023/24 Ukrainian Premier League 5010200080
Career total 91380131101134
  1. Appearance in Georgian Super Cup

International
As of 18 October 2023[2]
Georgia
YearAppsGoals
202160
202240
202360
Total160

Honours

References
  1. Irakli Azarovi at FootballDatabase.eu
  2. Irakli Azarovi at Soccerway
  3. "სფფ-ის ყოველწლიური ტრადიციული დაჯილდოება 29 დეკემბერს ონლაინ-რეჟიმში გაიმართება". 1tv.ge (in Georgian). 27 December 2021.
  4. "Офіційно: Азарові — гравець Шахтаря". football.ua (in Ukrainian). Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  5. "GFF Awards 2021". gff.ge (in Georgian). 29 December 2021.
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