Hristo Bonev
FullnameHristo Atanasov Bonev
Birth date3 February 1947 (age 79)
Birth placePlovdiv, PR Bulgaria
Height1.81 m
PositionAttacking midfielder
Years 11964–1967
Clubs 1Lokomotiv Plovdiv
Caps 164
Goals 119
Years 21967–1968
Clubs 2CSKA Sofia
Caps 26
Goals 25
Years 31968–1979
Clubs 3Lokomotiv Plovdiv
Caps 3337
Goals 3161
Years 41981–1982
Clubs 4AEK Athens
Caps 410
Goals 40
Years 51982–1984
Clubs 5Lokomotiv Plovdiv
Caps 56
Goals 50
Totalcaps422
Totalgoals185
Nationalyears 11967–1979
Nationalteam 1Bulgaria
Nationalcaps 196
Nationalgoals 148
Manageryears 11983–1985
Managerclubs 1Lokomotiv Plovdiv
Manageryears 21987–1988
Managerclubs 2Lokomotiv Plovdiv
Manageryears 31988–1990
Managerclubs 3Panathinaikos
Manageryears 41990–1993
Managerclubs 4AEL
Manageryears 51993–1994
Managerclubs 5Ionikos
Manageryears 61994–1996
Managerclubs 6APOEL
Manageryears 71996–1998
Managerclubs 7Bulgaria
Manageryears 81997–1998
Managerclubs 8Lokomotiv Sofia
Manageryears 92000
Managerclubs 9Sachsen Leipzig
Manageryears 102010
Managerclubs 10Lokomotiv Plovdiv

Hristo Atanasov Bonev (Bulgarian: Христо Aтанасов Бонев; born 3 February 1947), also known as Zuma (Bulgarian: Зума), is a Bulgarian football manager and former player who last managed Lokomotiv Plovdiv in the Bulgarian A PFG.[1] One of the greatest Bulgarian men's footballers, Bonev was renowned for his vision and technique.

Club career

Bonev started his career at Lokomotiv Plovdiv in 1964 where he played until 1980 with a brief spell at CSKA Sofia in 1967. During his spell at Lokomotiv Plovdiv, he became their star player, while also was called to play for the national team.

In October 1980 Bonev moved to Greece and agreed to play for AEK Athens, in a 1+1 year deal which was effective from July 1981.[2] After the signing of his contract on October 15, he left Greece and returned in December of the same year to start training with the team. From that period until he formally joined the club's roster, he participated only in friendly matches.[3] Due to his knee injury his offer at AEK was meager, making only 10 appearances throughout the season.[4] In the summer of 1982, AEK did not enable the option of the renewal in his contract and thus Bonev left the club.[5] Furthermore in order to ensure his freedom then, he convinced the president of the club, Andreas Zafiropoulos by proposing as his replacement his compatriot Angel Kolev with a small amount of money.

After AEK he tried his luck in England, where Oxford United offered him a trial but with a better-paying contract option. The experiment in England did not catch on, as Bonev was betrayed by his knee and so he left Oxford with just three appearances in pre-season friendlies.

He returned to Lokomotiv Plovdiv to end his career in 1984 at the age of 37.[6] Bonev has played in 404 games and has scored 180 goals in the A group for Lokomotiv Plovdiv. He has played also 14 games and has scored 6 goals in the UEFA Cup with "The Smurfs" (the nickname of Lokomotiv Plovdiv).[7] Bonev won the Cup of the Soviet Army in 1983, he is also vice-champion of Bulgaria for 1973, with two more bronze medals won - in 1969 and 1974.

International career

Bonev played for the Bulgaria national team 96 times, scoring a record 48 goals, between 1967 and 1979.[8] He played for his country at the 1970 and 1974 World Cups.

Managerial career

Before ending his career at Lokomotiv Plovdiv Bonev played as a player-coach for a season. After his retirement he became a manager and initially went to Greece and became coach of Panathinaikos in 1988, where he won the Greek Championship in 1990 and he is chosen for the Manager of the season in Greece.

Then he managed AEL for three seasons following a year at Ionikos, where he won the second division league and got his club promoted to the first division. After Greece, he became manager of the Cypriot team APOEL in 1995 and until 1996 when he quit from his team, he won the Cypriot Cup in his first year in Cyprus in 1995 and the Double the following season.

He went back to his home country to become manager of Lokomotiv Sofia and then he was appointed as head coach to his country's national team for the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Despite a disappointing showing in France, with only one point achieved from three games, he continued as national coach, but after a 3–0 defeat to Poland in the first qualifying match for Euro 2000 in September 1998, he decided to resign from his post, stating "I believe I have taken the team as far as I am able, and now it is time for the players to respond to someone else who, I hope, can improve our results."

Honours

As a player

Lokomotiv Plovdiv

As a manager

Panathinaikos

Ionikos

APOEL

Individual

Source: [9]

International goals

Scores and results list Bulgaria's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Bonev goal.[10]
List of international goals scored by Hristo Bonev
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
19 October 1968Mithatpaşa Stadium, Istanbul, TurkeyTurkey2–02–0Friendly
227 October 1968Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, BulgariaNetherlands1–02–01970 FIFA World Cup qualification
315 June 1969Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, BulgariaPoland1–04–11970 FIFA World Cup qualification
422 October 1969Stadion Feijenoord, Rotterdam, NetherlandsNetherlands1–11–11970 FIFA World Cup qualification
57 December 1969Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg City, LuxembourgLuxembourg3–13–11970 FIFA World Cup qualification
65 May 1970Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, BulgariaSoviet Union3–23–3Friendly
72 June 1970Estadio León, León, MexicoPeru2–02–31970 FIFA World Cup
89 June 1971Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, NorwayNorway1–04–1UEFA Euro 1972 qualification
94–0
107 September 1971Grünwalder Stadion, Munich, GermanyWest German Amateurs1–31–3Friendly
1127 October 1971Stadionul Național, Bucharest, RomaniaRomania1–11–1Unofficial Friendly
1210 November 1971Stade Marcel Saupin, Nantes, FranceFrance1–01–2UEFA Euro 1972 qualification
1324 November 1971Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, BulgariaSpain7–38–31972 Summer Olympics qualification
1424 March 1972Stadion Georgi Asparuhov, Sofia, BulgariaSoviet Union1–11–1Friendly
1516 April 1972Stadion Beroe, Stara Zagora, BulgariaPoland1–13–11972 Summer Olympics qualification
163–1
1731 May 1972Estadio El Plantío, Burgos, SpainSpain1–13–31972 Summer Olympics qualification
1821 June 1972Stadion Georgi Asparuhov, Sofia, BulgariaItaly1–01–0Friendly
1918 October 1972Stadion Beroe, Stara Zagora, BulgariaNorthern Ireland1–03–01974 FIFA World Cup qualification
203–0
2119 November 1972Tsirio Stadium, Limassol, CyprusCyprus3–04–01974 FIFA World Cup qualification
224–0
2331 January 1973Nikos Goumas Stadium, Athens, GreeceGreece2–22–2Friendly
242 May 1973Stadion Georgi Asparuhov, Sofia, BulgariaPortugal2–02–11974 FIFA World Cup qualification
2513 October 1973Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, PortugalPortugal1–12–21974 FIFA World Cup qualification
262–1
276 February 1974Morphou Municipal Stadium, Morphou, CyprusCyprus2–14–11974 FIFA World Cup qualification
283–1
294–1
308 February 1974Al-Sadaqua Walsalam Stadium, Kuwait City, KuwaitKuwait2–03–1Friendly
3110 February 1974Al-Sadaqua Walsalam Stadium, Kuwait City, KuwaitKuwait1–12–1Friendly
322–1
3331 March 1974Z.T.E. Stadion, Zalaegerszeg, HungaryHungary1–31–3Friendly
348 May 1974Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, BulgariaTurkey1–05–11973–76 Balkan Cup
352–0
3625 May 1974Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, BulgariaNorth Korea1–06–1Friendly
375–0
386–1
3919 June 1974Niedersachsenstadion, Hannover, GermanyUruguay1–01–11974 FIFA World Cup
4013 October 1974Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, BulgariaGreece1–03–2UEFA Euro 1976 qualification
4111 June 1975Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, BulgariaMalta4–05–0UEFA Euro 1976 qualification
4225 January 1976National Stadium, Tokyo, JapanJapan1–13–1Friendly
4328 January 1976Yanmar Stadium Nagai, Osaka, JapanJapan1–01–1Friendly
445 May 1976Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, BulgariaNorth Korea1–03–0Friendly
452–0
4622 September 1976Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, BulgariaTurkey1–02–2Friendly
479 October 1976Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, BulgariaFrance1–22–21978 FIFA World Cup qualification
4825 April 1979Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaArgentina1–11–2Friendly
Notes
Some sources credit Bonev's second goal as an own-goal by Nikos Kovis.

References

  1. ^ "Bonev bids to rescue Loko Plovdiv". UEFA. Archived from the original on 4 July 2010. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
  2. ^ Στράτος Σεφτελής (16 October 1980). "Ο Μπόνεφ υπέγραψε χθές για δύο χρόνια" (in Greek). Athletic Echo. p. 6.
  3. ^ "Hristo Bonev". football.aek.com
  4. ^ Mastrogiannopoulos, Alexander (11 May 2005). "Foreign Players in Greece since 1959/60". RSSSF. Archived 10 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine.
  5. ^ Αργύρης Κοκκινάκης (22 July 1982). "Ο Μπόνεφ οριστικά τέλος για την ΑΕΚ" (in Greek). Athletic Echo. pp. 1, 6.
  6. ^ "Χρίστο Μπόνεφ". aekpedia.com
  7. ^ "Локомотив Пловдив – Статистика" (in Bulgarian). Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  8. ^ Mamrud, Roberto (22 January 2009). "Hristo Bonev – Goals in International Matches". RSSSF. Retrieved 17 August 2009.
  9. ^ "Български легенди >> Христо Бонев" [Bulgarian legends - Hristo Bonev] (in Bulgarian). Archived from the original on 8 April 2022. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  10. ^ "Hristo Bonev". RSSSF