 Kvaratskhelia in 2022 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Khvicha Kvaratskhelia | ||
| Date of birth | 12 February 2001[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Tbilisi, Georgia | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[2][3] | ||
| Position(s) | Winger | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Napoli | ||
| Number | 77 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2012–2017 | Dinamo Tbilisi | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017 | Dinamo Tbilisi | 4 | (1) |
| 2018–2019 | Rustavi | 18 | (3) |
| 2019 | → Lokomotiv Moscow (loan) | 7 | (1) |
| 2019–2022 | Rubin Kazan | 69 | (9) |
| 2022 | Dinamo Batumi | 11 | (8) |
| 2022– | Napoli | 71 | (24) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2016–2018 | Georgia U17 | 28 | (15) |
| 2018 | Georgia U18 | 1 | (1) |
| 2017–2019 | Georgia U19 | 9 | (3) |
| 2019 | Georgia U21 | 2 | (1) |
| 2019– | Georgia | 34 | (16) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19:40, 31 August 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 02:49, 3 July 2024 (UTC) | |||
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia (Order of Honor) (Georgian: ხვიჩა კვარაცხელია pronounced ['χʷitʃʰa kʼʷara'tsʰχelia]; born 12 February 2001)[4] is a Georgian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Serie A club Napoli and the Georgia national team.
Kvaratskhelia started his senior career playing for Dinamo Tbilisi at age 16, before departing to Rustavi where he spent half a season. During his combined three-year tenure at Lokomotiv Moscow and Rubin Kazan, Kvaratskhelia won two consecutive Russian Premier League Best Young Player awards. Following a short spell at Dinamo Batumi, Kvaratskhelia signed for Napoli in 2022, and in his debut season helped the club to reach the quarter-final of the UEFA Champions League for the first time ever, and win a first Serie A title in 33 years, finishing as the league's top assist provider. This saw him named Serie A Most Valuable Player and the Champions League's Young Player of the Season.[5]
Widely regarded as one of the greatest Georgian players of all time, Kvaratskhelia established himself for Georgia in all national youth teams, becoming a key player under different managers. He then became an integral part of the senior team after making his debut in 2019, and helped Georgia qualify for UEFA Euro 2024, the country's first ever major international tournament.[6][7][8]
- ^ UEFA.com. "Khvicha Kvaratskhelia | Georgia | European Qualifiers". UEFA.com. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
soccerwaywas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
wfwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Morse, Ben (1 November 2022). "Khvicha Kvaratskhelia: Napoli's Georgian sensation billed 'Kvaradona'". CNN. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
'Kvara changed life in Georgia [...]'
- ^ "კვარაცხელიას სუპერგოლი იტალიაში სეზონის საუკეთესოდ დაასახელეს" (in Georgian). Europop.ge. 23 June 2023.
- ^ "Khvicha Kvaratskhelia: Napoli's Georgian sensation billed 'Kvaradona'". CNN. 1 November 2022.
- ^ "Kvaradona! Meet Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, the new Napoli star who is gunning for Liverpool in the Champions League". Goal.com. 7 September 2022. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- ^ "Kaladze reveals three favourite Milan memories and weighs in on Leao vs. Kvaratskhelia debate". SempreMilan. 7 April 2023. Retrieved 16 September 2023.