Nikoloz "Nika" Kvekveskiri (Order of Honor) (Georgian: ნიკოლოზ "ნიკა" კვეკვესკირი, romanized: nik'oloz "nik'a" k'vek'vesk'iri, pronounced [nikʼoloz nikʼa kʼʷekʼʷeskʼiɾi], Polish: Nikoloz „Nika” Kwekweskiri; born 29 May 1992), nicknamed Kvekve,[1] is a Georgian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Nemzeti Bajnokság I club Spartacus and the Georgia national team.
 Kvekveskiri Lech Poznań in 2022 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Nikoloz Kvekveskiri | ||
| Date of birth | 29 May 1992 | ||
| Place of birth | Zugdidi, Georgia | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Defensive midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Spartacus | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Baia Zugdidi | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2009–2010 | Baia Zugdidi | 36 | (1) |
| 2011–2014 | Dinamo Tbilisi | 58 | (2) |
| 2012–2014 | Dinamo Tbilisi II | 28 | (13) |
| 2013 | → Tskhinvali (loan) | 11 | (1) |
| 2014–2015 | Dila Gori | 27 | (7) |
| 2015–2016 | Inter Baku | 29 | (4) |
| 2016–2017 | Gabala | 14 | (0) |
| 2017–2020 | Tobol | 75 | (5) |
| 2021–2024 | Lech Poznań | 91 | (5) |
| 2024– | Spartacus | 3 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2008–2009 | Georgia U17 | 5 | (0) |
| 2009–2011 | Georgia U19 | 6 | (0) |
| 2009–2014 | Georgia U21 | 20 | (2) |
| 2015– | Georgia | 61 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 09:21, 2 November 2024 (UTC). ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23:25, 30 June 2024 (UTC). | |||
The family of Kvekveskiri comes from the Gali district of Abkhazia. They had to flee the 1992–93 war and move to a refugee settlement in Zugdidi, where Nika grew up under tough living conditions.[2]
He has played in four countries and won champion's titles three times.
Kvekvesriki was regularly called up to national youth teams. Currently he is the vice-captain of Georgia national team.[3]
Club career
editKvekveskiri started his career in the local club Baia Zugdidi. He made his debut for the first team on 15 August 2009 in a match against FC Locomotive Tbilisi.[4] His first top-league goal scored against Kolkheti 1913 turned out a hard-fought winner on 29 September 2010.[5]
The next year, Kvekveskiri joined Georgian champions Dinamo Tbilisi. During the initial year-and-a-half period he made fifty league appearances for the team and won the double. On 30 June 2011, Kvekveskiri scored his first European goal in a UEFA Europa League 2–0 win over Milsami.[6]
In 2013, he was on loan to Tskhinvali for a half season and in June 2014 he was sold to Dila Gori. With seven league goals netted this year for Dila, Kvekveskiri was a key member of this title-winning team.
Following this season, in 2015 he moved to Azerbaijani Inter Baku. In June 2016, he joined Gabala.[7]
In May 2017, Kvekvesikiri signed a two-year deal with Tobol.[8] On 20 January 2021, Tobol announced that he had left the club.[9]
In January 2021, he moved to Ekstraklasa side Lech Poznań till the end of the 2020–21 season.[10] He signed a two-year extension on 29 April 2021,[1] renewed next October until 30 June 2025.[11] On 10 July 2024, he left the club by mutual consent. During his three-and-a-half-year stay, Kvekveskiri made a total of 123 appearances across all competitions, recording six goals and six assists.[12] He contributed to the club's eighth league title in 2022,[13] as well as reaching the quarter-finals of the UEFA Europa Conference League the following year.[14]
In early September 2024, Kvekveskiri joined newly promoted Hungarian NB I side Nyíregyháza Spartacus on a season-long deal.[15]
International career
editWith twenty appearances made for U21s, Kvekveskiri is the most capped Georgian player.[16]
Kvekveskiri made his international debut for the senior team on 8 October 2015 in a 4–0 win against Gibraltar for the Euro 2016 qualifiers.[17]
He was a regular member of the team that produced an eleven-game unbeaten record between October 2021 and November 2022.[18]
On 26 March 2024, Kvekveskiri scored the winning penalty against Greece to send Georgia to the UEFA Euro 2024, their first international tournament in history.[19] In May 2024, he was selected in the team's squad for UEFA Euro 2024.[20] He made his sole appearance at the tournament as a second-half substitute in a 1–4 loss to Spain in the round of 16.[21]
Personal life
editKvekveskiri is married to Salome Bebua, also a refugee from Abkhazia. The couple raises two daughters.[22]
Career statistics
editClub
edit| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Baia Zugdidi | 2009–10 | Umaglesi Liga | 22 | 0 | 4 | 3 | — | — | 26 | 3 | ||
| 2010–11 | Umaglesi Liga | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 1 | |||
| Total | 36 | 1 | 5 | 3 | — | — | 41 | 4 | ||||
| Dinamo Tbilisi | 2010–11 | Umaglesi Liga | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 17 | 0 | |
| 2011–12 | Umaglesi Liga | 33 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 1 | — | 42 | 3 | ||
| 2012–13 | Umaglesi Liga | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | ||
| 2013–14 | Umaglesi Liga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 58 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 1 | — | 68 | 3 | |||
| Dinamo Tbilisi-2 | 2012–13 | Pirveli Liga | 17 | 10 | — | — | — | 17 | 10 | |||
| 2013–14 | Pirveli Liga | 11 | 3 | — | — | — | 11 | 3 | ||||
| Total | 28 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 13 | ||
| Tskhinvali (loan) | 2013–14 | Umaglesi Liga | 11 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 14 | 1 | ||
| Dila Gori | 2014–15 | Umaglesi Liga | 27 | 7 | 5 | 0 | — | — | 32 | 7 | ||
| Inter Baku | 2015–16 | Azerbaijan Premier League | 29 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 2 | — | 38 | 7 | |
| Gabala | 2016–17 | Azerbaijan Premier League | 14 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 11 | 1 | — | 29 | 1 | |
| Tobol | 2017 | Kazakhstan Premier League | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 14 | 1 | ||
| 2018 | Kazakhstan Premier League | 23 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 28 | 2 | ||
| 2019 | Kazakhstan Premier League | 22 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 26 | 2 | ||
| 2020 | Kazakhstan Premier League | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 0 | |||
| Total | 75 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 84 | 5 | |||
| Lech Poznań | 2020–21[25] | Ekstraklasa | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 0 | ||
| 2021–22[26] | Ekstraklasa | 29 | 2 | 6 | 0 | — | — | 35 | 2 | |||
| 2022–23[27] | Ekstraklasa | 28 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 19[a] | 1 | 1[b] | 0 | 49 | 3 | |
| 2023–24[28] | Ekstraklasa | 22 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | — | 26 | 1 | ||
| Total | 91 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 20 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 123 | 6 | ||
| Career total | 369 | 38 | 37 | 4 | 50 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 458 | 47 | ||
- ^ Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, seventeen appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa Conference League
- ^ Appearance in Polish Super Cup
- ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
International
edit- As of match played 30 June 2024[24]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia | 2015 | 2 | 0 |
| 2016 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2020 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2022 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 61 | 0 | |
Honours
editDinamo Tbilisi
Dila Gori
- Umaglesi Liga: 2014–15
Lech Poznań
References
edit- ^ a b "Kvekveskiri na dłużej w Kolejorzu" (in Polish). Lech Poznań. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
- ^ ""თუ კარგად ვითამაშე, ვარიანტი არ არის, ჩემს გულში ჩუმად არ ვთქვა, - შენთვის, ჩემო აფხაზეთო - მეთქი" - გზა დევნილობიდან დიდ სპორტამდე, ანუ კვეკვესკირის "ხმაურიანი სიჩუმე"". ambebi.ge (in Georgian). 27 March 2024. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ "ნიკა კვეკვესკირი - 30 წლის ვარ, მაგრამ უკეთ თამაშიც შემიძლია" (in Georgian). 20 January 2023. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ "Baia vs Locomotive". soccerway.com.
- ^ "Baia vs Kolkheti 1913". soccerway.com.
- ^ "Dinamo Tbilisi vs Milsami". uefa.com. 30 June 2011.
- ^ "Квеквескири выбрал Габалу". azerifootball.com (in Russian). Azeri Football. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
- ^ "კვეკვესკირმა "ტობოლთან" კონტრაქტი გააფორმა". worldsport.ge (in Georgian). World Sport. Retrieved 26 May 2017.
- ^ "🇬🇪მადლობა ნიკა 🇬🇪 Спасибо, Ника!". fctobol.kz/ (in Russian). FC Tobol. 20 January 2021. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
- ^ "Nika Kvekveskiri piłkarzem Lecha" (in Polish). Lech Poznań. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
- ^ "Ekstraklasa: Nika Kwekweskiri na dluzej w Lechu Poznan. Kontrakt do 2025 roku". polskieradio24.pl (in Polish). 20 October 2022. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ "Nika Kwekweskiri opuścił Lecha Poznań". sport.tvp.pl (in Polish). 10 July 2024. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
- ^ a b "Oficjalnie: Lech Poznań mistrzem Polski. Na kolejny tytuł czekał siedem lat". gol24.pl (in Polish). 14 May 2022. Retrieved 14 June 2022.
- ^ "Football: Poland's Lech Poznań beat Sweden's Djurgårdens 2-0 in Europa Conference League". polskieradio.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 10 July 2024.
- ^ "კვეკვესკირი უნგრეთში ითამაშებს". 1tv.ge (in Georgian). 4 September 2024. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
- ^ "Georgia U21 statistics". UEFA. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
- ^ "Georgia put four past Gibraltar". uefa.com.
- ^ "ნიკა კვესკვესკირი: იმ გუნდის ნაწილი ვარ, რომელიც რეკორდებს ამყარებს". europop.ge (in Georgian) (in Georgian). 26 September 2022. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ "Euro 2024: Georgia beat Greece on penalties to qualify for first-ever finals". France 24. 26 March 2024.
- ^ Kijeski, Bartosz (22 May 2024). "Kolejny piłkarz Lecha Poznań powołany do reprezentacji na mistrzostwa Europy". gol24.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 9 June 2024.
- ^ "Kvekveskiri zadebiutował na EURO" (in Polish). Lech Poznań. 30 June 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
- ^ ""წარმატებული მამაკაცის უკან, ძლიერი ქალი და ოჯახი დგას!" - ვინ არის ნიკა კვეკვესკირის ულამაზესი მეუღლე: ფეხბურთელის ოჯახური იდილია". ambebi.ge (in Georgian). 31 March 2024. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- ^ "N.Kvekveskiri". Soccerway. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
- ^ a b "Nika Kvekveskiri". National-Football-Teams.com. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
- ^ "Sezon 2020/21" [2020/21 season] (in Polish). 90minut. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ "Sezon 2021/22" [2021/22 season] (in Polish). 90minut. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ "Sezon 2022/23" [2022/23 season] (in Polish). 90minut. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
- ^ "Sezon 2023/24" [2023/24 season] (in Polish). 90minut. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
External links
edit- Nika Kvekveskiri at Soccerway
- Nika Kvekveskiri – UEFA competition record (archive)
- Nika Kvekveskiri at National-Football-Teams.com