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Georgian footballer (born 2001) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Zuriko "Zuka" Davitashvili (Order of Honor) (Georgian: ზურიკო დავითაშვილი, romanized: zurik'o davitashvili; born 15 February 2001) is a Georgian professional footballer who plays as a left winger for Ligue 1 club Saint-Étienne and the Georgia national team. He also plays as an attacking midfielder.
|
Davitashvili with Arsenal Tula in 2021 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 15 February 2001 | ||
| Place of birth | Tbilisi, Georgia | ||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Left winger, attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Saint-Étienne | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2013–2017 | Dinamo Tbilisi | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2018 | Dinamo Tbilisi | 6 | (0) |
| 2018–2019 | Locomotive Tbilisi | 29 | (3) |
| 2019–2021 | Rubin Kazan | 28 | (2) |
| 2020–2021 | → Rotor Volgograd (loan) | 20 | (0) |
| 2021–2022 | Arsenal Tula | 20 | (3) |
| 2022–2023 | Dinamo Batumi | 14 | (6) |
| 2022–2023 | → Bordeaux (loan) | 30 | (5) |
| 2023–2024 | Bordeaux | 37 | (8) |
| 2024– | Saint-Étienne | 11 | (5) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2016–2018 | Georgia U17 | 12 | (7) |
| 2017–2018 | Georgia U19 | 9 | (4) |
| 2019–2023 | Georgia U21 | 5 | (1) |
| 2019– | Georgia | 43 | (6) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 07:25, 11 November 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 06:52, 14 October 2024 (UTC) | |||
Davitashvili made his career debut for Dinamo Tbilisi on 29 September 2017 in a match against Kolkheti Poti. He came on the pitch in the 72nd minute.[1]
In 2018, he moved to Locomotive Tbilisi.[2] In the same year The Guardian named Davitashvili among 60 best young players worldwide.[3]
As a distinguished player of the Georgian U17 team, he received a golden medal from the Football Federation.[4] Тhis acknowledgement resulted from his highly prolific performance in two qualifying rounds of 2018 European U17 championship. Being captain of the team, he scored seven goals in six matches, including a poker against N.Macedonia.[5]
A year later he was named as the best young Georgian football player of the season.[6]
On 29 June 2019, Davitashvili signed a three-year contract with Russian Premier League club Rubin Kazan.[7] He made his Russian Premier League debut for Rubin on 15 July 2019 in the season opener against Lokomotiv Moscow, as a starter.[8]
UEFA included Zuriko Davitashvili in the list of fifty young talents in early 2020.[9]
On 20 August 2020, Davitashvili joined Rotor Volgograd on loan for the 2020–21 season.[10] On 16 July 2021, his contract with Rubin was terminated by mutual consent.[11] Four days later, he signed for Arsenal Tula.[12]
On 23 March 2022, Davitashvili signed with Dinamo Batumi. After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, FIFA gave foreign players playing in Russia the permission to terminate their contract immediately.[13]
On 2 September 2022, Davitashvili moved to Bordeaux on a one-year loan deal.[14] His goal in a debut game helped his new club to secure victory over Dijon on 17 September.[15] Following the 2022–23 season, the club exercised the option to purchase him on a four-year deal.[16]
During his two-year tenure at Bordeaux, Davitashvili made 71 appearances, scoring 14 goals and providing 12 assists.[17]
On 11 July 2024, Davitashvili signed for Ligue 1 club Saint-Étienne on a four-year contract, for a transfer fee of €5 million plus €1 million in potential bonuses.[18][19] On 27 July, he made a debut in a friendly game against Villarreal, in which he scored a brace.[20] On 5 October 2024, Davitashvili got himself on the scoresheet in an official league match as well. His hat-trick, the first delivered by a Georgian player in the French top league, sealed a 3–1 win over Auxerre.[21] One of these goals was consequently voted goal of the month.[22] Moreover, after two more goals scored against Angers on 26 October, Davitashvili was named Player of the Month by UNFP.[23]
Before 2016, Davitashvili played for the Georgia under-17s. After 2017, he played for the Georgia under-19s.[24] He made his debut for Georgia national team on 5 September 2019 in a friendly against South Korea, as a starter.[25] Three days later in a friendly game against Bulgaria he netted his first goal.[26]
Davitashvili took part in 2023 European U21 Championship, co-hosted by Georgia. His stunning solo goal scored against Netherlands in a 1–1 draw, which proved crucial for winning the group stage, was selected by UEFA among the top three goals of the tournament.[27] For his display Davitashvili received the Player of the Match award.[28]
Davitashvili appeared in Georgia's all matches both in the Euro 2024 qualifying stages and Euro 2024 championship. On 2 July 2024, along with other squad members he received the Order of Honour.[29]
Zuriko Davitashvili is the son of former football player Suliko Davitashvili, who later became a football coach working with youth teams and at professional clubs such as Rustavi.[30]
Zuriko has a sister and younger brother.
He got married in 2023.[31] The birth of his son was announced in November 2023.[32]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Dinamo Tbilisi | 2017 | Erovnuli Liga | 6 | 0 | — | — | 6 | 0 | ||
| Locomotive Tbilisi | 2018 | Erovnuli Liga | 19 | 3 | — | — | 19 | 3 | ||
| 2019 | 10 | 0 | — | — | 10 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 29 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 29 | 3 | |||
| Rubin Kazan | 2019–20 | Russian Premier League | 26 | 2 | — | — | 26 | 2 | ||
| 2020–21 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 28 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 28 | 2 | |||
| Rotor Volgograd (loan) | 2020–21 | Russian Premier League | 20 | 0 | — | — | 20 | 0 | ||
| Arsenal Tula | 2021–22 | Russian Premier League | 20 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | 23 | 4 | |
| Dinamo Batumi | 2022 | Erovnuli Liga | 14 | 6 | — | 4[a] | 1 | 18 | 7 | |
| Bordeaux | 2022–23 | Ligue 2 | 30 | 5 | 2 | 1 | — | 32 | 6 | |
| 2023–24 | 37 | 8 | 2 | 0 | — | 39 | 8 | |||
| Total | 67 | 13 | 4 | 1 | — | 71 | 14 | |||
| Saint-Étienne | 2024–25 | Ligue 1 | 11 | 5 | — | — | 11 | 5 | ||
| Career total | 195 | 32 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 206 | 35 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia | 2019 | 2 | 0 |
| 2020 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2022 | 8 | 1 | |
| 2023 | 10 | 3 | |
| 2024 | 11 | 0 | |
| Total | 43 | 6 | |
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 8 September 2021 | Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, Bulgaria |  Bulgaria | 1–4 | 1–4 | Friendly |
| 2. | 12 October 2021 | Fadil Vokrri Stadium, Pristina, Kosovo |  Kosovo | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3. | 5 June 2022 | Huvepharma Arena, Razgrad, Bulgaria | Bulgaria | 1–0 | 5–2 | 2022–23 UEFA Nations League C |
| 4. | 17 June 2023 | AEK Arena, Larnaca, Cyprus |  Cyprus | 2–1 | 2–1 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying |
| 5. | 12 October 2023 | Mikheil Meskhi Stadium, Tbilisi, Georgia |  Thailand | 1–0 | 8–0 | Friendly |
| 6. | 6–0 |
Georgia U17
Individual
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