Dejan Iliev (Macedonian: Дејан Илиев; born 25 February 1995) is a Macedonian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Liga I club UTA Arad and for the North Macedonia national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Dejan Iliev | ||
| Date of birth | 25 February 1995[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Strumica, Macedonia | ||
| Height | 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper[3] | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | UTA Arad | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2007–2012 | Belasica | ||
| 2012–2017 | Arsenal | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2022 | Arsenal | 0 | (0) |
| 2019 | → Sereď (loan) | 18 | (0) |
| 2020 | → Jagiellonia Białystok (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 2020–2021 | → Shrewsbury Town (loan) | 3 | (0) |
| 2021 | → Sereď (loan) | 9 | (0) |
| 2022 | Trenčín | 3 | (0) |
| 2023 | HJK | 8 | (0) |
| 2024 | Sarajevo | 12 | (0) |
| 2024– | UTA Arad | 3 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2011 | Macedonia U17 | 7 | (0) |
| 2012 | Macedonia U19 | 5 | (0) |
| 2013–2014 | Macedonia U21 | 3 | (0) |
| 2022– | North Macedonia | 1 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 14 December 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 20 June 2022 | |||
Career
Early life
Iliev was born in Strumica, Macedonia[3] and first played youth club football for his hometown club of FK Belasica. He was spotted by Arsenal scouts and signed to join their academy in London in 2012.[4]
Arsenal
Iliev joined the Arsenal Academy immediately upon signing the youth contract.[4] He signed a three-year contract extension from March 2015 until June 2018,[5] when he signed another extension.[6] Iliev appeared three times in the Arsenal squad as an unused substitute: against Norwich in the Carabao Cup in October 2017; and twice in the UEFA Europa League: against Qarabağ and against Chelsea in the final as the third goalkeeper.[7][8][9]
Iliev's contract with the club was terminated in January 2022 by mutual consent.[10][11]
Loan to Sereď
In July 2019, he moved to ŠKF Sereď for a one-year loan, and on the 22nd of the same month he made his debut for his new club in the 2–0 loss to Spartak Trnava.[12][13][14]
Loan to Jagiellonia Białystok
After an early end to his loan with ŠKF Sereď, Iliev opted to join Polish Ekstraklasa club Jagiellonia Białystok for the remainder of the 2019–20 season.[15] He made four appearances after suffering an injury.
Loan to Shrewsbury Town
On 8 October 2020, Iliev joined League One side Shrewsbury Town on a short-term loan deal.[16] On 28 January 2021, he returned to Arsenal.[17]
Second loan to Sereď
On 26 July 2021, Arsenal announced that Iliev had returned to ŠKF Sereď on a season-long loan deal.[18]
AS Trenčín
On 7 February 2022, Iliev signed a one-and-a-half-year contract with Fortuna Liga club AS Trenčín.[19] He made his debut in goal on 30 April in a 5–2 victory against Tatran Liptovský Mikuláš.[20]
HJK Helsinki
On 8 February 2023, Iliev signed with HJK in Finland for the 2023 season, with an option for 2024.[21] On 1 August 2023, it was announced that Iliev will be ruled out for the rest of the season following an elbow injury suffered in a Veikkausliiga match against SJK.[22] At the end of the season, HJK did not exercise their option and Iliev was released.
Sarajevo
In December 2023, Iliev signed with Bosnian Premier League club Sarajevo.[23][24] At the end of the season, the club decided not to extend Iliev's contract.[25]
UTA Arad
On 18 June 2024, Iliev signed with Liga I club UTA Arad.[26]
International career
Iliev has appeared for Macedonia's under-19 and under-21 teams a total of ten times. He has been called up to the senior squad and made his debut in 2022.
Career statistics
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Sereď (loan) | 2019–20 | Slovak First League | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 18 | 0 | |||
| Jagiellonia Białystok (loan) | 2019–20 | Ekstraklasa | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | |||
| Shrewsbury Town (loan) | 2020–21 | League One | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| Sereď (loan) | 2021–22 | Slovak First League | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 10 | 0 | |||
| AS Trenčín | 2021–22 | Slovak First League | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 2[c] | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
| HJK Helsinki | 2023 | Veikkausliiga | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1[d] | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | |
| Sarajevo | 2023–24 | Bosnian Premier League | 12 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 14 | 0 | |||
| UTA Arad | 2024–25 | Liga I | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | |||
| Career total | 60 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 73 | 0 | ||
- Includes FA Cup, Slovak Cup, Polish Cup, Finnish Cup, Bosnia and Herzegovina Cup
- Includes EFL Cup, Finnish League Cup
- Appearance(s) in UEFA Champions League
Honours
Arsenal
- UEFA Europa League runner-up: 2018–19[29]
HJK
- Veikkausliiga: 2023
- Finnish League Cup: 2023
References
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