Nasko Sirakov

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Nasko Sirakov (Bulgarian: Наско Сираков) (born 26 April 1962) is a former Bulgarian football (soccer) player. Part of the 1994 World Cup Bulgarian team that came fourth, their best achievement ever, he is a Levski Sofia legend, also regarded as one of the top Bulgarian footballers of the 1980s and 90s.

[edit] Playing career

[edit] Club level

Sirakov was born in Stara Zagora and started playing as a centre forward. Son of the famous Bulgarian wrestler Petko Sirakov, he first played in the Levski Sofia academy between 1975 and 1980, after which he joined Spartak Varna for the 1980-81 season and FC Haskovo for the next one. He then returned to Levski, where he remained from 1983 to 1988, three times becoming Champion of Bulgaria, twice winning the Bulgarian Cup and once becoming the top goalscorer of the Bulgarian Championship. Sirakov then had a spell at La Liga sides Real Zaragoza and RCD Espanyol from 1988 to 1991, after which he returned to Levski to win the Bulgarian Championship three more times, emerging twice as the top goalscorer of the league and winning two Cups (in 1992-93 he had a stint at Ligue 1's RC Lens). He played for Botev Plovdiv in the 1994-95 season and then moved to Slavia Sofia to win a double in his last season in professional football, in 1997-98.

Sirakov has 294 matches and 196 goals in the A PFG, the second best achievement after Petar Zhekov. For his native club Levski, Sirakov played 205 matches and scored 165 times, a club record.

[edit] International level

Sirakov was also a regular Bulgaria international during most of his career, debuting on 7 August 1983 against Algeria and playing his last match during the 1996 European Championship against Romania on 13 June 1996. In total, he played 82 matches for the national team, scoring 23 times and playing twice in the FIFA World Cup. The first time in 1986 when Bulgaria reached the 1/8 finals and Sirakov equalised during the opening game with Italy. With the second in 1994 when Bulgaria achieved their greatest international success, coming fourth with Sirakov scoring for 2–0 against Argentina in the group phase and earning a penalty kick both during the lost semi-final against Italy and during the match against Greece in the group phase.

[edit] Managing career

Between 1996 and 1998 Nasko Sirakov was the assistant manager of the Bulgarian national team, including during the 1998 FIFA World Cup. He managed Slavia Sofia in 1997 and then became the executive director of Levski Sofia, from where he was fired on May 7th 2008. [1]

[edit] External links

• Website from LEVSKI2000

v • d • e Bulgaria squad - 1986 FIFA World Cup 1 Mikhailov • 2 Sirakov • 3 Arabov • 4 Petrov • 5 Dimitrov • 6 Zhelyazkov • 7 Iskrenov • 8 Sadakov • 9 Mladenov • 10 Gospodinov • 11 Getov • 12 Zdravkov • 13 A. Markov • 14 P. Markov • 15 Yordanov • 16 Dragolov • 17 Kolev • 18 Velichkov • 19 Pashev • 20 Kostadinov • 21 Dyakov • 22 Valov • Coach: Vutsov

v • d • e Bulgaria squad - 1994 FIFA World Cup Fourth Place 1 Mikhailov • 2 Kremenliev • 3 Ivanov • 4 Tsvetanov • 5 Houbchev • 6 Yankov • 7 Kostadinov • 8 Stoichkov • 9 Letchkov • 10 Sirakov • 11 Borimirov • 12 Nikolov • 13 Yordanov • 14 Guentchev • 15 Iliev • 16 Kiriakov • 17 Mihtarski • 18 Aleksandrov • 19 Georgiev • 20 Balakov • 21 Yotov • 22 Andonov • Coach: Penev

v • d • e Bulgaria squad - UEFA Euro 1996 1 Mikhailov • 2 Kishishev • 3 Ivanov • 4 Kiriakov • 5 Houbchev • 6 Yankov • 7 Kostadinov • 8 Stoichkov • 9 L. Penev • 10 Balakov • 11 Letchkov • 12 Popov • 13 Guentchev • 14 Sirakov • 15 Yordanov • 16 Borimirov • 17 Kremenliev • 18 Tsvetanov • 19 Ginchev • 20 Donkov • 21 Georgiev • 22 Zdravkov • Coach: Dimitar Penev