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Nika Kvekveskiri
Georgian footballer (born 1992) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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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 most recently played as a defensive midfielder for Nemzeti Bajnokság I club Nyíregyháza Spartacus.
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]
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Club career
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Kvekveskiri 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]
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International career
With twenty appearances made for U21s in UEFA competitive matches, Kvekveskiri is the most capped Georgian player.[16] He took part in three qualifying campaigns from 2009 to 2015.
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]
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Personal life
Kvekveskiri is married to Salome Bebua, also a refugee from Abkhazia. The couple raises two daughters.[22]
Career statistics
Club
- Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, seventeen appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa Conference League
- Appearance in Polish Super Cup
International
- As of match played 20 March 2025[24]
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Honours
Dinamo Tbilisi
Dila Gori
- Umaglesi Liga: 2014–15
Lech Poznań
References
External links
Wikiwand - on
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