Bulgaria to Clash against Netherlands, Turkey without Petrovs

Bulgaria will go to the friendlies against the Netherlands and Turkey later this month without one of its most experienced players – Bolton forward Martin Petrov (front). Photo by Sofia Photo Agency

Bulgaria will go to the friendly games against the Netherlands and Turkey later this month without two of its top players - Martin Petrov and Stiliyan Petrov.

Bulgaria, who failed to qualify for the European Championship, will play against the Netherlands on May 26 in Amsterdam and against Turkey on May 29 in Salzburg.

Coach Lyuboslav Penev didn't spell out his arguments for dropping Martin Petrov when announcing the line-up of the team on Thursday. The Bolton winger is a key factor for Bulgaria's attacks.

Bulgaria is also without Aston Villa midfielder Stiliyan Petrov, who was diagnosed recently with acute leukemia and is currently undergoing treatment.

Penev failed to convince former captain Dimitar Berbatov to return to the squad, but media reports say the famous striker is considering a comeback to Bulgaria's national side for its friendly against the Netherlands on May 26.

The Bulgarian quit the national football team on May 13 2010, leaving his tally for Bulgaria standing at the record 48 goals from 77 matches.

 

Following is the line-up of the Bulgarian squad for the friendlies:

Goalkeepers: Nikolay Mihaylov (FC Twente), Stoyan Kolev (Tchernomorets), Plamen Iliev (Levski Sofia).

Defenders: Ivan Ivanov (Partizan Belgrade),Valentin Iliev (Steaua Bucharest), Veselin Minev (Antaliaspor), Ivan Bandalovski (CSKA Sofia), Yordan Minev (Ludogorets), Nikolay Bodurov (Litex), Petar Zanev (Litex), Ilia Milanov (Litex).

Midfielders: Stanislav Manolev (PSV Eindhoven), Svetoslav Dyakov (Ludogorets), Georgi Sarmov (Kasimpasa), Vladimir Gadzhev (Levski Sofia), Boris Galchev (CSKA Sofia), Georgi Milanov (Litex), Hristo Zlatinski (Lokomotiv Plovdiv), Stefan Velev (Beroe).

Forwards: Valeri Bojinov (Lecce), Alexander Tonev (Lech), Emil Gargorov (Ludogorets), Ivelin Popov (Gaziantep), Ivan Stoyanov (Ludogorets), Tsvetan Genkov (Wisla Krakow), Iliyan Mitsanski (FSV Frankfurt).

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