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Emil Velev

Emil Velev
Emil Velev.jpg
Personal information
Full name Emil Simeonov Velev
Date of birth (1962-02-05) 5 February 1962 (age 55)
Place of birth Sofia, Bulgaria
Playing position Defensive midfielder
Club information
Current team
Oborishte (manager)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1981–1989 Levski Sofia 150 (19)
1989–1990 Hapoel Ramat Gan
1990–1994 Maccabi Ironi Ashdod
1994–1995 Maccabi Jaffa 24 (3)
1995–1996 Levski Sofia 26 (3)
Teams managed
2008–2009 Levski Sofia
2010–2011 Slavia Sofia
2011–2012 Lokomotiv Plovdiv
2012–2013 Lokomotiv Sofia
2014 Lokomotiv Plovdiv
2014–2015 Haskovo
2015–2016 Montana
2016– Oborishte
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Emil Simeonov Velev (Bulgarian: Емил Симеонов Велев; born 5 February 1962) is a former Bulgarian footballer and current manager of Oborishte Panagyurishte.

Velev started his career in Levski Sofia. Kokala James (Bulgarian: Кокала) (The bone James), as the fans called him, played for Levski's first team from 1981 until 1989. He became Champion of Bulgaria in 1984, 1985 and 1988. Velev won the Cup of Bulgaria in 1982 and 1984. He registered 176 matches and 22 scores for Levski in the championship, and 34 matches and 8 goals for the Cup of Bulgaria. Velev had also played long years in Maccabi Ironi Ashdod F.C. in Israel.

In 2002 Velev became an assistant coach of PFC Levski Sofia. Six years later, Emil became head coach of Levski, after Velislav Vutsov's sacking. Under his guidance, Levski secured a 1:1 away draw against Belarusian FC BATE Borisov in the third qualifying phase of the UEFA Champions League, but this result was insufficient for Levski to progress after the 0:1 home loss in the first game.

Velev made an awesome debut in the Bulgarian league, coaching Levski. He debuted as a coach on 17 August 2008 in a game against Botev Plovdiv. Levski won the match 6:0. However, Velev drew the ire of Levski supporters on a number of occasions in subsequent matches due to what were perceived to be poor tactics and inconsistent player selections. After Levski were eliminated by Slovakian MŠK Žilina, Velev criticized some of the Levski ultras, hinting at their latent alcoholism and drug abuse, and condemned what he regarded as their insufficient support during matches. Velev eventually stated that some of his comments had been misconstrued by the media and attempted to mend fences with the Levski supporters, praising them for their passion for the team on a number of occasions.


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