Valeri Qazaishvili

Valeri "Vako" Kazaishvili[1] (born 29 January 1993) is a professional footballer who plays for the Georgia national team as an attacking midfielder.

Valeri Kazaishvili

Kazaishvili playing for San Jose in 2017.
Personal information
Full name	Valeri Kazaishvili
Date of birth	29 January 1993
Place of birth	Ozurgeti, Georgia
Height	1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)	Attacking midfielder
Youth career
0000–2010	Saburtalo Tbilisi
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2010–2011	Saburtalo Tbilisi	0	(0)
2010–2011	→ Metalurgi Rustavi (loan)	9	(1)
2011	→ Sioni (loan)	0	(0)
2011–2017	Vitesse	104	(25)
2016–2017	→ Legia Warsaw (loan)	12	(1)
2017–2020	San Jose Earthquakes	93	(26)
National team^‡
2009–2010	Georgia U17	6	(3)
2010–2011	Georgia U19	6	(2)
2011–2013	Georgia U21	11	(4)
2014–	Georgia	53	(11)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 5 December 2020 ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 18 November 2020 (UTC)

He debuted for Georgia's national team on 5 March 2014 in a friendly match against Liechtenstein.

Club career

Qazaishvili in 2016.

Vitesse

Starting his footballing career in his native country, Georgia. Qazaishvili made several appearances for Metalurgi Rustavi and Sioni whilst on loan from Saburtalo Tbilisi before joining Dutch side Vitesse in 2011.[2][3] After impressing with the Vitesse youth sides, Qazaishvili was given his debut on 27 November 2011, in a 0–0 draw with Twente, starting the fixture before being replaced by Georgian teammate Giorgi Chanturia in the 65th minute.[4] A week later, Qazaishvili scored his first Vitesse goal in a 4–0 victory over RKC Waalwijk, netting in the 21st minute to make it 2–0.[5] In the later years of Qazaishvili's spell with Vitesse, he became a key figure, especially in their 2014–15 and 2015–16 campaigns, netting nineteen times between the two.[6]

Legia Warsaw (loan)

On 31 August 2016, Qazaishvili joined Polish side Legia Warsaw on a season-long loan.[7] On 14 September 2016, Qazaishvili made his Legia Warsaw debut in a 6–0 home defeat against Borussia Dortmund in the opening matchday of the 2016–17 UEFA Champions League.[8] On 1 October 2016, Qazaishvili made his league debut for Legia Warsaw in a 3–0 victory over Lechia Gdańsk, replacing Guilherme in the 76th minute.[9] On 14 May 2017, Qazaishvili scored his first and only goal for Legia Warsaw in their 6–0 home victory over Nieciecza, coming off the bench to seal the win, netting in the 88th minute.[10]

Following the conclusion of the 2016–17 campaign, Qazaishvili returned to Vitesse after appearing sixteen times and scoring once (in all competitions) for Legia Warsaw. After leaving Legia, he stated that he was disappointed with the loan and with Legia coach Jacek Magiera, who Qazaishvili said told him from the very beginning of the loan that he did not have a place with the team. However, he was pleased to have the opportunity to play in the Champions League and alongside players like Nemanja Nikolić, who he would later compete against in MLS.[11]

San Jose Earthquakes

Qazaishvili warming up for San Jose against the Colorado Rapids at Avaya Stadium on 29 July 2017

On 22 June 2017, Qazaishvili joined American side San Jose Earthquakes as a Designated Player, the team's youngest ever, after a six-year spell with Vitesse.[12] He was introduced at the club on 10 July 2017, by General Manager Jesse Fioranelli during halftime of San Jose's U.S. Open Cup quarterfinal victory over the LA Galaxy; Georgian basketball player Zaza Pachulia, who was playing for the Golden State Warriors at the time, was present at the ceremony as well.[13] His club debut came in a friendly match four days later on 14 July as a 63rd minute substitution in San Jose's 4–1 defeat of Eintracht Frankfurt.[14] Qazaishvili scored in his MLS debut on 19 July, coming on as a halftime substitution for Danny Hoesen against the New York Red Bulls at Red Bull Arena and scoring San Jose's lone goal of the 5–1 defeat in the 88th minute off of a cross by Jahmir Hyka.[15] He first started for the Earthquakes on 9 August during the team's U.S. Open Cup semifinal loss against Sporting Kansas City, earning an assist on Hoesen's goal and converting his penalty when the game was settled with a penalty shootout.[16] During his first MLS start, at home against the Philadelphia Union on 19 August, Qazaishvili scored his second league goal, assisted by Tommy Thompson.[17]

San Jose declined Qazaishvili's contract option following their 2020 season.[18]

International career

Qazaishvili with the Georgian national team in 2016.

Qazaishvili has represented Georgia at under-17, under-19 and under-21 levels before making his senior debut in 2014 in 2–0 victory over Liechtenstein, in which he replaced Avtandil Ebralidze at half-time.

Qazaishvili became a regular with the senior squad, and was a part of Georgia's unsuccessful 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification run in 2017. He scored in Georgia's 2–2 draw with Moldova on 11 June, keeping qualification hopes alive, and again in Georgia's 1–1 tie with Ireland on 2 September.[19][20] He played in the remaining qualifying matches as well, against Austria, Wales, and Serbia, but Georgia ultimately failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.[21]

Personal life

Qazaishvili was born in Ozurgeti, but grew up in the Vake-Saburtalo District of Tbilisi, the Georgian capital. His mother is a Georgian teacher, and his father is a factory engineer; he has a younger brother, Beka, who is eighteen months younger than him. In 2011, Qazaishvili married his wife Gvantsa, whom he met growing up in Saburtalo, and their daughter Emilia was born in 2015.[22] He received his U.S. green card in January 2019, which qualifies him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.[23]

Qazaishvili is close friends with Georgia national teammate Guram Kashia, whom he met playing for Vitesse and who joined him in San Jose in 2018.[24] He said of his move to the Netherlands as a teenager that his friendships with Kashia and fellow Georgian teammate at Vitesse Giorgi Chanturia, whom he knew and had played football with from his childhood, helped what was otherwise a difficult move to a new country at a young age.[25]

Qazaishvili is a fan of and influenced by Argentine footballer Lionel Messi and Italian footballer Alessandro del Piero.

Career statistics

As of matches played 20 January 2021.

Club	Season	League			Cup		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Metalurgi Rustavi	2009–10	Umaglesi Liga	2	0	0	0	—		—		2	0
	2010–11		7	1	1	0	—		1[lower-alpha 1]	0	9	1
	Total		9	1	1	0	—		1	0	11	1
Vitesse	2011–12	Eredivisie	4	1	0	0	—		0	0	4	1
	2012–13		5	0	1	0	0	0	—		6	0
	2013–14		26	4	3	0	2[lower-alpha 2]	0	1[lower-alpha 3]	0	32	4
	2014–15		33	9	3	1	—		4[lower-alpha 4]	2	40	12
	2015–16		33	10	1	0	2[lower-alpha 2]	0	—		36	10
	2016–17		3	1	0	0	—		—		3	1
	Total		104	25	8	1	4	0	5	2	121	28
Legia Warsaw (loan)	2016–17	Ekstraklasa	12	1	0	0	4[lower-alpha 5]	0	—		16	1
	Total		12	1	0	0	4	0	—		16	1
San Jose Earthquakes	2017	Major League Soccer	13	5	1[lower-alpha 6]	0	1[lower-alpha 7]	0	—		15	5
	2018		33	10	0	0	0	0	0	0	33	10
	2019		32	8	0	0	2	3	0	0	34	11
	2020		15	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	15	3
Total			93	26	1	0	3	3	—		97	29
Career total			218	53	10	1	10	3	7	2	245	59

1. Appearance(s) in Georgian Super Cup
2. Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
3. Appearance(s) in 2013–14 Eredivisie European play-offs
4. Appearance(s) in 2014–15 Eredivisie European play-offs
5. Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, two in UEFA Europa League
6. Appearances in the MLS Cup Playoffs
7. Appearances in the U.S. Open Cup

International

As of 18 November 2020[26]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

Georgia national team
Year	Apps	Goals
2014	4	0
2015	9	3
2016	8	1
2017	10	2
2018	8	4
2019	8	0
2020	6	1
Total	53	11

International goals

Scores and results list Georgia's goal tally first.[26]

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	25 March 2015	Mikheil Meskhi Stadium, Tbilisi, Georgia	Malta	2–0	2–0	Friendly
2.	4 September 2015	Boris Paichadze Stadium, Tbilisi, Georgia	Scotland	1–0	1–0	UEFA Euro 2016 qualification
3.	8 October 2015		Gibraltar	4–0	4–0	UEFA Euro 2016 qualification
4.	12 November 2016		Moldova	1–0	1–1	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
5.	11 June 2017	Zimbru Stadium, Chișinău, Moldova	Moldova	2–2	2–2	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
6.	2 September 2017	Boris Paichadze Stadium, Tbilisi, Georgia	Republic of Ireland	1–1	1–1	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
7.	24 March 2018	Mikheil Meskhi Stadium, Tbilisi, Georgia	Lithuania	3–0	4–0	Friendly
8.	27 March 2018		Estonia	2–0	2–0	Friendly
9.	13 October 2018	Boris Paichadze Stadium, Tbilisi, Georgia	Andorra	1–0	3–0	2018–19 UEFA Nations League D
10.				2–0
11.	15 November 2020		Armenia	1–1	1–2	2020–21 UEFA Nations League C

Honours

Club

Legia Warsaw

• Ekstraklasa: 2016–17

References

1. Georgian: ვალერი "ვაკო" ყაზაიშვილი, romanized: valeri "vak'o" q'azaishvili, pronounced [vɑlɛri vɑkʼɔ qʼɑzɑiʃvili]
2. "Valeri Qazaishvili". From Arnhem With Love. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
3. Vitesse legt Kazaishvili voor 3 jaar vast; Vitesse official web-site, 9 August 2011
4. "Twente vs. Vitesse". Soccerway. 27 November 2011. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
5. "Vitesse vs. RKC Waalwijk". Soccerway. 4 December 2011. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
6. "V. Qazaishvili". Soccerway. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
7. "Vitesse Qazaishvili rents to Legia Warsaw". NU Sport. 31 August 2016. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
8. "Legia Warszawa vs. Borussia Dortmund". Soccerway. 14 September 2016. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
9. "Legia Warszawa vs. Lechia Gdańsk". Soccerway. 14 October 2016. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
10. "Legia Warszawa vs. Nieciecza". Soccerway. 14 May 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
11. "ვაკო ყაზაიშვილი: მე უკვე მივიღე მწარე გამოცდილება" (in Georgian). sportall.ge. 28 August 2017. Retrieved 14 March 2018.
12. "NEWS: Earthquakes Sign Valeri 'Vako' Qazaishvili as Designated Player". San Jose Earthquakes Official Site. 22 June 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
13. "Earthquakes hope new Designated Player "Vako" Qazaishvili is a cornerstone". Major League Soccer. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
14. "RECAP: Earthquakes Defeat Bundesliga's Eintracht Frankfurt 4-1". San Jose Earthquakes. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
15. "Timeline: New York Red Bulls vs San Jose Earthquakes 07/19/2017". Major League Soccer. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
16. "RECAP: Earthquakes Fall to Sporting KC in Penalty Kick Shootout in U.S. Open Cup Semifinal". San Jose Earthquakes. Retrieved 12 August 2017.
17. "RECAP: Last-gasp Wondo goal brings Quakes level with Union". San Jose Earthquakes. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
18. https://www.sjearthquakes.com/post/2020/12/04/news-earthquakes-announce-roster-moves-ahead-2021-mls-season
19. "Moldova 2-2 Georgia". UEFA. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
20. "Georgia 1-1 Republic of Ireland". UEFA. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
21. "Georgia". UEFA. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
22. Muscroft, Charlotte. "FEATURE: Quakes designated player Vako opens up about his childhood, life as a family man and moving to San Jose". sjearthquakes.com. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
23. "NEWS: Earthquakes Midfielder Vako Obtains Green Card". Earthquakes Communications.
24. Soria, Joel (2 August 2019). "How Vako went from outcast to centerpiece for surging San Jose Earthquakes". mlssoccer.com. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
25. Muscroft, Charlotte (27 July 2018). "FEATURE: Quakes designated player Vako opens up about his childhood, life as a family man and moving to San Jose". sjearthquakes.com. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
26. "Kazaishvili, Valeri". National Football Teams. Retrieved 24 March 2018.

External links

• Valeri Qazaishvili at Soccerway
• UEFA profile
• Voetbal International profile (in Dutch)
• Valeri Qazaishvili at 90minut.pl (in Polish)