Irakli Azarovi

Irakli Azarovi (ირაკლი აზაროვი; born 21 February 2002) is a Georgian footballer who plays as a left-back for Ukrainian Premier League club Shakhtar Donetsk and the Georgia national team.

Azarovi has won the Georgian and Serbian top league trophies four times combined.

He has also been recognized as the Erovnuli Liga Defender of the Year and best young player of the season.

Born in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, Azarovi joined FC Dinamo Tbilisi, aged 10.

Before that, he was a regular in all youth team squads since 2017.

He also took part in all four games of the national U21 team in 2023 European U21 championship.

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He trained regularly in the youth teams of the club all the way until 2019 when he debuted for the Dinamo first team.

Playing mostly as a reserve, he made 7 appearances in 2019, and 5 in the 2020 season, contributing in both for Dinamo to win the Georgian national title.

In 2021, FC Dinamo Batumi was betting strong and bringing quality reinforcements, so Azarovi made a move that earned him much more play time and becoming a regular in the starting line-up, resulting in a successful season crowned with a 2021 Georgian championship.

This also made him became a regular call in the Georgian national team, resulting in a widespread interest from clubs from abroad.

Soon, after a half season with Dinamo Batumi in the 2022 season, Serbian club Red Star Belgrade brought Azarovi to their ranks.

In December 2022, he was announced as a top 10 most talented left-backs in world football.

Azarovi made 21 league appearances for the club, who clinched the league title this season.

This success made him a four-time champion at the age of 21.

On 22 August 2023, Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk announced signing Azarovi on a five-year deal.

Azarovi made his international debut for Georgia on 2 June 2021, starting in a friendly match against Romania.