Stefan Bozhkov
Stefan Boschkow ( born September 20, 1923 in Sofia, † February 1, 2014 ) was a Bulgarian football player and later coach and football official. After he already came as a player with 53 caps, Boschkow was a few years also coach of the Bulgarian national football team and led them to participate in the Football World Cup 1970 in Mexico.
Playing career
Stefan Boschkow began playing football at Neighbourhood Association Sportist Sofia, where he made his debut in the first team at the age of fifteen. There he played for eight years as a midfielder until 1946 SK Kladno joined. This Czechoslovakian club was just zwangsabgestiegen for match-fixing from the top flight checkout of the country, but managed with Stefan Boschkow in its ranks the immediate return to the Czechoslovak football championship.
After the climb with Kladno Stefan Boschkow returned to his Bulgarian homeland and played from then on for the top club CSKA Sofia, where he experienced the most successful period of his career. With the Central Sports Club of the Army Sofia Boschkow won over the years ten championship, where he was in 1948 at all involved in the first championship in the club's history. In the aftermath CSKA Sofia built a veritable dominance over the Bulgarian football and won 1954-1962 even nine championships in a row. Stefan Boschkow but only played until 1960 at the club before he with 47 goals at the age of 37 years announced the end of his active career as a football player after 189 league games. Besides the numerous championship titles with CSKA Sofia Boschkow was also in the national cup, then known as the Soviet Army Cup, very successful. This competition could be won in the years 1951, 1954 and 1955, three times.
Between 1946 and 1958 it also brought Stefan Boschkow 53 caps for the Bulgarian national football team. In these games, he scored four Torerfolge. Highlight of his international career was about winning the bronze medal at the Summer Olympic Games in Melbourne in 1956. There Bulgaria presented very strong, failed only in the extension of the semi-finals with 1:2 at a firm favorite went into the game Soviet Union and finally won against India with a comfortable 3-0 victory for third place. The participation in a World Cup as a player but remained Boschkow implies denying.
Coaching career
Just a few months after the end of his active career as a football player, Stefan Boschkow in succession from Krum Milev the coach of the Bulgarian national football team, which he only cared interim basis. After a few days, a successor was found for him, which was known as Georgi Patschedschiew and led Bulgaria to the initial qualification for a FIFA World Cup in Chile 1962, but failed to clear the first round.
After six years of absence as head coach Stefan Boschkow took over again in 1966, the Bulgarian national team, which had experienced the same year under coach Rudolf Vytlačil his second World Cup finals in a row. Boschkow led Vytlačils continue working and qualified with his team's first Group 8 qualifier against Poland in Europe for the Football World Cup 1970 in Mexico. Here the team failed to make player like Christo Bonew, Dimitar Penev or Georgi Asparuchow However, as with the two previous finals in the preliminary round. This time they ranked in a group with the Federal Republic of Germany, Peru and Morocco in third place with only one point which you had won against the North Africans. After the 1970 World Cup ended Stefan Boschkows tenure as Bulgarian national coach, he was replaced by Vasil Spasov.
Again followed for Stefan Boschkow now for many years without a trainer. It was not until 1982 he took over for a short time as coach of his old club CSKA Sofia. However, this activity was only on an interim basis, he was soon replaced it again.
Then Stefan Boschkow took no further commitment as a coach more. For this, he served for a long time as vice president of the Bulgarian Football Union and was involved in numerous committees of the Association. Boschkow died on February 1, 2014 at the age of 90 years in Sofia.
Achievements
- Bulgarian Championship: 10x
- Soviet Army Cup: 3x