I. Gruev · career
Ilia Iliev Gruev
Central · Leeds · season-by-season, by competition, and every match.
Career report
Gruev is operating at his career peak — the 2025/26 level is the level.
Peak: 2025/26Holding levelRemarkably consistentStepped up 2022/23
The record covers 6 seasons (2021/22–2025/26) across 2 clubs, including a move abroad — 136 appearances, 2 goals and 6 assists.
His best campaign on record is 2025/26 at Leeds — Season rating 25, 0 goals and 3 assists in 23 games. Output has held steady across his last 3 full seasons (22 → 25).
Season-to-season output barely moves — his form has stayed within a tight band (±3 points) across 5 campaigns. Made the jump to a higher division in 2022/23 (Bundesliga) and kept playing — 31 games that season.
By season
| Season | Club | Apps | G | A | Rating | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025/26 | Leeds | 23 | 0 | 3 | 69 | 25 |
| 2024/25 | Leeds | 23 | 0 | 2 | 64 | 17 |
| 2023/24 | Leeds | 32 | 1 | 1 | 66 | 22 |
| 2023/24 | Werder Bremen | 1 | 0 | 0 | 61 | 0 |
| 2022/23 | Werder Bremen | 31 | 0 | 0 | 72 | 18 |
| 2021/22 | Werder Bremen | 26 | 1 | 0 | 61 | 19 |
| 2020/21 | Werder Bremen | 1 | 0 | 0 | 61 | 0 |
| 2020/21 | Werder Bremen II | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | — |
| 2019/20 | Werder Bremen II | 15 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 2018/19 | Werder Bremen U19 | 24 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 2017/18 | Werder Bremen U19 | 26 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
International
| Side | Season | Competition | Apps | G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulgaria | 2025/26 | Friendlies | 4 | 0 |
| 2024/25 | Friendlies | 2 | 0 | |
| 2024/25 | UEFA Nations League | 4 | 0 | |
| 2024/25 | World Cup - Qualification Europe | 5 | 0 | |
| 2023/24 | Euro Championship - Qualification | 8 | 0 | |
| 2023/24 | Friendlies | 2 | 0 | |
| 2022/23 | UEFA Nations League | 2 | 0 | |
| 2022/23 | Friendlies | 2 | 0 | |
| Bulgaria U21 | 2023/24 | UEFA U21 Championship - Qualification | 8 | 0 |
| Bulgaria U19 | 2018/19 | UEFA U19 Championship | 2 | 0 |
| Bulgaria U17 | 2017/18 | UEFA U17 Championship | 3 | 1 |
Honours
Championship×22. Bundesliga×2
By competition
| Competition | Apps | Min | G | A | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premier League | 23 | 1334 | 0 | 3 | 6.7 |
| Friendliesat Bulgaria | 4 | 359 | 0 | 0 | 7.0 |
| Friendlies Clubs | 5 | 194 | 0 | 0 | 6.6 |
| FA Cup | 2 | 124 | 0 | 0 | 6.8 |
| League Cup | 1 | 71 | 0 | 0 | 6.6 |
Schedule · 2025/26
26 played12 unused sub4 injured5 not in squad· 1529 min, 0g 3a
| Date | Competition | Opponent | Res | Status | Min | G | A | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 19 | Friendlies Clubs | A Manchester United | 0-0 | Not in squad | — | |||
| Aug 2 | Friendlies Clubs | H Villarreal | 1-1 | Not in squad | — | |||
| Aug 9 | Friendlies Clubs | H AC Milan | 1-1 | Not in squad | — | |||
| Aug 18 | Premier League | H Everton | 1-0 | Played | 12 | 6.3 | ||
| Aug 23 | Premier League | A Arsenal | 0-5 | Played | 90 | 6.3 | ||
| Aug 26 | League Cup | A Sheffield Wednesday | 1-1 | Played | 71 | 6.6 | ||
| Aug 30 | Premier League | H Newcastle | 0-0 | Played | 90 | 7.2 | ||
| Sep 13 | Premier League | A Fulham | 0-1 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Sep 20 | Premier League | A Wolves | 3-1 | Played | 1 | — | ||
| Sep 27 | Premier League | H Bournemouth | 2-2 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Oct 4 | Premier League | H Tottenham | 1-2 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Oct 18 | Premier League | A Burnley | 0-2 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Oct 24 | Premier League | H West Ham | 2-1 | Played | 18 | 6.5 | ||
| Nov 1 | Premier League | A Brighton | 0-3 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Nov 9 | Premier League | A Nottingham Forest | 1-3 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Nov 23 | Premier League | H Aston Villa | 1-2 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Nov 29 | Premier League | A Manchester City | 2-3 | Played | 90 | 6.9 | ||
| Dec 3 | Premier League | H Chelsea | 3-1 | Played | 23 | 6.6 | ||
| Dec 6 | Premier League | H Liverpool | 3-3 | Played | 65 | 6.7 | ||
| Dec 14 | Premier League | A Brentford | 1-1 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Dec 20 | Premier League | H Crystal Palace | 4-1 | Played | 15 | 6.3 | ||
| Dec 28 | Premier League | A Sunderland | 1-1 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Jan 1 | Premier League | A Liverpool | 0-0 | Played | 89 | 7.2 | ||
| Jan 4 | Premier League | H Manchester United | 1-1 | Played | 80 | 6.9 | ||
| Jan 7 | Premier League | A Newcastle | 3-4 | Played | 89 | 1 | 7.3 | |
| Jan 11 | FA Cup | A Derby | 3-1 | Played | 73 | 6.6 | ||
| Jan 17 | Premier League | H Fulham | 1-0 | Played | 81 | 6.7 | ||
| Jan 26 | Premier League | A Everton | 1-1 | Played | 66 | 6.5 | ||
| Jan 31 | Premier League | H Arsenal | 0-4 | Played | 45 | 6.3 | ||
| Feb 6 | Premier League | H Nottingham Forest | 3-1 | Played | 90 | 2 | 8.2 | |
| Feb 10 | Premier League | A Chelsea | 2-2 | Played | 90 | 6.9 | ||
| Feb 15 | FA Cup | A Birmingham | 1-1 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Feb 21 | Premier League | A Aston Villa | 1-1 | Played | 90 | 6.0 | ||
| Feb 28 | Premier League | H Manchester City | 0-1 | Played | 75 | 6.2 | ||
| Mar 3 | Premier League | H Sunderland | 0-1 | Played | 62 | 6.3 | ||
| Mar 8 | FA Cup | H Norwich | 3-0 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Mar 15 | Premier League | A Crystal Palace | 0-0 | Played | 45 | 6.7 | ||
| Mar 21 | Premier League | H Brentford | 0-0 | Unused sub | 0 | — | ||
| Apr 5 | FA Cup | A West Ham | 2-2 | Played | 51 | 6.9 | ||
| Apr 13 | Premier League | A Manchester United | 2-1 | Played | 16 | 7.0 | ||
| Apr 18 | Premier League | H Wolves | 3-0 | Played | 12 | 6.3 | ||
| Apr 22 | Premier League | A Bournemouth | 2-2 | Not in squad | — | |||
| Apr 26 | FA Cup | A Chelsea | 0-1 | Not in squad | — | |||
| May 1 | Premier League | H Burnley | 3-1 | Knee Injury | — | |||
| May 11 | Premier League | A Tottenham | 1-1 | Knee Injury | — | |||
| May 17 | Premier League | H Brighton | 1-0 | Knee Injury | — | |||
| May 24 | Premier League | A West Ham | 0-3 | Knee Injury | — |