# 2023 FC Torpedo Kutaisi season

The 2023 season was Torpedo's 77th year in existence and 14th consecutive season in the top flight of Georgian football. In addition to the national league and David Kipiani Cup, the club participated in this season's edition of the Georgian Super Cup and UEFA Europa Conference League as the cup holder of the previous year.
The season covers the period from 1 January to 31 December 2023. This was the second full season under the New Vision University management after they purchased the club in September 2021.
Аs Georgia co-hosted UEFA European U21 Championship this summer, Kutaisi's central stadium underwent a thorough reconstruction. For this reason, Torpedo were unable to play home matches at their arena until the 22nd round.
The team had a promising start to the season. With a single defeat in the initial nine games, they were 3rd, five points behind the table leaders. But having picked up six points in the next second nine-match period, they dropped to 6th. By the summer break, Torpedo had experienced a significant squad and staff overhaul, which included their head coach as well.
The club drastically improved in the second half of the season. They gained as many points in their last nine games (21) as in the first eighteen matches. Ultimately, Torpedo leapfrogged their three opponents and finished among the top three for the first time in five years.

## Events

On 13 January, Levan Mchedlidze, Dino Hamzić and Mate Tsintsadze left Torpedo while Oto Goshadze and Davit Samurkasovi joined the club.
On 20 January, Torpedo signed Kayke David.
On 11 February, the club announced the transfer of Nika Kacharava.
On 24 February, Torpedo welcomed Aldair Neto and Sunday Faleye.
On 31 March, Levan Osikmashvili was signed on loan from Dinamo Tbilisi until the end of the season.
On 8 May, head coach Kakha Chkhetiani left Torpedo by mutual agreement with the club sitting 6th in the league table.
On 16 May, Roin Kvaskhvadze, Giorgi Kimadze and Levan Gegetchkori left the team.
On 17 May, the club announced that Steve Kean was appointed as a new head coach.
On 27 May, Nika Kacharava parted ways with Torpedo.
On 16 June, Davit Samurkasovi and Giorgi Kukhianidze left the club.
On 23 June, Akaki Shulaia left Torpedo by mutual agreement.
On 28 June, assistant manager Nilton Terroso as well as players Rahmat Akbari, Francois Ekongolo and Filip Kljajić joined Torpedo.
On 8 July, Tornike Akhvlediani moved to Samtredia on loan.
On 12 July, Anri Chichinadze, Giorgi Pantsulaia and Nikola Ninković signed with Torpedo on 1.5 year-long deals each. They were joined by Omran Haydary.
On 24 July, Avtandil Labadze, Juba Dvalishvili and Sunday Faleye left for Samtredia.
On 2 December, after a 2–2 draw at Dinamo Batumi, Torpedo finished the season 3rd and secured both the bronze medals and a UEFA Europa Conference League spot for next year.
On 30 December, Torpedo announced that the contract with head coach Steve Kean was extended to the end of 2025 while players Mauro Caballero, Giorgi Kobuladze, Anri Chichinadze, Giorgi Pantsulaia and Aldair Neto left the club.

## Squad

All data regarding players and squad numbers are valid as of 2 December 2023, the last match of the 2023 season. Appearances include the Erovnuli Liga only.
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Player | Positions | Date of birth (age) | Signed in | Apps. | Goals |
| Goalkeepers ||||||||
| 1 | Oto Goshadze | GK | (1997-10-13) 13 October 1997 (age 27) | 2023 | 14 | 0 |
| 31 | Filip Kljajić | GK | (1990-08-16) 16 August 1990 (age 34) | 2023 | 15 | 0 |
| 30 | Roin Kvaskhvadze | GK | (1989-05-31) 31 May 1989 (age 35) | 2021 | 38 | 0 |
| 31 | Avtandil Labadze | GK | (1998-05-09) 9 May 1998 (age 26) | 2022 | 3 | 0 |
| 37 | Avtandil Meparishvili | GK | (2006-01-08) 8 January 2006 (age 18) | 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Defenders ||||||||
| 25 | Jemal Chachua | DF | (2004-12-11) 11 December 2004 (age 20) | 2023 | 1 | 0 |
| 4 | Anri Chichinadze | DF | (1997-10-05) 5 October 1997 (age 27) | 2023 | 7 | 1 |
| 18 | Levan Gegetchkori | DF | (1994-06-05) 5 June 1994 (age 30) | 2022 | 23 | 0 |
| 2 | Saba Goglichidze | DF | (2004-06-25) 25 June 2004 (age 20) | 2021 | 30 | 0 |
| 8 | Giorgi Kimadze | DF | (1992-02-11) 11 February 1992 (age 32) | 2022 | 33 | 0 |
| 15 | Giorgi Kobuladze | DF | (1997-02-26) 26 February 1997 (age 27) | 2023 | 22 | 1 |
| 22 | Giorgi Mchedlishvili | DF | (1992-01-18) 18 January 1992 (age 32) | 2022 | 37 | 0 |
| 3 | Pedro Monteiro | DF | (1994-01-30) 30 January 1994 (age 30) | 2022 | 46 | 1 |
| 5 | Tsotne Nadaraia | DF | (1997-02-21) 21 February 1997 (age 27) | 2019 | 100 | 2 |
| 16 | Nika Sandokhadze | DF | (1994-02-20) 20 February 1994 (age 30) | 2022 | 57 | 2 |
| 27 | Lasha Shergelashvili | DF | (1992-01-17) 17 January 1992 (age 32) | 2022 | 47 | 7 |
| 24 | Amiran Tkeshelashvili | DF | (2006-07-11) 11 July 2006 (age 18) | 2023 | 1 | 0 |
| Midfielders ||||||||
| 6 | Rahmat Akbari | MF | (2000-06-20) 20 June 2000 (age 24) | 2023 | 11 | 0 |
| 26 | Aleko Basiladze | MF | (2005-12-30) 30 December 2005 (age 19) | 2023 | 1 | 0 |
| 20 | Irakli Bugridze | MF | (1998-01-03) 3 January 1998 (age 27) | 2022 | 59 | 12 |
| 38 | Kayke David | MF | (2003-01-22) 22 January 2003 (age 21) | 2023 | 19 | 1 |
| 7 | Merab Gigauri | MF | (1993-06-05) 5 June 1993 (age 31) | 2022 | 39 | 1 |
| 10 | Giorgi Kukhianidze | MF | (1992-07-01) 1 July 1992 (age 32) | 2022 | 37 | 11 |
| 13 | Giuli Manjgaladze | MF | (1992-09-09) 9 September 1992 (age 32) | 2022 | 56 | 3 |
| 21 | Aldair Neto | MF | (1994-07-22) 22 July 1994 (age 30) | 2023 | 27 | 0 |
| 6 | Levan Osikmashvili | MF | (2002-04-20) 20 April 2002 (age 22) | 2023 | 6 | 0 |
| 17 | Davit Samurkasovi | MF | (1998-02-05) 5 February 1998 (age 26) | 2023 | 16 | 0 |
| 11 | Akaki Shulaia | MF | (1996-09-06) 6 September 1996 (age 28) | 2022 | 46 | 2 |
| Forwards ||||||||
| 9 | Tornike Akhvlediani | FW | (1999-07-24) 24 July 1999 (age 25) | 2021 | 46 | 12 |
| 8 | Giorgi Arabidze | FW | (1998-03-04) 4 March 1998 (age 26) | 2022 | 59 | 19 |
| 39 | Mauro Caballero | FW | (1994-10-08) 8 October 1994 (age 30) | 2022 | 30 | 3 |
| 9 | Francois Ekongolo | FW | (2004-08-12) 12 August 2004 (age 20) | 2023 | 8 | 2 |
| 40 | Sunday Faleye | FW | (1998-11-29) 29 November 1998 (age 26) | 2023 | 15 | 0 |
| 11 | Omran Haydary | FW | (1998-01-13) 13 January 1998 (age 26) | 2023 | 8 | 0 |
| 35 | Davit Imedadze | FW | (2004-08-10) 10 August 2004 (age 20) | 2023 | 1 | 2 |
| 14 | Nika Kacharava | FW | (1994-01-13) 13 January 1994 (age 30) | 2023 | 14 | 3 |
| 10 | Nikola Ninković | FW | (1994-12-19) 19 December 1994 (age 30) | 2023 | 13 | 5 |
| 14 | Giorgi Pantsulaia | FW | (1994-01-06) 6 January 1994 (age 30) | 2023 | 13 | 3 |

## Pre-season friendlies

Win  Draw  Loss

## Competitions
### Overview

| Competition | First match | Last match | Starting round | Final position | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record |
| Competition | First match | Last match | Starting round | Final position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % |
| Erovnuli Liga | 26 February 2023 | 2 December 2023 | Matchday 1 | 3rd | 36 | 16 | 12 | 8 | 55 | 37 | +18 | 044.44 |
| Georgian Cup | 7 September 2023 | 25 October 2023 | Round of 16 | Quarterfinals | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 050.00 |
| Super Cup | 30 June 2023 | 4 July 2023 | Semifinals | 3rd | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 000.00 |
| UEFA Europa Conference League | 13 July 2023 | 3 August 2023 | 1st qualifying round | 2nd qualifying round | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 8 | −2 | 025.00 |
| Total | Total | Total | Total | Total | 44 | 18 | 16 | 10 | 64 | 47 | +17 | 040.91 |
Source: Competitions

### Erovnuli Liga
#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Last updated: complete. Source: See Results

#### Results by round

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 |
| Ground | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A |
| Result | D | D | W | W | D | W | L | W | D | L | L | W | D | L | L | L | L | D | W | W | W | W | D | W | D | D | L | W | W | W | W | D | W | D | W | D |

### Results
#### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Dinamo Batumi (C) | 36 | 21 | 11 | 4 | 83 | 41 | +42 | 74 | Qualification for the Champions League first qualifying round |
| 2 | Dinamo Tbilisi | 36 | 21 | 8 | 7 | 93 | 49 | +44 | 71 | Qualification for the Conference League first qualifying round |
| 3 | Torpedo Kutaisi | 36 | 16 | 12 | 8 | 55 | 37 | +18 | 60 | Qualification for the Conference League first qualifying round |
| 4 | Dila Gori | 36 | 17 | 9 | 10 | 56 | 39 | +17 | 60 | |
| 5 | Samgurali Tsqaltubo | 36 | 16 | 9 | 11 | 53 | 51 | +2 | 57 | |

### UEFA Europa Conference League
#### 1st qualifying round
#### 2nd qualifying round
## Statistics
### Goalscorers

| Place | Position | Nation | Number | Name | Erovnuli Liga | Georgian Cup | Super Cup | UEFA Europa Conference League | Total |
| 1 | FW | | 8 | Giorgi Arabidze | 14 | – | – | 2 | 16 |
| 2 | MF | | 20 | Irakli Bugridze | 8 | – | – | 2 | 10 |
| 3 | FW | | 10 | Nikola Ninković | 5 | – | – | – | 5 |
| 3 | DF | | 27 | Lasha Shergelashvili | 5 | – | – | – | 5 |
| 3 | FW | | 14 | Giorgi Pantsulaia | 3 | 2 | – | – | 5 |
| 6 | FW | | 14 | Nika Kacharava | 3 | – | – | – | 3 |
| 7 | FW | | 39 | Mauro Caballero | 2 | – | – | – | 2 |
| 7 | FW | | 9 | Francois Ekongolo | 2 | – | – | – | 2 |
| 7 | FW | | 35 | Davit Imedadze | 2 | – | – | – | 2 |
| 7 | MF | | 10 | Giorgi Kukhianidze | 2 | – | – | – | 2 |
| 7 | DF | | 16 | Nika Sandokhadze | 1 | – | – | 1 | 2 |
| 12 | DF | | 4 | Anri Chichinadze | 1 | – | – | – | 1 |
| 12 | DF | | 38 | Kayke David | 1 | – | – | – | 1 |
| 12 | MF | | 7 | Merab Gigauri | 0 | – | – | 1 | 1 |
| 12 | DF | | 15 | Giorgi Kobuladze | 1 | – | – | – | 1 |
| 12 | MF | | 13 | Giuli Manjgaladze | 1 | – | – | – | 1 |
| 12 | DF | | 3 | Pedro Monteiro | 1 | – | – | – | 1 |
| 12 | MF | | 5 | Tsotne Nadaraia | 1 | – | – | – | 1 |
| Own goal | Own goal | Own goal | Own goal | Own goal | 2 | 1 | – | – | 3 |
| TOTAL | TOTAL | TOTAL | TOTAL | TOTAL | 55 | 3 | – | 6 | 64 |

### Clean sheets

| Place | Position | Nation | Number | Name | Erovnuli Liga | Georgian Cup | Super Cup | UEFA Europa Conference League | Total |
| 1 | GK | | 31 | Filip Kljajic | 6 | – | 2 | 0 | 8 |
| 2 | GK | | 1 | Oto Goshadze | 6 | 1 | – | – | 7 |
| 3 | GK | | 30 | Roin Kvaskhvadze | 4 | – | – | – | 4 |
| TOTAL | TOTAL | TOTAL | TOTAL | TOTAL | 16 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 19 |

### Red cards

| Position | Nation | Number | Name | Erovnuli Liga | Georgian Cup | Super Cup | UEFA Europa Conference League | Total |
| DF | | 22 | Giorgi Mchedlishvili | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| DF | | 27 | Lasha Shergelashvili | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| MF | | 7 | Merab Gigauri | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| DF | | 16 | Nika Sandokhadze | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| TOTAL | TOTAL | TOTAL | TOTAL | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 |

## Awards

At the end of this season, the Erovnuli Liga named Giorgi Arabidze as midfielder of the year and included him and Lasha Shergelashvili in Team of the Year at its annual ceremony.
Several members of Torpedo were also recognized during the season.
| Date | Winner | Award |
| 1st quarter of the Year | Pedro Monteiro | Team of the 1st quarter |
| 1st quarter of the Year | Roin Kvaskhvadze | Team of the 1st quarter |
| 3rd quarter of the Year | Giorgi Arabidze | Team of the 3rd quarter |
| 3rd quarter of the Year | Lasha Shergelashvili | Team of the 3rd quarter |
| 4th quarter of the Year | Filip Kljajic | Team of the 4th quarter |
| 4th quarter of the Year | Lasha Shergelashvili | Team of the 4th quarter |
| 4th quarter of the Year | Nika Sandokhadze | Team of the 4th quarter |
| 4th quarter of the Year | Merab Gigauri | Team of the 4th quarter |
| 4th quarter of the Year | Giorgi Arabidze | Team of the 4th quarter |
| 4th quarter of the Year | Steve Kean | Manager of the 4th quarter |