Ilia Iliev Gruev
Ilia Iliev Gruev is a Bulgarian defensive midfielder born in Sofia on 6 May 2000. He began his youth development at Rot-Weiß Erfurt before joining Werder Bremen, where he progressed through the age groups and captained the under-19 side. Gruev made his professional debut for Werder Bremen in a DFB-Pokal match in December 2020. He was part of the Bremen squad that won promotion back to the Bundesliga in 2022 and scored his first senior goal against Schalke 04 during that season. On 31 August 2023, Gruev moved to Leeds, adding a holding option to their midfield. At Leeds, he has been used as a No. 6, dropping between centre-backs in possession and protecting the defence against counter-attacks. He has also represented Bulgaria, while his passing, positioning and ball recovery support his role for club and country.
Season snapshot
Overall season statistics (all competitions).
| Season | Matches | Minutes | Goals | Assists | G/90 | A/90 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 4 | 325 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | 24 | 1384 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.2 |
| 2024 | 33 | 2490 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.07 |
| 2023 | 37 | 2454 | 1 | 1 | 0.04 | 0.04 |
| 2022 | 34 | 1878 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | 26 | 1191 | 1 | 0 | 0.08 | 0 |
| 2020 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | 26 | 2214 | 3 | 0 | 0.12 | 0 |
| 2017 | 29 | 2610 | 2 | 0 | 0.07 | 0 |
Form - Last 10 games
Strengths Analysis Season 2025
Role: MidfielderTop attributes (percentile)
Xtra rating history
Last rating points (most recent matches).
Recent Matches
Premier League - Stadium of Light, Sunderland, England
UEFA Nations League
Teams
Transfers
Werder Bremen
Leeds
Honors
