User:NikolayXVII/sandbox

In this name that follows Eastern Slavic naming customs, the patronymic is Ilyaovych and the family name is Mudryj.

Kolya

Personal information
Full name	Mykolày Mykhailo Ilyaovych Mudryj
Date of birth	(1992-09-07) 7 September 1992
Place of birth	Chelles, Seine-et-Marne
Height	1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s)	Winger, Forward
Team information
Current team	Juventus
Number	10
Youth career
1998-2005	AS Chelles
2005-2007	FCM Aubervilliers
2007-2009	AS Monaco
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2009–2011	AS Monaco	55	(17)
2011–2022	Juventus	61	(46)
2011–2012	→ Brescia	35	(26)
2022–2029	Marseille	35	(26)
Total		154	(94)
International career
2008–2009	France U16	17	(9)
2010	France U17	4	(3)
2010–2011	France U18	6	(4)
2011	France U19	1	(1)
2011–	Ukraine	32	(21)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Mykolày Mykhailo Ilyaovych Mudryj (Ukrainian: Миколай Михайло Ілляович Мудрий; born 7 September 1992), known simply as Kolya (pronounced [kolʲə]), is a professional football coach and former professional footballer who played primarily for Juventus and the Ukrainian national football team. Playing primarily as an attacking winger or second striker, he is considered one of the greatest players of all time. In his early career, he initially played as a winger, preferably on the left side although being right-footed, and is known for pace, energy, skill and precise passing.

Born and raised in Chelles, Kolya began his senior club career playing for AS Monaco after joining their youth academy at the age of 14. After four years with the club, he would then join Juventus, where he won (3) trophies, including 1 Serie A titles, 1 Coppa Italia titles and X UEFA Champions Leagues over eleven years. Kolya would then return to France to join Marseille.

A prolific goalscorer and creative playmaker, Kolya holds the records for most goals in Serie A (274+), a Serie A season (36+), and most hat-tricks in Serie A (17+) and the UEFA Champions League (8+). He is also the record goalscorer in the Derby d'Italia (the football derby between Juventus and rivals Internazionale of Milan) with (0) goals. Making his senior international debut for Ukraine at the age of 19, he has since earned over 100 caps for the nation. With more than 60 goals at international level, he is also the nation's all-time goal-scorer.

Early Life and Career

Kolya was born in the commune of Chelles in the Seine-et-Marne department. He is of Ukrainian heritage, with his parents being originally from Zaporizhzhia, in eastern Ukraine. Before moving to Monaco, he grew up in the Grande Prairie district in Chelles, and attended a local public school as a child, where he was considered academically gifted but rather unruly.

He comes from a very athletic family: both his older brother, Valentyn, and twin brother Andrij were professional footballers, while his younger sister Nastassia was a professional handball player who represented Paris 92, Nantes, and the French national team.

Kolya began his football career in the Île-de-France region playing for local club AS Chelles. He quickly progressed through the youth ranks - often playing in age groups above his own. He was scouted then by semi-professional club FCM Aubervilliers, with whom he joined the youth academy in 2005. He spent three years in the club's youth academy before moving to AS Monaco in 2006. Despite interest from bigger clubs across European, Kolya opted to stay with Monaco and signed his first professional contract with the club during the summer of 2009.

Club Career

AS Monaco

2009-2011: Development

After spending two years in Monaco's youth academy, on 17 July 2009, aged only 16, he signed a professional four-year contract with the club, being promoted to the first team by manager Guy Lacombe.

Kolya made his first professional appearance for AS Monaco on 5 August 2009 in a 2-0 victory against FC Lorient, coming on as a 84th minute substitute. He therefore became Monaco's youngest-ever first-team player aged 16 years, 10 months, and 30 days, breaking Thierry Henry's record set 21 years previously. His first professional start for the club came on 18 September 2009 in a 1-1 draw with Angers. He would then score scoring his debut professional goal in a 4-1 victory over Troyes on 21 September 2009. While Kolya had predominantly played as a striker in his youth, manager Lacombe deployed him on the left wing because he believed that his pace, natural ball control and skill would be more effective against full backs than centre-backs.

He appeared in 77 matches in all competitions for Les Monégasques and scored 26 goals. Due to Kolya's performances for Monaco, he was linked with many of Europe's top clubs, including Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester United, and Chelsea.

Juventus FC

2011-12: Loan to Brescia

In the summer of 2011, Kolya was signed by Juventus for an estimated fee of €21.7 million from Monaco. He was then immediately loaned to Brescia in order to acclimatise to Italian football. He scored his first goal for the club on August 27 during his debut for Brescia in the first league match of the season against Parma. By the end of the 2011–12 Serie B andata (first half of the season), Kolya had already scored 16 league goals. He completed his season with Brescia with the club winning the league title and sealing promotion to Serie A. He also went on to become the Serie B season's top scorer with a total of 27 goals, 5 more than the second-highest scorer, Genoa's Massimo Coda. Kolya was also named Serie B's Young Player of the Year at the 2012 AIC Gran Gala del Calcio.

2012-2014: A New Era

Juventus at the start of a new era for I Bianconeri, with head coach Antonio Conte overhauling the Piedmontese side with the departure of 13 senior squad members, including Alessandro Del Piero, Felipe Melo, Lúcio, and Fabio Grosso. After his successful loan spell with Brescia, Kolya made his competitive debut for Juventus in Serie A on August 21, providing two assists in a 2-0 victory against Fiorentina. He made his first appearance in front of fans at the Juventus Stadium a week later, providing two assist in a 1–1 draw against Cagliari. His first goal for Juventus came in a 1-0 Champions League match against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, scoring the only goal of the game in the 88th minute. A rich vein of form, including 5 goals in 7 games in the Champions League saw the 20-year-old Kolya start to establish himself as one of the best players in the world during the 2012–13 campaign. Already an idol to the Tradizione Bianconera, the club's oldest ultras supporters, he scored 15 goals in 36 games across all competitions, helping the team to their second consecutive Serie A title.

Amid rumours that he would join Real Madrid during the 2013-14 summer transfer window, Kolya quelled media speculation by signing a new five-year contract with Juventus, committing to the Piedmontese club until the end of the 2017-18 season.

Kolya was awarded the number 10 shirt, previously worn by the likes of Alessandro Del Piero and Roberto Baggio, ahead of the start of the 2013-14 season...

2014-2016: Trequartista & Captaincy

Throughout the previous season, Kolya also began to gain recognition as a club symbol and as a leader, and in July of 2014, he became the official team captain, and the youngest Serie A club captain ever at the age of 21.

International Career

Due to his Ukrainian parents, in 2009, media reported that Kolya was eligible to represent several national teams - France (through being born there and having a French passport) and Ukraine (through his Ukrainian heritage). He represented France in his youth at every age group for which he eligible.

Youth Career

Kolya began his international career with the French national youth football team and earned caps at all levels for which he was eligible. He made his youth international debut on 23 September 2008 in the team's opening match of the campaign against Wales in Llanelli. France won the match 4–2. The team recorded impressive victories over Uruguay and Italy in the Tournoi du Val-de-Marne and defeated the Republic of Ireland by an aggregate score of 8–2 over the course of two matches. On 31 January 2009, he scored in the 2009 Aegean Cup Final against Norway. Kolya scored the winning goal to give France a 2–1 lead and the team won the match 2–1 to win the tournament.

He was a part of the team that played at the 2010 UEFA European Under-17 Championship scoring all three of his goals with the team at the tournament. He scored the only goal in the team's 1–0 victory over Portugal in the group stage, as well as in a 3–1 victory over Switzerland, and scored his last youth international goal in the team's 2–1 loss to England in the semi-finals. Kolya then made his under-18 debut on 27 October 2010 at the Tournio de Limoges against Greece, scoring twice in a 4–1 victory. Kolya's final appearance for France at youth level came in his only appearance for the under-19 team in its first match of the season against Italy on 6 September 2011. In the match, he scored the opening goal and provided an assist on a goal scored by Jean-Christophe Bahebeck, in a 3–1 victory.

Senior Career

Shortly after joining Juventus in 2011, Kolya stated in an interview that he wanted to play for the senior Ukrainian national team .In October 2011, Kolya was called up to the senior Ukrainian squad by Oleg Blokhin and subsequently made his international debut on 7 October, coming on as a substitute for Yevhen Konoplyanka in a 3-0 victory against Bulgaria. Kolya scored his first goal for the Ukrainian national team on the 28th of May 2012, scoring the final goal in a 4-0 victory over Estonia in Lviv, Ukraine.  

UEFA Euro 2012

As co-hosts, Ukraine qualified automatically for Euro 2012, marking their debut in the UEFA European Championship. After a highly successful season with Brescia, Kolya was considered one of the young footballers to watch in the tournament. In their opening game against Sweden, Kolya scored a brace in a 3-0 win in Kyiv. He would then score crucial goals in a 1-1 draw with France and a historic 2-1 victory over England, both in Donetsk, ensuring that Ukraine qualified to the knockout stages. Ukraine would go on to meet Italy in the quarter-finals, losing a closely fought game 1-0.  

Outside Football

Personal & Family Life

Kolya was born in Chelles, a commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, to Ukrainian immigrant parents. He grew up in La Grande Prairie, a neighbourhood well known for high crime rates, poverty, and unemployment. It was there that he was first exposed to football - playing in the streets with other children in the neighbourhood.

“When you’re living in the housing estates, you play outside all the time. Our parents knew if we were playing, we weren't out there causing trouble - and playing all day every day really helps you improve your dribbles and technique, and mentality. I think that’s why the best technical players come from the streets.”

— Kolya, Ballon Sur Bitume

Kolya's first name (Микола in Ukrainian) has multiple ways of being transliterated from its original spelling in the Ukrainian Cyrillic alphabet into the Latin alphabet; Mykolày is the spelling used throughout the player's official web site. It has also been adopted by UEFA and FIFA and is the preferred spelling in most English publications, although Nikolay and Mykola were also used during Kolya's youth.

He has two brothers who are also professional footballers. His twin brother, Andrij, played as a right-back for Monaco, Nice, and CF Montréal, and his older brother, Valentyn, played as a goalkeeper for Lorient and Ajax. He also has a young sister, Nastassia. Raised an Orthodox Christian, he frequently carries religious icons to matches and has spoken openly about the importance faith has to him, which was shown by his grandmother.

Since 2016, Kolya has been in a relationship with French-Italian actress Stella Lelouch. After keeping their relationship private for almost a year, the couple confirmed their relationship via social media in December of 2016. The couple married in July 2017 an a private ceremony at the Saint-Pierre de Montmartre in Paris. Residing in Maussane-les-Alpilles, Kolya and Lelouch have four children, Joséphine (born 2019), Matteo (born 2022), and twins Sofìa and Alessandra (born 2025).

Kolya completed a laurea (bachelor's degree) in health sciences and dietetics at the Università degli Studi di Torino in July 2017, and earned a laurea magistrale (master's degree) in applied biology and nutritional sciences in April 2022 from the same institution, graduating cum laude (with honours).

Along with his native French and Ukrainian, Kolya is also fluent in Italian and English. Growing up, Kolya didn't learn to speak French fluently until the age of five, as he was raised to only speak Ukrainian at home.

Throughout the 2017–18 season, Kolya appeared in the Netflix docu-series First Team: Juventus.

He was a vocal opponent of the War in Ukraine and 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Endorsements

In addition to his salary and bonuses, much of his income derives from endorsements. His main sponsor since 2012 is the sportswear company Adidas. Over time, Kolya established himself as one of their leading brand endorsers. Since 2015, he has worn the latest version of the Adidas Predator range, wearing a unique pairing of the boots, with the right boot fitted tighter than the left.     

Career Statistics

Club

Appearances and Goals by Club, Season and Competition

Club	Season	League			League Cup		Continental		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
AS Monaco	2009-10	Ligue 1	24	7	3	2	5	0	32	9
	2010-11		31	10	5	1	9	6	45	17
	Total		55	17	8	3	14	6	77	26
Brescia (loan)	2011-12	Serie B	35	27	3	2	—		38	29
	Total		35	27	3	2	—		38	29
Juventus	2012-13	Serie A	`27	14	3	2	10	3	36	15
	2013-14		3	2			1	1	4	3
	2014-15
	2015-16
	2016-17
	2017-18
	2018-19
	2019-20
	2020-21
	2021-22
	Total		30	16	2	0	6	2	40	18
Marseille	2022-23	Ligue 1
	2023-24
	2024-25
	2025-27
	2027-28
	2028-29
	2029-30
	Total
Career total			154	94	15	9	16	12	187	116

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Ukraine	2011	4	0
	2012	10	7
	2013	9	5
	2014	6	6
	2015
	2016
	2017
	2018
	2019
	2020
	2021
	2022
	2023
	2024
	2025
	2026
	2027
	2028
Total		32	21

List of international goals scored by Kolya

No.	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	28 May 2012	Kufstein Arena, Kufstein, Austria	5	Estonia	0–4	0–4	Friendly
2	11 June 2012	Olympic Stadium, Kyiv, Ukraine	7	Sweden	1–0	3–0	UEFA Euro 2012
3	11 June 2012	Olympic Stadium, Kyiv, Ukraine	7	Sweden	2–0	3–0	UEFA Euro 2012
4	15 June 2012	Donbass Arena, Donetsk, Ukraine	8	France	1–1	1–1	UEFA Euro 2012
5	19 June 2012	Donbass Arena, Donetsk, Ukraine	9	England	2–1	2–1	UEFA Euro 2012
6	12 October 2012	Zimbru Stadium, Chisinau, Moldova	11	Moldova	0–1	0–1	2014 FIFA World Cup Qualification
7	14 November 2012	Levski Stadium, Sofia, Bulgaria	12	Bulgaria	0–2	0–2	Friendly
8	22 March 2013	Stadion Narodowy, Warsaw, Poland	14	Poland	1–1	1–3	2014 FIFA World Cup Qualification
9	22 March 2013	Stadion Narodowy, Warsaw, Poland	14	Poland	1–3	1–3	2014 FIFA World Cup Qualification
10	7 June 2013	Podgorica City Stadium, Podgorica, Montenegro	17	Montenegro	0–4	0–4	2014 FIFA World Cup Qualification
11	14 August 2013	Olympic Stadium, Kyiv, Ukraine	18	Israel	3–1	3–1	Friendly
12	15 November 2013	Metalist Oblast Sports Complex, Kharkiv, Ukraine	19	France	1–0	2–0	2014 FIFA World Cup Qualification
13	5 March 2014	Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium, Larnaca, Cyprus	20	United States	1–0	3–1	Friendly
14	5 March 2014	Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium, Larnaca, Cyprus	20	United States	2–0	3–0	Friendly
15	9 October 2014	Borisov Arena, Barysaw, Belarus	23	Belarus	0–2	0–2	2016 UEFA Euro Qualification
16	12 October 2014	Arena Lviv, Lviv, Ukraine	24	North Macedonia	1–0	1–0	2016 UEFA Euro Qualification
17	15 November 2014	Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg	26	Luxembourg	2–0	3–0	2016 UEFA Euro Qualification
18	15 November 2014	Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg	26	Luxembourg	3–0	3–0	2016 UEFA Euro Qualification

Honours

Club

AS Monaco

• Coupe de la Ligue (1): 2010-11

Brescia Calcio

• Serie B (1): 2011-12

Juventus

• Serie A (1): 2014-15
• Coppa Italia (1): 2013-14
• Supercoppa Italiana (1): 2014-15
• UEFA Champions League (x):
• UEFA Super Cup (x):
• FIFA Club World Cup (x):

International

France U-16

• Aegean Cup (1): 2009

Ukraine

• UEFA European Championship runner-up: 2016
• FIFA World Cup: 2018
• UEFA Nations League: 2020–21
• UEFA European Championship (1): 2028

Individual

• Ballon d'Or (x):
• Capocannoniere (x):
• European Golden Shoe (x):
• FIFA World Player of the Year (x):
• FIFA Club World Cup Golden Ball (x):
• Golden Boy (1): 2013
• Guerin d'Oro (2): 2014, 2015
• Italian Football Hall of Fame: 2030
• Serie A Footballer of the Year (x):
• Serie A Goal of the Season (1): 2013-14,
• Serie A Team of the Year (1): 2014,
• Serie B Footballer of the Year: 2012
• Serie B top scorer: 2011–12 (26 goals)
• UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season (x):
• UEFA European Under-17 Championship Team of the Tournament: 2010
• UNFP Ligue 1 Player of the Month (2): November 2010, April 2011
• UNFP Ligue 1 Team of the Year (1): 2010-11

Orders

• Hero of Ukraine: 2028
• Commendatore dell'Ordine della Stella d'Italia: 2030