FC Zana Abasha
| Ground | Mevlud Miminoshvili stadioni, Abasha, Georgia |
|---|---|
| Capacity | 1,000 |
| Chairman | Mamuka Kvilitaia |
| Head Coach | Zaal Kutsia |
| League | Liga 4 |
| 2023 | 2nd, Group C of Regionuli Liga, (promoted) |
FC Zana (Georgian: საფეხბურთო კლუბი ზანა) is a Georgian association football club based in the town of Abasha. Following the 2023 season, they won promotion to Liga 4, the forth tier of the national league system.
History[edit]
The third tier is the highest division where Zana have taken part since the formation of independent Georgian championship in 1990. The team gained promotion to Meore Liga in 2015, although their tenure there lasted two seasons.[1] Following their relegation in 2016, Zana spent seven seasons in Regionuli Liga.
Zana came 3rd in their group tournament three times in four years, including in 2022, when the team was chasing promotion up until the last match. However, having lost a crucial game, they failed to overcome their two rivals and qualify for playoffs.[2]
This season the club turned out to be the only fifth-division side to have prevailed over four opponents in the Cup campaign and progressed into the round of 16 for the first time in their history.[3]
The next year Zana finished 2nd in the western zone of the regional league tournament in 2023, which implied winning a play-off qualifying spot. Following a 2–1 win over UG-35,[4] the club earned promotion to the 4th league for 2024.
The team is also a regular participant of the annual Western Cup competition, organized by the regional Football Federation of Imereti. Zana won it in 2020.[5]
Seasons[edit]
| Year | Division | Pos | M | W | D | L | GF–GA | Pts | Cup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015/16 | Meore Liga, West | 10th of 14 | 26 | 8 | 2 | 16 | 28–64 | 26 | |
| 2016 | Meore Liga, West C | 5th of 7↓ | 12 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 24–29 | 9 | |
| 2017 | Regionuli Liga, West A | 8th of 15 | 28 | 11 | 4 | 13 | 49–57 | 37 | Round 2 |
| 2018 | Regionuli Liga, West B | 5th of 8 | 14 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 20–25 | 19 | Round 1 |
| 2019 | Regionuli Liga, West A | 3rd of 19 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 25–9 | 22 | |
| Promotion Group | 4th of 10 | 18 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 26–28 | 27 | ||
| 2020 | Regionuli Liga, West | 3rd of 9 | 16 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 23–14 | 28 | |
| 2021 | Regionuli Liga, West | 4th of 9 | 24 | 13 | 3 | 8 | 49–35 | 42 | Round 1 |
| 2022 | Regionuli Liga, C | 3rd of 11 | 20 | 15 | 1 | 4 | 64–16 | 46 | Round 4 |
| 2023 | Regionuli Liga, C | 2nd of 13↑ | 24 | 19 | 4 | 1 | 101–16 | 61 | Preliminary round |
Squad[edit]
As of September 2022[6]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Stadium[edit]
Zana play their home matches at a 1,000-seater stadium named after Mevlud Miminoshvili (1942–2023). Born in Abasha, he was a FIFA referee, working in the Soviet Top League for ten seasons in the 1980s.[7]
References[edit]
- ^ "Meore Liga 2016". soccerway.com.
- ^ "Regional league, 2022". gff.ge (in Georgian).
- ^ "საქართველოს თასი 1/8 ფინალი ზანა 1-4 გურია". fcguria.ge (in Georgian). 13 September 2022.
- ^ "Zana vs UG-35". gff.ge (in Georgian). Retrieved 30 November 2023.
- ^ "ზანა" აბაშა - „დასავლეთის თასი 2020"-ის გამარჯვებული". irff.ge (in Georgian). 4 March 2020.
- ^ "Squad". soccerway.com.
- ^ "ყველა დამწყებმა მსაჯმა უნდა გაითვალისწინოს: მთავარია, არ გაიფუჭო სახელი!". kvirispalitra.ge (in Georgian). 18 March 2019.