Besik Pridonashvili
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Besik Pridonashvili | ||
| Date of birth | 11 March 1961 | ||
| Place of birth | Tbilisi, Georgian SSR, Soviet Union | ||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1978–1979 | Aviatori | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1980–1981 | Guria | 22 | (2) |
| 1981–1982 | Dinamo Tbilisi | 0 | (0) |
| 1983–1984 | Guria | 69 | (22) |
| 1985 | Dinamo Tbilisi | 9 | (0) |
| 1986–1992 | Guria | 222 | (75) |
| 1992–1993 | Alazani | 18 | (10) |
| 1993–1994 | Guria | 22 | (12) |
| 1994–1995 | Shevardeni 1906 | 24 | (5) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Besarion (Besik) Pridonashvili (Georgian: ბესიკ ფრიდონაშვილი; born 11 March 1961) is a Georgian retired football player who played as a forward.
During his 15-year career, Pridonashvili scored 122 goals in 386 league appearances, mostly for Guria. He is the winner of the Georgian Cup and two-time runner-up of the Umaglesi Liga.
Career
Born in Tbilisi, Pridonashvili began his professional career at second-division club Guria. In his first season with the club in 1980, Pridonashvili scored once in twelve league appearances. Two years later, he moved to the reserve team of Dinamo Tbilisi.
After another two-year period with Guria, Pridonashvili returned to Dinamo in 1985 and made nine appearances in the Soviet Top League. A year later, the forward was signed again by Guria who were fighting for promotion in the First League. On 12 November 1986, in a crucial match held in Batumi, Pridonashvili scored a late winner against Lokomotiv Moscow to seal Guria's historic promotion.[1] He finished the season as a joint topscorer with Vazgen Manasian.
During the remaining three seasons in the Soviet leagues, Pridonashvili took part in 103 official games, scoring 21 goals.
On 18 November 1990, Pridonashvili netted an extra-time winner in a Georgian Cup final against Tskhumi, making another historic achievement for Guria.[2][3] He was also one of the leading players, making a vital contribution to Guria's second-place finish twice in a row in the national league.
Pridonashvili retired at the age of 34.
Later, until the mid-2020s, he was in charge of German non-league club FSV Rot-Weiß Breitungen for six years.[4]
Honours
- David Kipiani Cup winner: 1990
- Umaglesi Liga runner-up: 1990, 1991
- Soviet First League runner-up: 1986, 1989
References
- ^ "1986 წლის 12 ნოემბერი – დღე სასწაული, რომელმაც ლანჩხუთის ცხოვრება შეცვალა" [12 November 1986, the day which changed the life in Lanchkhuti]. guriatoday.ge (in Georgian). 12 November 2025.
- ^ "ეროვნული ნაკრების ისტორია". mygoals.ge (in Georgian). Retrieved 6 January 2026.
- ^ "პირველად იყო ლანჩხუთი! ისევ ნოემბერი და ისევ ფრიდონაშვილი" [November again and Pridonashvili again]. guriatoday.ge (in Georgian). 18 November 2025. Retrieved 6 January 2026.
- ^ Eimer, Björn (15 December 2025). "Breitungen trennt sich von Pridonashvili" [Breitungen parts ways with Pridonashvili]. insuedthueringen.de (in German). Retrieved 6 January 2026.