Bulgarian side Ludogorets has officially announced the signing of Ukrainian defensive midfielder Ivan Zhelyzko, who spent the last three seasons playing for Gdańsk's Lechia in the Polish Ekstraklasa. The 25-year-old midfielder, a product of Lviv's Karpaty academy, changed his club registration after a prolonged period in the Polish championship, where he managed to become team captain and one of the key players in the centre of the park. This is reported by Sport RBC.UA, citing the official Ludogorets website. The footballer has already successfully passed the medical examination and joined his new team's training camp, where he will wear the number 5 shirt.
Deal terms and competition on the transfer market
According to insider sources, the transfer fee amounted to 4 million euros, which Lechia will receive from the Bulgarian club over the course of two years. The deal became the second most expensive sale in the history of the Gdańsk club. Ivan Zhelyzko's contract with Ludogorets runs until the summer of 2029, which underscores the seriousness of the Bulgarian giant's intentions regarding the Ukrainian midfielder. Notably, Ludogorets won the race for Zhelyzko against representatives of Italy's Serie A — in particular, Udinese — as well as against leading clubs of the Polish Ekstraklasa, which testifies to the high level of competition for the Ukrainian midfielder on the transfer market.
Statistics and role in the Lechia squad
Ivan Zhelyzko defended the colours of Gdańsk's Lechia from the summer of 2023 and during this time became captain of the side. In total, the midfielder played 89 matches for the Gdańsk team across all competitions, scoring 13 goals and providing 9 assists. In the just-concluded 2025/26 season, the Ukrainian played 33 matches, scored 7 goals and made 7 assists, confirming his status as one of the most productive defensive midfielders in the Polish championship. His departure from Lechia was a notable squad loss for the Gdańsk club, however, the financial terms of the deal allowed Lechia to offset the losses.
Career path: from Karpaty to a Bulgarian giant
Ivan Zhelyzko is a product of the football academy of Lviv's Karpaty, where he laid the foundations of his professional skill. In his subsequent career, the midfielder also played for Czech side Karviná and Latvian side Valmiera, with the latter he won the Latvian championship title. It was after the Latvian stage that Zhelyzko moved to Lechia, where he spent three full seasons and grew into the team captain. The Ukrainian's new club, Ludogorets, 14-time Bulgarian champions, currently occupy second place in the national championship, which makes Zhelyzko's move a logical step in the career of a footballer striving for new challenges at the European level.
Contradictory data
Open sources show discrepancies in the information about the transfer fee. The main source — Sport RBC.UA, citing the official Ludogorets website — points to a sum of 4 million euros, to be paid to Lechia over two years. However, the outlets Sport.ua and Sportarena.ua previously reported that Lechia was ready to sell Zhelyzko for 5 million euros. The one-million-euro difference may be explained by the fact that 5 million was the initial asking price, while 4 million is the final sum agreed upon by the parties during negotiations. Nevertheless, none of the sources publishes the full text of the contract, so the exact financial structure of the deal remains a matter of interpretation.
Context: Ukrainian footballers in Polish football
Ivan Zhelyzko's move to Ludogorets comes against the backdrop of an active redistribution of Ukrainian players in Polish football. It was previously reported that another Ukrainian from Lechia — Bohdan Viunik — transferred to Warsaw's Legia. Thus, the Gdańsk club has lost two Ukrainian footballers in a short period, which may affect the tactical scheme and squad depth of Lechia in the upcoming season. For Zhelyzko himself, the move to Ludogorets means a step up to a new level: the Bulgarian club regularly participates in European competitions and is one of the strongest in Eastern Europe, which opens up prospects for further professional growth for the 25-year-old midfielder.
