| Saba Lobjanidze | |
| Birth Date: | 18 December 1994 |
| Birth Place: | Tbilisi, Georgia |
| Height: | 1.75 m |
| Position: | Right winger |
| Currentclub: | Atlanta United |
| Clubnumber: | 9 |
| Youthyears1: | 2004–2007 |
| Youthclubs1: | Norchi Dinamoeli |
| Youthyears2: | 2007–2009 |
| Youthclubs2: | Tbilisi |
| Youthyears3: | 2009–2013 |
| Youthclubs3: | Dinamo Tbilisi |
| Years1: | 2013–2014 |
| Clubs1: | Dinamo Tbilisi II |
| Caps1: | 19 |
| Goals1: | 5 |
| Years2: | 2014–2017 |
| Clubs2: | Dinamo Tbilisi |
| Caps2: | 59 |
| Goals2: | 12 |
| Years3: | 2016 |
| Clubs3: | → Chikhura Sachkhere (loan) |
| Caps3: | 11 |
| Goals3: | 10 |
| Years4: | 2017–2019 |
| Clubs4: | Randers |
| Caps4: | 84 |
| Goals4: | 28 |
| Years5: | 2020–2021 |
| Clubs5: | MKE Ankaragücü |
| Caps5: | 52 |
| Goals5: | 4 |
| Years6: | 2021–2023 |
| Clubs6: | Hatayspor |
| Caps6: | 61 |
| Goals6: | 9 |
| Years7: | 2023 |
| Clubs7: | → Fatih Karagumruk (loan) |
| Caps7: | 10 |
| Goals7: | 2 |
| Years8: | 2023– |
| Clubs8: | Atlanta United |
| Caps8: | 50 |
| Goals8: | 14 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2012–2013 |
| Nationalteam1: | Georgia U19 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 4 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2014–2016 |
| Nationalteam2: | Georgia U21 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 8 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 3 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2017– |
| Nationalteam3: | Georgia |
| Nationalcaps3: | 37 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 3 |
| Club-Update: | 11 November 2024 |
| Nationalteam-Update: | 19:55, 22 June 2024 (UTC). |
Saba Lobjanidze (Georgian: საბა ლობჟანიძე|tr, in Georgian pronounced as /saba lobʒanidze/; born 18 December 1994) is a Georgian professional footballer who plays for Major League Soccer club Atlanta United and the Georgia national team.
Born in Tbilisi, Lobjanidze started playing for Norchi Dinamoeli at the age of 10. Later he joined Dinamo Tbilisi.
In June 2017, Lobjanidze signed a three-year contract with Randers.[1] In April 2018, in six games Lobjhanidze scored six times for Randers, including a hat-trick against Sønderjyske, which won him the Player of the Month award among Georgian football players. Besides, he was twice named in team of the week in the Danish Superliga.[2]
On 30 January 2020, Lobjanidze signed with Turkish club MKE Ankaragücü.[3] He made his debut on 2 February in a 1–1 league draw against Kasımpaşa.[4]
In June 2021, Lobjanidze signed a three-year contract with Hatayspor, after Ankaragücü had relegated from the Süper Lig.[5]
Following a devastating earthquake in Turkey and subsequent withdrawal of Hatayspor from the league in February 2023, he joined Fatih Karagümrük on loan until the end of the season.[6]
In early August 2023, Lobjanidze moved to MLS club Atlanta United on a three-year deal.[7] He finished the 2023 MLS Regular Season with 3 goals and 4 assists in 9 games.[8]
On 30 May 2024, Saba Lobjanidze was named Player of the Matchday after his first career MLS brace guided Atlanta United to 3-1 win at Inter Miami CF.[9] On 20 July 2024, Lobjanidze became the sixth player in club history to record at least 20 goal contributions in their first 30 matches with the team.[10] Lobjanidze finished the MLS Regular Season with 9 goals and 3 assists in 30 matches.[11] His goal on the final matchday of the season against Orlando City helped Atlanta United to earn a spot in the 2024 MLS Cup Playoffs. He then went on to score against Inter Miami CF on 25 October 2024 in the first game of the series. Atlanta United went on to win the series against Inter Miami CF.
Lobjanidze made his debut for the Georgia national team on 23 January 2017 in a friendly against Uzbekistan, scoring one of the two goals of his team.[12] In 2024, Lobjanidze was called up by Georgia for the 2024 European Championships.[13]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Dinamo Tbilisi II | 2012–13 | Pirveli Liga | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | 1 | 0 | ||||
| 2013–14 | Pirveli Liga | 18 | 5 | – | – | – | 18 | 5 | |||||
| Total | 19 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 5 | |||
| Dinamo Tbilisi | 2014–15 | Umaglesi Liga | 24 | 1 | 6 | 1 | – | 1 | 0 | 31 | 2 | ||
| 2015–16 | Umaglesi Liga | 15 | 2 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 16 | 2 | ||||
| 2017 | Erovnuli Liga | 13 | 7 | – | – | – | 13 | 7 | |||||
| Total | 52 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 60 | 11 | |||
| Chikhura (loan) | 2016 | Umaglesi Liga | 12 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | – | 17 | 11 | ||
| Randers | 2017–18 | Danish Superliga | 29 | 9 | 2 | 1 | – | 4 | 3 | 35 | 13 | ||
| 2018–19 | Danish Superliga | 37 | 8 | – | – | – | 37 | 8 | |||||
| 2019–20 | Danish Superliga | 15 | 8 | – | – | – | 15 | 8 | |||||
| Total | 81 | 25 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 87 | 29 | |||
| MKE Ankaragücü | 2019–20 | Süper Lig | 15 | 1 | – | – | – | 15 | 1 | ||||
| 2020–21 | Süper Lig | 37 | 3 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 38 | 3 | ||||
| Total | 52 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 53 | 4 | |||
| Hatayspor | 2021–22 | Süper Lig | 37 | 8 | 3 | 0 | – | – | 40 | 8 | |||
| 2022–23 | Süper Lig | 21 | 1 | – | – | – | 21 | 1 | |||||
| Total | 58 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 61 | 9 | |||
| Fatih Karagümrük (loan) | 2022–23 | Süper Lig | 10 | 2 | – | – | – | 10 | 2 | ||||
| Atlanta United | 2023 | MLS | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | – | 3 | 0 | 15 | 3 | ||
| 2024 | MLS | 34 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | – | 37 | 11 | |||
| Total | 46 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 49 | 14 | |||
| Career total | 330 | 77 | 16 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 8 | 3 | 358 | 85 | |||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia | 2017 | 3 | 1 | |
| 2018 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 2019 | 3 | 1 | ||
| 2020 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 2021 | 9 | 0 | ||
| 2022 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 2023 | 6 | 1 | ||
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 36 | 3 | ||
Scores and results list Georgia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Lobzhanidze goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 January 2017 | The Sevens Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates | 2–1 | 2–2 | Friendly | |
| 2 | 10 June 2019 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 1–1 | 1–5 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualification | |
| 3 | 25 March 2023 | Batumi Stadium, Batumi, Georgia | 6–1 | 6–1 | Friendly | |
Dinamo Tbilisi