Number 16 Current team Puskás Akadémia FC | 2016– Puskás Position Forward | |
Full name Ganbold Ganbayar
Ганболдын Ганбаяр Date of birth (2000-09-03) 3 September 2000 (age 16) Place of birth Selenge Province, Mongolia Playing position | ||
Ganbold Ganbayar (Mongolian: Ганболдын Ганбаяр; born 3 September 2000) is a Mongolian footballer who plays for the academy of Puskás Akadémia FC of Hungary's Nemzeti Bajnokság II.
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Mongolia
Ganbayar started playing football at age 7. He first joined Khoromkhon FC of the Mongolian Premier League in 2014. That year the team won the league championship in the playoffs after being tied on points with Erchim FC (but with an inferior goal differential) following the regular season. During the 2015 Mongolian Premier League season, he scored 15 goals in 11 matches. That year, he was a 70th-minute substitute in the first match of the season for his first senior appearance. He scored his first senior goal against Ulaanbaatar FC in the team's second match and became a regular starter afterward. Ganbayar also competed in the Mongolian Football Federation Under-17 youth division in 2015 and was named the best forward in his division of the tournament.
In May 2014, Ganbayar was named the best player in the under-15 category of Sensation-2020, the eighth edition of the tournament. He was the first player from a rural area to win the award.
Ganbayar appeared in both of Khoromkhon's matches during 2016 AFC Cup qualification. He started both matches and played all but three minutes as the team was defeated 0–1 by K-Electric F.C. of Pakistan and played to a scoreless draw against Druk United of Bhutan. Ganbayar was the youngest player to compete at the tournament.
In 2016, he scored 11 goals in 12 league appearances as Khoromkhon finished third in the league. He once again also competed in the Youth Division in 2016 and was named the top forward in the Under-17 age division.
Experience abroad
In 2011, Ganbayar participated in junior camps held by Italian Serie A club AC Milan in the Mongolian capital of Ulaanbaatar. He was one of four players out of over 200 who were invited to participate in the final youth tournament in Milan. Because of his performances with the Mongolia Under-14 team in 2013, he attracted interest from Académica de Coimbra of the Portuguese Primeira Liga. However, he preferred to stay in Mongolia and play in the domestic league in hopes of gaining the attention of other European clubs.
In March 2016 Ganbayar, along with fellow Mongolian Soyol-Erdene Gal-Erdene and Mongolia national team coach Zorigtyn Battulga, traveled to England to train with Barnet FC of League Two for a month at The Hive Stadium. He tallied two goals and two assists over two matches for the Under-16 side, including an assist against Norwegian club Stabæk after entering as a late substitute and two goals and an assist against Fulham. In the latter match, Fulham's goalkeeper was Jose Mourinho Jr., son of Jose Mourinho. Following the trial, it was believed that Ganbayar could be offered a contract the following year although it may be difficult because of logistics and because of UK laws regarding minors.
Hungary
In September 2016, it was announced that Ganbayar had accepted a year-long residency with the youth academy of Puskás Akadémia FC of Hungary's Nemzeti Bajnokság II. The club competed in the Nemzeti Bajnokság I, the top division of Hungarian football, before being relegated following the 2015–16 season. He and three fellow Mongolians were chosen for the residency as part of a partnership between the MFF and the Hungarian Football Federation which was initiated in 2014. On 21 January 2017 he was in the starting lineup as the under-17 team played a friendly match against the under-17 side of Croatian Prva HNL club NK Osijek. The match ended in a 3–2 victory for Puskás.
International career
In 2013, Ganbayar competed in the qualifying stages of the 2014 AFC U-14 Championship. For this inaugural edition of the tournament, Mongolia competed in Group G against Hong Kong, DPR Korea, Macau, and Japan. Matches were played at the Mong Kok Stadium in Hong Kong. The Mongolian U14 team won their first match 7–0 against Macau before losing 0–4 to Japan, 0–8 to North Korea, and 0–5 to Hong Kong. In Mongolia's victory over Macau, Ganbayar scored five of his team's seven goals. This was the first time in Mongolian international football history that a player scored five goals in a single match.
In September 2015 Ganbayar was part of Mongolia's squad that competed in qualification for the 2016 AFC U-16 Championship. He played all 180 minutes and served as the team's captain for both matches, a 0–17 defeat to Japan and a 2–5 defeat to Hong Kong.
Personal life
Ganbayar is from Selenge Province.