Georgi Kinkladze (, ; born 6 July 1973), also spelled Georgiou, or Giorgi, or shortened to Gio, is a Georgian former footballer who played as a playmaking midfielder. Born in the Georgian capital Tbilisi, his first professional club was Mretebi Tbilisi. In Georgia he won three league titles and two cups with Dinamo Tbilisi, and was named national player of the year twice. He first came to international prominence with his performances for the Georgian national team against Wales in 1994 and 1995. Kinkladze transferred from Dinamo Tbilisi to English Premier League club Manchester City in 1995, where his dribbling ability and spectacular goals made him a cult hero, winning the club's Player of the Year award in two consecutive seasons. Kinkladze stayed with Manchester City despite relegation to the Football League First Division in 1996, but the club continued to decline, and after a second relegation in 1998 he joined Dutch champions Ajax. With his national team won Malta International Football Tournament 1998. Kinkladze was unable to settle in the Netherlands, and returned to England with Derby County a little over a year later. He spent four years at Derby, making nearly 100 appearances. After leaving Derby in 2003, he became a journeyman footballer, having unsuccessful trials at several clubs before joining Cypriot club Anorthosis in 2004, where he won a league championship medal. He finished his playing career with Russian club Rubin Kazan in 2006. Early life Georgi Kinkladze was born on 6 July 1973 in Tbilisi, Georgia, which was then part of the Soviet Union. As a child, he lived in the Didube district of the city with his father, Robinzon (an engineer), his mother Khatuna (a teacher) and his elder sister. Robinzon was keen to see his son succeed as a footballer, sometimes making him walk around the family home on his knees to strengthen his legs, and enrolled him for Dinamo Tbilisi's junior side when he was six years old. Khatuna disapproved of some of her husband's methods, instead taking Georgi to lessons in mtiuluri, a traditional Georgian ballet. Over the next few years, Kinkladze played in Dinamo Tbilisi's youth teams, progressing as far as the reserve team, where he played alongside Shota Arveladze, who would later become his teammate at both senior and international level. Playing career Early career When Georgian football formed leagues independent of Soviet competition in 1989, a family friend arranged