 He made his first-team debut under manager Ljubiša Tumbaković during the 1997–98 season, recording four league appearances in the process.In the following 1998–99 season, Iliev scored his first goals for Partizan, including a header in a 2–3 home loss to Lazio in the return leg of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup second round.He later started playing more regularly, scoring eight league goals in the 1999–2000 season.