Calciomercato Monza, Antov rewarded with renewal
Newly promoted Monza has announced that it has extended the contract for the sports performance of Valentin Antov until June 30, 2027, with automatic renewal for one more season if certain conditions are met. Arriving in Brianza in the summer of 2021, the Bulgarian defender immediately won promotion to Serie A with the Biancorossi, with whom he collected a total of 21 appearances.
After his adventure on loan at Cremonese, with whom he experienced another promotion to Serie A last season, Antov returned to Monza in the summer of 2025. Returning after a long injury suffered in the previous season’s finale, he experienced his second promotion to Serie A with the “biancorossi,” taking the field in the return playoff final against Catanzaro: a few minutes but done well in a moment of extreme difficulty for Paolo Bianco’s team.
His comeback had been gradual: his first call-up in the Biancorosso in the Serie B season had come on the occasion of the Genoa away match against Sampdoria in April, a concrete sign of the Bulgarian defender’s physical recovery after the problems that had kept him away from the fields.
The final against Catanzaro, in which Antov made his entrance, was an evening of great tension at the U-Power Stadium. The Brianzoli, on the strength of a 2-0 first leg lead signed by Hernani and Caso, had to deal with a Calabrian comeback that went all the way to 2-0 in the second half, with goals from Fellipe Jack and Frosinini. Catanzaro came close to pulling off a miracle, but failed to find the third goal that would have overturned the overall result.At the triple whistle, Monza was back in Serie A thanks to the best league standings.
Antov’s renewal is part of a broader strategy to consolidate the Brianza squad ahead of a return to the top flight. A few days earlier, the club had also armored Samuele Birindelli, extending the Tuscan outfielder’s contract until June 30, 2028 with an option for one more season. Birindelli, the absolute protagonist of the promotional ride with five goals in 37 appearances, had been deployed as a starter in the very final return match against Catanzaro, helping to hold up the impact of the Calabrian comeback in Paolo Bianco’s three-man defense.
