Maksim Zhalmagambetov () is a Kazakh

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

defender. He is currently in the starting XI of the

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...

Early career

Maksim had graduated from his hometown FC Astana and had played in its different feeder clubs, before he eventually got to the first team in 2004.

International career

At the age of 21, Maksim earned his first cap on 17 November 2004 in WC 2006 qualifier against

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

. Maksim would have played all

Euro 2008 The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2008 or simply Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by the member nations of UEFA (the Union of European ...

qualifiers, unless being sent off in a match against

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

for punching a defender in face, and therefore getting 3 games ban.

Royal Antwerp switch

On 31 January 2008, along with

Sergei Ostapenko Sergei Sergeyevich Ostapenko () (born 23 February 1986) is a Kazakh former footballer, whose last team was FC Astana. Career In 2003, Ostapenko had graduated from FC Almaty ''(FC Tsesna at that time)'' football academy and had been starting in ...

, Maksim signed a two-year contract with

Royal Antwerp F.C. Royal Antwerp Football Club (commonly referred to as Royal Antwerp or simply Antwerp) is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Antwerp. They compete in the Belgian Pro League, the top flight of Belgian football. Founded in 1 ...

The Belgium team's manager noted that the duo's youth, international experience and physical characteristics were strong arguments to accomplish the deal. However, his European journey was not quite successful and he only started in one game for the reds. Both he and

shortly returned to Astana in the middle of the Kazakhstan Premier League 2008.Sports.kz
7 June 2008

Club career stats

Last update: 10 December 2010

Honours

* Kazakhstan Champion:

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

* Kazakhstan Cup Winner:

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

References

External links

Profile at KFF website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zhalmagambetov, Maksim Living people 1983 births Footballers from Astana Kazakhstani men's footballers Royal Antwerp F.C. players FC Astana players FC Jenis players Kazakhstan men's international footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium Kazakhstani expatriate sportspeople in Belgium Men's association football defenders