Liridon Latifi

Liridon Latifi
Latifi with Kukësi in 2016
Personal information
Full name Liridon Latifi
Date of birth (1994-02-06) 6 February 1994
Place of birth Pristina, Kosovo
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position Right midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Puskás Akadémia
Number 27
Youth career
2005–2011 Flamurtari
2012–2013 Prishtina
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2015 Prishtina ? (?)
2015–2017 Skënderbeu Korçë 76 (21)
2017– Puskás Akadémia 16 (1)
National team‡
2012–2013 Albania U19 1 (0)
2015–2016 Albania U21 9 (4)
2016– Albania 5 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 27 May 2018
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 9 October 2017

Liridon Latifi (born 6 February 1994) is an Albanian professional footballer who plays as a right midfielder for Hungarian club Puskás Akadémia and the Albania national team.

Latifi starter his youth career at Flamurtari in 2005, where he remained until 2011. Next year, he joined his hometown club Prishtina where he also made his professional debut. In January 2015, Latifi signed with Albanian champions of Skënderbeu Korçë and later aided the club to win its fifth-consecutive league title.[1]

Latifi was called up for the first time in Albania U-19 side in 2012 where he made his competitive debut. In March 2015, he was called up to play with Albania U-21 side in their bid to qualify in the 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

Club career

Early career

Latifi joined local side Flamurtari Prishtina at the age of 11 in 2005, initially joining the youth club and eventually working his way up the ranks to the first team which he joined in 2011. Soon after joining the first team he left Flamurtari and joined Kosovo's most successful club Prishtina in January 2012. He first played for the club's youth team before progressing through to the first team the following season. While at Prishtina, Latifi along with his teammates Enis Gavazaj and Lorik Aliu went on trial with German giants Borussia Dortmund which initially lasted a week, but was then extended so they players could feature in the Blue Stars FIFA Youth Cup and the RUHR-Cup International youth tournament. Three players were not offered contracts at the end of their trials and subsequently returned to FC Prishtina.[2]

Skënderbeu Korçë

Latifi in action with Skënderbeu during an away match against Lokomotiv Moscow.

On 28 December 2014, Latifi joined Albanian Superliga side Skënderbeu Korçë by signing a three-year deal, taking the vacant number 27 for the second part of 2014–15 season.[3] During his presentation, Latifi said: "My goals are the same as those of the club."[4] Latifi ended his first season with the club by winning the Albanian Superliga title, playing 19 matches in all competitions and scoring 5 league goals. Following the end of the season, Latifi agreed a contract extension with Skënderbeu Korçë, keeping him at Korçë for one more year.[5]

2015–16 season

On 19 November 2015, Latifi received his first-ever career red-card during the 2–1 away lose to Kukësi; he was sent off for his violent behavior after he attacked the opposite player Gledi Mici.[6] After that, he was suspended for 5 matches for his behaviour by the Disciplinary Committee of AFA.[7]

Loan to Kukësi

Due to Skënderbeu's ban from European football over match-fixing allegations,[8] on 8 July, Latifi was sent on loan at Kukësi for their European campaign along with teammates Sabjen Lilaj and Masato Fukui.[9] Four days later, he played full-90 minutes in the first leg of UEFA Europa League second qualifying round against Austria Wien which ended in a 1–0 defeat.[10] He also featured in the entire second leg at Elbasan Arena as the match finished in a 1–4 defeat, which confirmed Kukësi elimination from the competition with the aggregate 1–5.[11] Following the elimination, Latifi returned to Skënderbeu with Lilaj and Fukui.

Historical European campaign

Latifi was the main instrument in Skënderbeu's historic run in the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League qualifying rounds, as the team achieved group stage for the second time ever and also become the first Albanian club to pass four rounds.[12] He scored three goals in the first qualifying round against Sant Julià as Skënderbeu progressed 6–0 on aggregate.[13] The second leg match was his 100th Skënderbeu match in all competitions. In the first leg of second round tie versus Kairat, his shot was turned into a rebound for Bakary Nimaga, who scored the team's only goal for a 1–1 draw.[14] In the second leg, however, Skënderbeu outclassed Kairat by winning 2–0 to advance to the third round.[15]

In the first leg of third round against Mladá Boleslav on 27 July 2017, Latifi's shot from outside the area was touched by Pavel Čmovš and finished in the net. The goal was credited to the defender, and the match was lost 2–1. In the returning leg at Elbasan Arena, Skënderbeu won 2–1 at regular time.[16] After the extra time ended with the same result, the match went to extra time and later penalty shootout where Latifi successfully converted his penalty shootout attempt, as Skënderbeu won 4–2 to progress to the play-off round for the second time in history.[17]

In the play-off round, Skënderbeu was placed against Dinamo Zagreb;[18] in the first leg away, Latifi scored his team's only goal as Skënderbeu lost the win in the last seconds.[19] In the second leg, Latifi produced a Man of the Match performance by helping the team to earn a goalless draw with a man down in the last minutes, meaning that Skënderbeu has qualified to the group stage on away goal rule for the second time in their history.[20]

A day after the qualification in group stages, Latifi was sold to Puskás Akadémia. He finished his Skënderbeu career by playing 106 matches in all competitions, including 76 in league, 11 in cup and 19 in European competitions. He also scored 26 goals, including 21 in league. During his spell in Korçë he won 2 Albanian championships.[21]

Puskás Akadémia

On 25 August 2017, Latifi completed a transfer to Nemzeti Bajnokság I side Puskás Akadémia for a reported fee of €1 million.[22] The player signed a four-year contract worth €30,000 a season.[23] He was presented on the same day, stating: I'll help Puskás Akadémia to achieve the goals."[24]

International career

Albania U19

Latifi was called up to the Albania national under-19 football team to participate in the 2013 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification, coached by Foto Strakosha.[25] Latifi made his international debut with Albania U19 on 17 October 2012 by playing as a half-time substitute for Lorenc Shehaj in the 2–0 home defeat to Belarus U19.[26]

Albania U20

Latifi was called up at Albania national under-20 football team by coach Skënder Gega to participate in the 2013 Mediterranean Games football tournament which began on 19 June 2013 in Mersin, Turkey. However he was not selected in the final squad which participated in the tournament.[27][28]

Albania U21

He debuted with the Albania national under-21 football team under coach Skënder Gega in a friendly against Iran U23 on 21 January 2015 held in Antalya, Turkey.[29][30]

Following a good run of form since joining Skënderbeu Korçë in March 2015, he received his first Albania under-21 call up by Skënder Gega for a 2017 European Under-21 Championship qualifier against Liechtenstein U21 on 28 March 2015.[31] He made his debut for the Albania under-21 side against Liechtenstein U21 and managed also to score in his debut in the 29th minute of the match for the opening goal after an assist in the area by Enis Gavazaj and with the second goal scored in the 52nd minute by Rey Manaj they signed the Albania U21s' 0–2 away victory.[32] Latifi was called up by a new appointed coach at the Albania U-21, Redi Jupi, for the qualifying matches against Israel and Portugal on 3 and 8 September 2015.[33] He played as a starter on 3 September 2015 against Israel and was substituted off in the 62nd minute for Endri Çekiçi which then scored the equalising 1–1 goal in the 82nd minute to make Albania U-21 taking a draw.[34]

Senior team

Latifi got his first call up to the senior Albania side by coach Gianni De Biasi for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Liechtenstein on 6 October 2016 and against Spain on 9 October 2016.[35][36] He didn't featured in any of both matches. He was called up then for the 5th 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification fixture against Italy on 24 March 2017 and the Friendly match against Bosnia and Herzegovina on 28 March 2017.[37] Latifi made his first senior debut on 24 March 2017 against Italy coming on as a substitute in the 88th minute in place of Migjen Basha.[38][39]

Career statistics

Club

As of 20 May 2018 [40][41][42]
Club statistics
Club Season League Cup Europe[lower-alpha 1] Other[lower-alpha 2] Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Skënderbeu Korçë 2014–15 Albanian Superliga 14540——185
2015–16 2852011[lower-alpha 3]1—416
2016–17 3411412[lower-alpha 4]0—4012
2017–18 ——8[lower-alpha 5]4—84
Total 7621101215—10627
Puskás Akadémia 2017–18 Nemzeti Bajnokság I 12021——141
Career total 8821122215—12128
  1. ↑ Including continental competitions, such as UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League
  2. ↑ Including other competitions, such as Albanian Supercup
  3. ↑ Appearances in the UEFA Champions League
  4. ↑ Played with Kukësi in a short-time loan
  5. ↑ Appearances in the UEFA Europa League

International

As of 9 October 2017 [43][44]
National teamYearAppsGoals
Albania 201600
201750
Total50

Honours

Club

Prishtina[40]
Skënderbeu Korçë[40]

References

  1. ↑ "Orelesi, Adeniyi Win Albanian League With Skenderbeu" Complete Sports Nigeria. Retrieved 2016-07-10.
  2. ↑ Avni Durmishi (24 April 2013). "Latifi, Gavazaj e Aliu: afër Borussia Dortmund" [Latifi, Gavazaj and Aliu near Borussia Dortmund] (in Albanian). FC Prishtina. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  3. ↑ Adriatik Balla (28 December 2014). "Liridon Latifi lë Prishtinën për Skënderbeun, Tirana ndjek rivalët" [Liridon Latifi leaves Prishtina for Skënderbeu, Tirana follows the rivals] (in Albanian). Sot.com.al. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  4. ↑ "Latifi, kontratë 3-vjeçare me Skënderbeun" [Latifi, 3-year contract with Skënderbeu] (in Albanian). Panorama Sport. 28 December 2014. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  5. ↑ "Liridon Latifi rinovon i pari" [Liridon Latifi renew first] (in Albanian). Panorama Sport. 23 May 2015. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  6. ↑ "Kukësi vs. Skënderbeu Korçë 2 – 1". Soccerway. 19 November 2015. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  7. ↑ "FSHF dënon rëndë talentin Liridon Latifi" [AFA severely punishes the talent Liridon Latifi] (in Albanian). FSHF.org. 19 November 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  8. ↑ "Partizani replace Skënderbeu in Champions League". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 6 July 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
  9. ↑ Rinald Bregasi (8 July 2016). "E bujshme, Liridon Latifi dhe Sabjen Lilaj përfundojnë te Kukësi" [Sensational, Liridon Latifi and Sabjen Lilaj ends up at Kukësi] (in Albanian). Panorama Sport. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  10. ↑ "Austria Wien vs. Kukësi 1 – 0". Soccerway. 14 July 2016. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
  11. ↑ "Kukësi vs. Austria Wien 1 – 4". Soccerway. 21 July 2016. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
  12. ↑ "Skënderbeu shkruan historinë / Kalon 4 ture me rekord dhe rikthehet në Europa League!" [Skënderbeu writes history / Passes 4 round with record and returns to Europa League] (in Albanian). City News. 24 August 2017. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  13. ↑ "Skënderbeu kualifikohet në raundin e dytë të E. League" [Skënderbeu qualifies to the E. League second round] (in Albanian). SuperSport Albania. 6 July 2017. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  14. ↑ "Super Skënderbe, barazim 1-1 ndaj Kairat" [Super Skënderbeu, a 1-1 draw against Kairat] (in Albanian). KFSkenderbeu.al. 13 July 2017. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  15. ↑ "Skënderbeu avancon në raundin e 3 të E. League" [Skënderbeu advances to the E. League third round] (in Albanian). SuperSport Albania. 20 July 2017. Archived from the original on 26 August 2017. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  16. ↑ "Mladá Boleslav 2-1 Skënderbeu". UEFA.com. 27 July 2017. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  17. ↑ Andi Deçka (3 August 2017). "Skënderbeu europian eliminon Mladën" [European Skënderbeu eliminates Mladá] (in Albanian). SuperSport Albania. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  18. ↑ Rinald Bregasi (4 August 2017). "Skenderbeu përballë Dinamo Zagreb" [Skenderbeu versus Dinamo Zagreb] (in Albanian). SuperSport Albania. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  19. ↑ Elvis Rexha (17 August 2017). "Skënderbeu "flirton" me fitoren në Zagreb" [Skënderbeu "flirts" with the win in Zagreb] (in Albanian). SuperSport Albania. Retrieved 17 August 2017.
  20. ↑ Andi Deçka (24 August 2017). "Skënderbeu heroik, Dinamo fiket në "Elbasan Arena"" [Skënderbeu heroic, Dinamo turned off in "Elbasan Arena"] (in Albanian). SuperSport Albania. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  21. ↑ "Latifi i trishtuar që po largohet nga Skënderbeu pas kualifikimit" [Latifi sad to leave Skënderbeu after the qualifying] (in Albanian). Telegraf.al. 25 August 2017. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  22. ↑ Llazi Saro (14 August 2017). "Merr fund "telenovela" Latifi, mesfushori shitet në Hungari. Ja sa përfiton Skënderbeu" ["Telenovela" Latifi ends, midfielder sold in Hungary. Here's how much Skënderbeu profits] (in Albanian). Panorama Sport. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  23. ↑ "Shkroi historinë me Skënderbeun, Latifi "ia mbath" te klubi i ri" [Wrote history with Skënderbeu, Latifi "runs away" to the new club] (in Albanian). Panorama Sport. 25 August 2017. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  24. ↑ "SZÉLSŐ A SZKIPETÁROK FÖLDJÉRŐL" [WING FROM THE LAND OF SCORPIONS] (in Hungarian). Pfla.hu. 25 August 2017. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  25. ↑ U-19/ Foto Strakosha shpall listen per ndeshjet eleminatore te Europianit AlbaniaSoccer
  26. ↑ "Albania U19 vs. Belarus U19 0 – 2". Soccerway. 17 October 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  27. ↑ Lojërat Mesdhetare: Shqipëria merr pjesë me 75 sportistë (Lista e plotë) aSport.al
  28. ↑ "Lojërat Mesdhetare, Shqipëria debuton me futbollin" [Mediterranean Games, Albania debuted with football] (in Albanian). Panorama Sport. 19 June 2013. Retrieved 19 June 2013.
  29. ↑ "Shqipëria U-21 humb kundër Iranit" (in Albanian). Panorama Sport. 21 January 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
  30. ↑ "Shpresat, zbor stërvitor me… vendës" (in Albanian). Panorama Sport. 23 February 2015. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  31. ↑ "Shpresat nisin kualifikimet kundër Lihtenshtajnit" (in Albanian). aSport.al. 17 March 2015. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  32. ↑ "U21, Shqipëria thyen 2-0 Lihtenshtejnin, vendosin golat e Latifit dhe Rei Manajt" (in Albanian). Panorama Sport. 28 March 2015. Retrieved 28 March 2015.
  33. ↑ "Grumbullohet kombetarja U-21" (in Albanian). FSHF.org. 28 August 2015. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  34. ↑ "Shpresat barazojnë me 10 lojtarë ndaj Izraelit, Jupi: I kënaqur me reagimin e skuadrës" (in Albanian). UEFA.com. 3 September 2015. Retrieved 3 September 2015.
  35. ↑ Trajneri De Biasi në konferencë për shtyp. FSHF.org
  36. ↑ "Albania includes 4 newcomers in World Cup squad". heraldonline.com. 1 October 2016. Archived from the original on 5 October 2016. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
  37. ↑ DE BIAZI SHPALL LISTËN PËR ITALINË DHE BOSNJEN FSHF.org
  38. ↑ Befasia e De Biazit, tre debutues kuqezinj Sport Ekspres
  39. ↑ Italy football team defeated Albania 2:0, 24 March 2017 EU-Football.info
  40. 1 2 3 Liridon Latifi at Soccerway. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  41. ↑ Liridon Latifi – UEFA competition record
  42. ↑ "Football : Liridon Latifi". Football Database. 3 April 2016. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  43. ↑ "Liridon Latifi". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmerman. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
  44. ↑ Liridon Latifi - national football team player EU-Football.info
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