Almen Abdi facts for kids
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Abdi at Watford, 2015
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Almen Abdi | ||
| Date of birth | 21 October 1986 | ||
| Place of birth | Prizren, SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia (modern Kosovo) | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1994–2003 | Zürich | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2003–2009 | Zürich | 132 | (31) |
| 2009–2010 | Le Mans | 13 | (0) |
| 2010–2013 | Udinese | 42 | (0) |
| 2012–2013 | → Watford (loan) | 38 | (12) |
| 2013–2016 | Watford | 77 | (13) |
| 2016–2019 | Sheffield Wednesday | 20 | (1) |
| Total | 322 | (57) | |
| International career | |||
| 2007–2008 | Switzerland U21 | 5 | (0) |
| 2008–2009 | Switzerland | 6 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Almen Abdi, born on October 21, 1986, is a retired Swiss footballer. He played as an attacking midfielder, which is a player who helps both defend and score goals. Almen Abdi played for several teams during his career, including Zürich, Le Mans, Udinese, Watford, and Sheffield Wednesday. He also played for the Swiss national team.
Contents
Almen Abdi's Football Journey
Starting at Zürich
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Almen Abdi began his football journey at Zürich. He joined their youth academy in 1993 and worked his way up through the different age groups. He made his first professional appearance at just 17 years old during the 2003–04 season.
For his first three seasons at Zürich, Abdi mostly played as a substitute. However, the 2006–07 season was a big turning point for him. He started playing in more games and became a regular player for the first team. During this season, he also played in the Champions League qualification round. He scored his first league goal on July 29, 2006.
Abdi was part of the Zürich teams that won the Swiss Championship in 2005–06, 2006–07, and 2008–09. In June 2006, he received a better contract that lasted until 2010. In the 2008–09 season, he was the top goal scorer for his club with 19 goals and also made 12 assists. Because of his great performance, he was named the best midfielder in the Swiss Super League and also won the Best Swiss Player Award for that season. In November 2009, Abdi was moved to the FC Zürich reserve team as the club planned for a future without him.
Moving to Le Mans
In January 2010, Abdi moved to Le Mans, a French football club. He signed a six-month contract. The plan was to extend his contract if the club stayed in Ligue 1, which is the top football league in France. However, Le Mans was moved down to Ligue 2 at the end of that season. Abdi played in 13 games for Le Mans.
Time at Udinese
In April 2010, Abdi announced that he would join Udinese in Italy once his contract with Le Mans ended. At Udinese, he played in 19 games during the 2010–11 season, often coming on as a substitute. In the next season, he scored his first goal for Udinese in the Europa League on September 29, 2011. He scored a penalty kick against Celtic to tie the game. There were rumors that he might return to Zürich, but Abdi said he was happy and settled at Udinese.
Playing for Watford
In July 2012, Abdi started training with Watford, an English club, to see if he could join them on loan. He played in three pre-season friendly games and then joined Watford for the entire 2012–13 season. Abdi scored his first goal for Watford in his very first league game against Crystal Palace on August 18, 2012.
In November 2012, Abdi injured his shoulder. After resting for four weeks, he returned to the team as a substitute. He scored three league goals in three games in February 2013, bringing his total to 9 goals. He then scored his 10th goal of the season with a fantastic free kick in a game against Wolverhampton Wanderers. By the end of the season, Abdi was a fan favorite and wanted to stay at Watford permanently. In May 2013, he won the "Player of the Season" award for Watford.
On July 19, 2013, Watford confirmed that Abdi had signed a three-year contract to stay with the club. In August 2013, he had a foot injury called plantar fasciitis, which kept him from playing for several months. Abdi made his return on January 14, 2014, in an FA Cup game. He then played his first league game in seven months on January 18, 2014.
On August 30, 2014, Abdi scored two goals in one game for the first time for Watford. He helped Watford win 4–2 against Huddersfield Town.
Time at Sheffield Wednesday
On July 28, 2016, Abdi joined another English club, Sheffield Wednesday. He played for them until the end of the 2018–19 season, when he was released by the club.
International Games
Almen Abdi made his first appearance for the senior Swiss national team on August 20, 2008, in a game against Cyprus. He could have chosen to play for the Albania national team or the Kosovo national team, but he decided to play for Switzerland.
About Almen Abdi's Life
On April 24, 2011, Almen Abdi's home was targeted by burglars, and some of his belongings were stolen. He is good friends with another Swiss footballer, Gökhan Inler, who was also his teammate at Udinese. Almen Abdi is from Prizren, Kosovo, and his family is of Gorani background and follows the Muslim faith.
Honours and Awards
FC Zürich
- Swiss Cup: 2004–05
- Super League/Nationalliga A: 2005–06, 2006–07, 2008–09
See also
In Spanish: Almen Abdi para niños
