Bekim Balaj facts for kids
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Balaj with the Albania team in 2016
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 11 January 1991 | ||
| Place of birth | Shkodër, PSR Albania | ||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
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Current team
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Vllaznia Shkodër | ||
| Number | 9 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2002–2009 | Vllaznia Shkodër | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2009–2010 | Vllaznia Shkodër | 38 | (9) |
| 2010–2011 | Gençlerbirliği | 1 | (0) |
| 2011–2012 | Tirana | 37 | (15) |
| 2012–2014 | Sparta Prague | 12 | (3) |
| 2013–2014 | → Jagiellonia Białystok (loan) | 31 | (7) |
| 2014–2015 | Slavia Prague | 13 | (3) |
| 2015–2016 | Rijeka | 46 | (18) |
| 2016–2019 | Akhmat Grozny | 61 | (12) |
| 2019–2021 | Sturm Graz | 57 | (9) |
| 2021 | Nizhny Novgorod | 15 | (0) |
| 2022 | Boluspor | 14 | (4) |
| 2022–2023 | Ankara Keçiörengücü | 14 | (1) |
| 2023– | Vllaznia Shkodër | 91 | (40) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2008–2010 | Albania U19 | 6 | (3) |
| 2010–2012 | Albania U21 | 8 | (3) |
| 2012–2022 | Albania | 48 | (9) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 1 November 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 31 March 2024 |
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Bekim Balaj (born 11 January 1991) is a professional football player from Albania. He plays as a forward, which means his main job is to score goals. He currently plays for the Albanian club Vllaznia Shkodër.
Balaj began his career at his hometown club, Vllaznia. He started playing for the main team when he was only 17. After scoring many goals, he moved to the Turkish team Gençlerbirliği. He later returned to Albania to play for Tirana, where he had a very successful season.
His skills earned him a move to Sparta Prague in the Czech Republic. He also played for clubs in Poland, Croatia, Russia, and Austria. In 2015, he joined the Croatian club Rijeka for a transfer fee of €600,000.
Balaj has also played for his country, Albania. He started with the youth teams and made his first appearance for the main national team in 2012. He scored a famous winning goal against Portugal during the qualifying matches for UEFA Euro 2016. He was part of the Albanian team that played in the final tournament.
Club Career
Vllaznia Shkodër
Bekim Balaj joined his local club, Vllaznia, when he was 11 years old. Because he was tall for his age, his father suggested he try being a goalkeeper. But after a few practices, his coach saw that Balaj was very skilled with his feet and decided he would be a great center forward.
He made his first appearance for the main team on 17 May 2008, at just 17 years old. The next season, he became a regular player. After two of the team's main strikers left, Balaj became a key goal-scorer for Vllaznia.
His talent attracted attention from other countries. In 2010, he had a trial with the famous French club Paris Saint-Germain. Later, he had a successful trial with Gençlerbirliği in Turkey and was offered a contract.
Gençlerbirliği
On 17 June 2010, Balaj signed a four-year contract with the Turkish club Gençlerbirliği. The transfer fee paid to his old club Vllaznia was around €200,000. However, he did not get much playing time in Turkey.
KF Tirana
In January 2011, Balaj returned to Albania and signed with Tirana. He quickly became an important player. He scored his first goal for the club in an Albanian Cup semi-final match. He helped Tirana win the Albanian Cup that season.
The next season was even better. He scored the winning goal in the 2011 Albanian Supercup against the league champions. He formed a great partnership with his teammate Gilman Lika. In one cup match, he scored a hat-trick (three goals in one game). His excellent performance made him hope to play for the Albanian national team.
Sparta Prague
In July 2012, Balaj joined Sparta Prague, a top club in the Czech Republic. He scored a goal in his first friendly match. On 4 October 2012, he scored a memorable goal in a UEFA Europa League match against the Spanish team Athletic Bilbao.
Loan to Jagiellonia
For the 2013–14 season, Balaj was sent on loan to the Polish club Jagiellonia Białystok. A loan in football is when a player temporarily plays for a different club. He had a good season in Poland, scoring 7 goals in 31 league games.
Slavia Prague
After his loan ended, Balaj moved to another club in Prague, Slavia Prague, in July 2014. He made a great start by scoring the winning goal in his very first match for the team.
HNK Rijeka
In January 2015, Balaj signed with Rijeka in Croatia. He continued to score goals right away, including in his first league game and in the big "Adriatic derby" match against Hajduk Split. In his first half-season, he scored 9 goals in 15 games.
He continued to be a key player for Rijeka in the 2015–16 season, scoring another 9 league goals. His performance helped Rijeka finish second in the league.
Akhmat Grozny
On 8 June 2016, Balaj moved to Russia to play for Terek Grozny (the club was later renamed Akhmat Grozny). He signed a three-year contract. He started scoring goals for his new team and had a great month in October, scoring two braces (two goals in a game) in back-to-back matches. For his amazing performance, he was named the club's Player of the Month.
Later Career and Return to Vllaznia
After leaving Russia in 2019, Balaj played for Sturm Graz in Austria, FC Nizhny Novgorod back in Russia, and Boluspor in Turkey.
On 18 January 2023, Balaj made a big return to where it all started. He signed a three-year contract with his hometown club, Vllaznia, after being away for 13 years. He reportedly became the highest-paid player in the Albanian league.
International Career
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Youth Teams
Balaj first played for Albania's under-19 team in 2008. He scored his first international goal against Northern Ireland. He later played for the under-21 team, scoring four goals in 13 matches.
Senior Team
Balaj made his first appearance for the main Albanian national team in 2012. His first official competitive game was against Cyprus in October 2013.
UEFA Euro 2016 Campaign
Balaj became a national hero on 7 September 2014. In the first qualifying match for UEFA Euro 2016, he scored an incredible volley goal to give Albania a 1–0 victory over Portugal. This was a huge surprise and a very important win.
He was chosen for Albania's 23-man squad for the Euro 2016 tournament in France. This was the first time Albania had ever qualified for a major football tournament. He played in the final group match against Romania, which Albania won 1–0, their first-ever win at a major tournament.
Later International Career
Balaj continued to be an important player for Albania. In a 2018 World Cup qualifying match, he scored a last-minute winning goal against Macedonia. The match had been stopped the day before because of bad weather and was finished the next day.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Vllaznia | 2007–08 | Kategoria Superiore | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2008–09 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 1 | — | — | 12 | 1 | ||||
| 2009–10 | 30 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 0 | — | 40 | 12 | |||
| Total | 38 | 9 | 11 | 4 | 4 | 0 | — | 53 | 13 | |||
| Gençlerbirliği | 2010–11 | Süper Lig | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||
| Tirana | 2010–11 | Kategoria Superiore | 13 | 2 | 4 | 1 | — | — | 17 | 3 | ||
| 2011–12 | 24 | 13 | 14 | 8 | 2 | 0 | — | 40 | 21 | |||
| 2012–13 | — | — | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 37 | 15 | 18 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 60 | 25 | ||
| Sparta Prague | 2012–13 | Czech First League | 12 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1 | — | 20 | 4 | |
| Jagiellonia | 2013–14 | Ekstraklasa | 31 | 7 | 6 | 2 | — | — | 37 | 9 | ||
| Slavia Prague | 2014–15 | Czech First League | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 3 | ||
| Rijeka | 2014–15 | Croatian First Football League | 15 | 9 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 18 | 10 | ||
| 2015–16 | 31 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 37 | 10 | |||
| Total | 46 | 18 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | 55 | 20 | |||
| Akhmat Grozny | 2016–17 | Russian Premier League | 26 | 9 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 27 | 9 | ||
| 2017–18 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 0 | ||||
| 2018–19 | 22 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 24 | 4 | ||||
| Total | 61 | 12 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 64 | 13 | ||||
| Sturm Graz | 2019–20 | Austrian Bundesliga | 28 | 6 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 31 | 7 | ||
| 2020–21 | 29 | 3 | 4 | 4 | — | — | 33 | 7 | ||||
| Total | 57 | 9 | 7 | 5 | — | — | 64 | 14 | ||||
| Nizhny Novgorod | 2021–22 | Russian Premier League | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 311 | 76 | 56 | 23 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 383 | 101 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Albania | 2012 | 1 | 0 |
| 2013 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2015 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2017 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2018 | 9 | 1 | |
| 2019 | 5 | 1 | |
| Total | 35 | 6 | |
Honours
Vllaznia
- Albanian Cup: 2007–08; runner-up: 2009–10
Tirana
- Albanian Cup: 2010–11, 2011–12
- Albanian Supercup: 2011
Individual
- Kategoria Superiore Talent of the Season: 2011–12
- Kategoria Superiore Top Scorer: 2023–24
See also
In Spanish: Bekim Balaj para niños
