Ezgjan Alioski facts for kids
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Alioski playing for Macedonia in 2014
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 12 February 1992 | ||
| Place of birth | Prilep, Macedonia | ||
| Height | 1.71 m | ||
| Playing position | |||
| Youth career | |||
| 2003–2010 | Young Boys | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2010–2013 | Young Boys U23 | 57 | (4) |
| 2013–2016 | Schaffhausen | 77 | (4) |
| 2015–2016 | → Lugano (loan) | 16 | (3) |
| 2016–2017 | Lugano | 34 | (16) |
| 2017–2021 | Leeds United | 161 | (21) |
| 2021–2024 | Al-Ahli | 32 | (6) |
| 2022–2023 | → Fenerbahçe (loan) | 17 | (1) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2010–2011 | Macedonia U19 | 6 | (0) |
| 2013–2014 | Macedonia U21 | 10 | (0) |
| 2013– | North Macedonia | 81 | (12) |
† Appearances (Goals). |
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Ezgjan Alioski (born 12 February 1992) is a professional football player from North Macedonia. He plays for the North Macedonia national team.
People often call him 'Gjanni'. Alioski is a very flexible player who uses his left foot well. He can play in many different positions on the field. These include a striker (who scores goals), a defensive midfielder (who protects the defense), an attacking midfielder (who helps create goals), a right winger (who plays on the side of the field), a left wing-back, or a left-back (both defensive roles).
Contents
Club Career
Starting Out in Football
Alioski started his football journey in 2003 when he joined the youth team of Young Boys. From 2010 to 2013, he played as a left-back for their second team. During this time, he scored four goals in 57 games. In January 2013, he moved to Schaffhausen on loan. He then joined them permanently in October 2013, scoring four goals in 77 matches.
Playing for Lugano
In January 2016, Alioski joined Lugano on loan. He played his first game for them on 13 February. Even though he was signed as a left-back, his coach at Lugano, Zdeněk Zeman, changed his position. Alioski started playing as an attacking right winger and striker towards the end of the 2015–16 season. He scored his first goal for Lugano on 11 May 2016.
In June 2016, Alioski's move to Lugano became permanent. The new coach, Andrea Manzo, kept him in attacking roles. He scored his first goal of the new season on 30 July 2016. Alioski scored seven goals in his first ten games for the club. On 19 April 2017, he scored three goals in one game for Lugano.
He had a great first season and helped Lugano finish third in the Swiss Super League. Alioski scored 16 goals in 34 games, making him the third highest goal scorer in the league. He also made 14 assists, which means he helped his teammates score many goals.
Time at Leeds United
Alioski was a key player for Leeds United when they returned to the Premier League. This happened in the 2019–20 season after 16 years away. He scored important goals during that season.
2017–18 Season
Alioski joined Leeds United on 13 July 2017. He played his first game on 6 August 2017 and helped his teammate Chris Wood score a goal. He also got the "man of the match" award in another game. On 26 August, Alioski scored his first goal for Leeds and won "man of the match" again. He even won the "Championship Goal of the Month" award for that goal. In November 2017, Alioski scored in all four of Leeds' games and was named the club's "Player of the Month".
He was nominated for Leeds United's "Player of The Year" award. He finished the season with seven goals and five assists. Alioski also won the "Goal of the Season" award for his goal against Nottingham Forest.
2018–19 Season
He scored his first goal of the 2018–19 season on 11 August in a big win. Alioski started the season as a winger. But after an injury to Barry Douglas, he began playing as a left-back. He played very well in this new position. He scored against Stoke City, Bolton Wanderers, and West Bromwich Albion.
However, on 22 April, Alioski got a knee injury and missed the rest of the season. He played 47 games and scored seven goals that season. Leeds finished third in the league and went to the play-offs. Even though they won the first game, they lost the second and did not get promoted.
2019–20 Season
On 24 August, Alioski scored his first goal of the 2019–20 season. The football season was paused in March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. When it started again in June, Alioski helped Leeds get promoted to the Premier League. They also became the EFL Championship winners for the 2019–20 season. Alioski played a very important role in this success.
2020–21 Season
Alioski played his first Premier League game on 19 September 2020. He came on as a substitute in a home win. A few days before, he had scored a goal in a League Cup game. On 5 October 2020, he started his first Premier League game. On 16 December 2020, he scored his first Premier League goal. He scored his last goal of 2020 in a big away win. Alioski was offered a new contract but could not agree with the club. He left Leeds after four years.
Moving to Al-Ahli
On 29 July 2021, Alioski signed with Al-Ahli, a club in Saudi Arabia.
Loan to Fenerbahçe
On 2 August 2022, he signed a one-year loan deal with Fenerbahçe in Turkey. Alioski and Fenerbahçe won the 2023 Turkish Cup. They beat İstanbul Başakşehir 2-0 in the final game.
International Career
Alioski could have played for either North Macedonia or Albania because of his family background. He chose to play for the country where he was born, North Macedonia. He played for North Macedonia's youth teams before joining the senior team in 2013.
He scored his first goal for his country on 5 September 2016. He often played as a left wing-back for his national team. Later, he moved to a more attacking midfield position.
On 6 September 2018, Alioski scored in a 2–0 win against Gibraltar. He also scored in North Macedonia's next game against Armenia. In May 2021, Alioski was chosen to be part of the North Macedonia team for UEFA Euro 2020. This was the first time his country had ever played in a major football tournament.
Personal Life
Alioski is Muslim. He is very good at languages and can speak many fluently. These include Albanian, Croatian, English, French, German, Italian, Macedonian, and Spanish. He has citizenship in both North Macedonia and Switzerland.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Schaffhausen | 2013–14 | Swiss Challenge League | 26 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 27 | 2 | ||
| 2014–15 | 35 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 36 | 2 | ||||
| 2015–16 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 77 | 4 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 80 | 4 | ||||
| Lugano | 2015–16 | Swiss Super League | 16 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 18 | 3 | ||
| 2016–17 | 34 | 16 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 35 | 16 | ||||
| Total | 50 | 19 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 53 | 19 | ||||
| Leeds United | 2017–18 | Championship | 42 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 45 | 7 | |
| 2018–19 | 44 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 47 | 7 | |||
| 2019–20 | 39 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 41 | 5 | |||
| 2020–21 | Premier League | 36 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | 37 | 3 | ||
| Total | 161 | 21 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 1 | — | 170 | 22 | |||
| Al-Ahli | 2021–22 | Saudi Pro League | 28 | 6 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 30 | 6 | ||
| 2023–24 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 4 | 0 | ||||
| Fenerbahçe (loan) | 2022–23 | Süper Lig | 17 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | 26 | 1 | |
| Career total | 337 | 51 | 11 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 363 | 52 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Macedonia | |||
| 2013 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2017 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 7 | 3 | |
| 2019 | 8 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 6 | 2 | |
| 2021 | 15 | 5 | |
| 2022 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 9 | 0 | |
| Total | 81 | 12 | |
- As of match played 17 November 2024. North Macedonia score listed first, score column indicates score after each Alioski goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 September 2016 | Loro Boriçi Stadium, Shkodër, Albania | 7 |  Albania |
1–1 | 1–2 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 6 September 2018 | Victoria Stadium, Gibraltar | 21 |  Gibraltar |
2–0 | 2–0 | 2018–19 UEFA Nations League D |
| 3 | 9 September 2018 | Philip II Arena, Skopje, Macedonia | 22 |  Armenia |
1–0 | 2–0 | |
| 4 | 13 October 2018 | 23 |  Liechtenstein |
4–1 | 4–1 | ||
| 5 | 21 March 2019 | 26 |  Latvia |
1–0 | 3–1 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying | |
| 6 | 5 September 2020 | Toše Proeski Arena, Skopje, North Macedonia | 34 | Armenia |
1–0 | 2–1 | 2020–21 UEFA Nations League C |
| 7 | 14 October 2020 | 38 |  Georgia |
1–1 | 1–1 | ||
| 8 | 4 June 2021 | 44 |  Kazakhstan |
1–0 | 4–0 | Friendly | |
| 9 | 17 June 2021 | Arena Națională, Bucharest, Romania | 46 |  Ukraine |
1–2 | 1–2 | UEFA Euro 2020 |
| 10 | 5 September 2021 | Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland | 49 |  Iceland |
2–0 | 2–2 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 11 | 8 October 2021 | Rheinpark Stadion, Vaduz, Liechtenstein | 51 | Liechtenstein |
2–0 | 4–0 | |
| 12 | 14 November 2021 | Toše Proeski Arena, Skopje, North Macedonia | 54 | Iceland |
1–0 | 3–1 |
Awards and Achievements
Leeds United
- EFL Championship: 2019–20 (This means they won the league title!)
Fenerbahçe
- Turkish Cup: 2022–23 (They won this important cup competition!)
Individual Awards
- Swiss Super League Team of the Year: 2016–17 (He was chosen as one of the best players in the league!)
- EFL Championship Goal of the Month: August 2017 (He scored the best goal that month!)
- Leeds United Goal of the Season: 2017–18 (His goal was voted the best for Leeds that season!)
