Taulant Xhaka facts for kids
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Xhaka with Basel in 2017
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Taulant Ragip Xhaka | ||
| Date of birth | 28 March 1991 | ||
| Place of birth | Basel, Switzerland | ||
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Defensive midfielder, defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2000–2002 | Concordia Basel | ||
| 2002–2009 | Basel | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2008–2010 | Basel U21 | 50 | (6) |
| 2010–2025 | Basel | 301 | (6) |
| 2012–2013 | → Grasshoppers (loan) | 38 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2008–2009 | Switzerland U17 | 14 | (0) |
| 2009–2010 | Switzerland U18 | 6 | (0) |
| 2009–2010 | Switzerland U19 | 9 | (0) |
| 2010–2011 | Switzerland U20 | 8 | (0) |
| 2011–2013 | Switzerland U21 | 4 | (0) |
| 2014–2019 | Albania | 31 | (1) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 29 December 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 7 September 2019 |
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Taulant Ragip Xhaka (born 28 March 1991) is a former professional footballer. He played as a defensive midfielder or defender. Taulant was born in Switzerland but played for the Albania national team.
Contents
About Taulant Xhaka
Taulant Xhaka was born in Basel, Switzerland. His parents are Albanian and came from Kosovo. He is the older brother of Granit Xhaka, who is also a professional footballer. Granit plays for Bayer Leverkusen and the Switzerland national team. The Xhaka family moved from Kosovo to Switzerland in 1990.
Club Football Career
Starting Out in Football
Taulant Xhaka began playing football when he was six years old. He joined FC Concordia Basel in 2000. Two years later, he and his brother Granit moved to FC Basel. Taulant played for various youth teams at FC Basel. From 2008, he regularly played for the under-21 team. He played 37 games and scored six goals for them.
Playing for FC Basel
In the 2010–11 season, Taulant and Granit joined FC Basel's main team. Taulant started playing as a defender. He played his first game for the main team on 19 September 2010. It was a 5–0 win in the Swiss Cup against FC Mendrisio-Stabio. He made his first Super League appearance on 27 February 2011. Basel won that game 1–0 against Luzern. At the end of that season, FC Basel won the Super League title. This was Taulant's first big win with the club.
In the next season, Taulant scored his first goal for Basel on 10 September. It was in a 4–0 league win against Servette. He also played in the UEFA Champions League for the first time on 27 September. He came on as a substitute in a 3–3 draw against Manchester United.
Loan to Grasshoppers
On 18 January 2012, Taulant Xhaka was loaned to Grasshoppers. This was so he could get more experience playing in the first team. He played his first game for Grasshoppers on 12 February. It was a 2–0 loss to Zürich. He became a regular player for them, playing 13 games that season. He also stayed on loan at Grasshoppers for the 2012–13 season. After that, Basel called him back to their team.
Returning to Basel and Success
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When Taulant returned to Basel, coach Murat Yakin made him a defensive midfielder. In the 2013–14 season, he became a key player. He played 23 league games and scored two goals. Basel won their second league championship with him. He also played in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League.
In the 2014–15 season, Xhaka played 29 league matches. Basel won the championship for the sixth time in a row. He scored his first goal of that season on 27 September. It was in a 1–1 draw against Thun. In January 2015, he signed a new contract with Basel until 2018. He was also named in the 2014 Team of the Year by the Swiss Football Association.
Under coach Urs Fischer, Xhaka won the Swiss Super League again in the 2015–16 and 2016–17 seasons. Basel won the league eight times in a row. They also won the Swiss Cup for the 12th time. This meant they won both the league and cup in the same season.
After Matías Emilio Delgado retired in 2017, Xhaka became the vice-captain of Basel. On 18 October 2017, he scored his first UEFA Champions League goal. It was against CSKA Moscow, helping Basel win.
Under coach Marcel Koller, Basel won the Swiss Cup in the 2018–19 season. Xhaka played in four of these cup games.
In August 2020, Xhaka got injured during a UEFA Europa League match. He had to have an operation and missed the entire 2020–21 season. He returned to training in June 2021.
On 12 February 2025, Taulant Xhaka announced he would retire from professional football. His last professional match was against Luzern on 24 May 2025.
International Football Career
Playing for Switzerland's Youth Teams
Taulant Xhaka started his international career with Switzerland. He played for the under-17 team in 2008. He played in all three matches but the team was eliminated early. In the next two years, he also played for the under-18 and -19 teams.
His first game for the Swiss under-20 team was on 6 September 2010. It was a 2–3 loss to Germany. A year later, he played his first game for the under-21 team. Overall, Xhaka played 41 matches for Switzerland's youth teams.
Playing for Albania
Switching Teams and Early Call-ups
In May 2013, Xhaka decided he wanted to play for the Albania senior team. He said his younger brother Granit influenced his choice. In December 2013, he became an Albanian citizen. He still needed approval from FIFA to play for Albania.
Xhaka was called up for a friendly match in March 2014. However, he got injured and could not play. He was called up again in May for more friendly games but got injured again. On 25 June, FIFA approved his request to play for Albania.
UEFA Euro 2016 Journey
Xhaka was fit for the UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying campaign. He played in the first match against Portugal on 7 September 2014. He played the whole game and helped Albania win 1–0. His performance was praised, and he was named in the Team of the Week.
On 14 October, Xhaka played in a qualifying match against Serbia. The game was stopped due to problems in the stadium. Later, the Court of Arbitration for Sport decided that Albania won the match 3–0.
Albania qualified for the UEFA European Championship for the first time. Xhaka played in the final match where Albania beat Armenia 3–0. On 31 May 2016, he was named in Albania's final squad for Euro 2016.
In Albania's first match at Euro 2016, Xhaka played against his brother Granit, who was playing for Switzerland. This was the first time two brothers played against each other in the European Championship. Switzerland won that game 1–0. Xhaka played in the second match against hosts France, but Albania lost 2–0. He did not play in the last group match against Romania. Albania won that game 1–0, which was their first win over Romania since 1948. Albania finished third in their group and was eliminated.
Later Years and Retirement
Xhaka played four matches in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification. In March 2017, he left the team after a loss to Italy. He said he would not play for the team as long as Gianni De Biasi was the coach. De Biasi left in June 2017. Xhaka returned to the national team in October 2017. He played his first match in 11 months against Spain.
Xhaka scored his first international goal in his 22nd game for Albania. It was against Israel in the UEFA Nations League. His goal gave Albania a 1–0 win.
On 15 November 2021, Xhaka announced he was retiring from international football. He said injuries and personal reasons led to his decision. He played his last match for Albania on 7 September 2021. He played a total of 31 games and scored one goal for Albania.
Personal Life
On 7 January 2018, Taulant Xhaka got engaged to his long-time girlfriend, Arbnora Nuredini. They got married that same year. As mentioned, he is the older brother of fellow footballer Granit Xhaka.
Images for kids
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Xhaka with Basel in 2017
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Xhaka on the ball during a game against Manchester United.
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Xhaka with Albania in 2016
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Honours and Awards
Basel
- Swiss Super League: 2010–11, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2024–25
- Swiss Cup: 2016–17, 2018–19
Grasshoppers
- Swiss Cup: 2012–13
Basel U18
- U18 Swiss Cup: 2007–08
Individual Awards
- Swiss Super League Team of the Year: 2014–15
See also
In Spanish: Taulant Xhaka para niños
