Alban Hoxha

Alban Hoxha
Personal information
Full nameAlban Bekim Hoxha
Date of birth23 November 1987
Place of birthCërrik, Albania
Height1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing positionGoalkeeper
Club information
Current team
Partizani Tirana
Number12
Youth career
2000–2004Turbina Cërrik
2004–2005Dinamo Tirana
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2004–2011Dinamo Tirana45(0)
2005–2006Turbina Cërrik (loan)?(?)
2009Apolonia Fier (loan)8(0)
2011–2012Kastrioti Krujë6(0)
2012–2013Besa Kavajë23(0)
2013–Partizani Tirana45(0)
National team
2006Albania U193(0)
2014–Albania0(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 13 December 2014.

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 1 October 2014

Alban Bekim Hoxha (born 23 November 1987) is an Albanian footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper for Albanian club Partizani Tirana and the Albania national team.

Club career

Dinamo

He was raised through the ranks at his hometown team Turbina Cërrik before joining the youth team of KS Dinamo Tirana in 2004. He was loaned back out to Turbina Cërrik for the 2005-06 campaign, where he played in the Albanian First Division.[1] He returned the following season and joined the first team at Dinamo as Ilion Lika understudy. He made his top flight debut with Dinamo on 10 March 2007 in a home game against KF Elbasani.[2] He featured in 11 league games between March and the end of the season due to first choice keeper Lika being sidelined with injury.

The following season he became second choice to Elvis Kotorri following the departure of Ilion Lika, and he made 2 league appearances as Dinamo were crowned Albanian Superliga champions for the first time since 2002. During the first half of the 2008-09 season he only made one league and one cup appearance before being loaned out to fellow Superliga side Apolonia Fier in January for the remainder of the season. He made 8 appearances while on loan at Apolonia Fier and kept 3 clean sheets, helping the team avoid the relegation play off places by a single point.

He returned to his parent club Dinamo ahead of the 2009-10 season and made 6 league appearances as he won his second Superliga title with Dinamo. The following season he competed with Albanian international Isli Hidi for the first choice spot in the team, and following Hidi's departure to Olympiakos Nicosia in January 2011 he became Dinamo's first choice keeper for the first time and eventually featured in 24 league games as Dinamo narrowly avoided relegation after beating Besëlidhja Lezhë in the relegation play off.[3]

Kastrioti

Hoxha left Dinamo Tirana in the summer transfer window of 2011 and joined another Superliga side KS Kastrioti Krujë, where he competed with Argjent Halili for the starting lineup, ultimately losing out as he only made 6 league appearances, and was used mainly in the Albanian Cup, where he featured 10 times. He left the club at the end of the season along with Halili, and was in talks with FK Kukësi regarding a possible transfer, but a move never materialised as an agreement could not be reached.[4]

Besa

He joined Besa Kavajë ahead of the 2012-13 campaign and was immediately made the first choice goalkeeper ahead of Ibrahim Bejte. Throughout the season Hoxha made 23 league and 2 cup appearances, helping Besa to a 9th place finish, avoiding the relegation play off places.

Partizani

He joined newly promoted FK Partizani Tirana in the summer of 2013 and was given the number 1 shirt as well being named captain for the 2013-14 season.[5]

Hoxha went 1,084 minutes without conceding a goal during 2014–15 Albanian Superliga season and got the all-time Albanian Superliga record as he break the 30-year-old record set by the goalkeeper of KS Labinoti Elbasan (modern day called KF Elbasani), Bujar Gogunja, who kept intact net goal for 1037 minutes.[6] He has been chosen as the Footballer of the Year for 2014 by the Albanian Football Association.[7]

International career

Albania U19

Hoxha played three matches for the youth's Albania national under-19 football team in the 2006 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification - Group 9 between 23-27 October 2005.[8][9][10]

Albania senior team

After the end of the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification in which Albania national football team participated, the second choise goalkeeper Samir Ujkani left the Albania national team to play for the Kosovo national football team, which just had gained the right to play international friendlies against FIFA member associations and it will represent Kosovo in these friendlies starting from 5 March 2014 against Haiti national team.[11] Albania were looking forward for a third choise behind Etrit Berisha, which was a starter choise and Orges Shehi, which became second choise after leaving of Samir Ujkani.[12] For the UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying second round matches against Denmark & Serbia on 11 & 15 October 2014 Hoxha received his first senior team call-up by the Albania national football team coach Gianni De Biasi as a third choise goalkeeper.[13] He remained as an unused substitute with for both matches as an 23rd shirt number. For the Friendly matches against France and Italy on 14 & 18 November 2014, Hoxha had some issue family problems and he replaced as a third choise with the fellow Albanian Superliga goalkeeper of KF Tirana, Stivi Frashëri.[14]

Career statistics

Club

As of 13 December 2014 [15]
Season Club League country League League Cup Europe Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
2005–06 Turbina Cërrik Albanian Second Division --
Total
2006–07 Dinamo Tirana Albanian Superliga 0000--00
2007–08 00000000
2008–09 0000--00
Apolonia Fier 8000--80
2009–10 Dinamo Tirana 60000060
2010–11 2506000310
Total Dinamo 3166000376
2011–12 Kastrioti Krujë Albanian Superliga 60100--160
Total 6010000160
2012–13 Besa Kavajë Albanian Superliga 2302000250
Total 2302000250
2013–14 Partizani Tirana Albanian Superliga 31030--340
2014–15 14000--140
Total 4503000480
Career total 1130210001340

International

As of 1 October 2014
Albania national team
YearAppsGoals
201400
Total00

Honours

Club

Dinamo Tirana

Individual

References

External links