retired_confal2

Impressive results in all categories there, PM :thup:

The daughters will be flooding in with offers of marriage if this keeps up

shannon2007

Bugger I never thought of that, the daughters are all dogs, I'll have to find a pretty one

Thanks, I think the U-21s are the best bet, some decent players there tbh but as you'd expect little depth.

retired_confal2

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Peacemaker7:
Bugger I never thought of that, the daughters are all dogs, I'll have to find a pretty one <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


Whilst over there I found that there was a high proportion of attractive young women (though not a high as amongst the Serbs -a walk through Belgrade is enough to reduce any man to the state of gibbering buffoon). However, once past 30 or so, it seems most Albanian women turn to pot. Or so it looked.

I have one problem with your under-21 side: Lorik Cana. Parisien de merde.

shannon2007

Albania v Denmark
World Cup Qualifying (Europe) Group 2 Matchday 3
Qemal Stafa (Tirana), Albania
19,478


Line Ups:

Albania (4-3-2-1): Arjan Beqaj; Ervin Bulku, Nevil Dede, Geri Cipi, Elvin Beqiri; Paulin Dhembi, Altin Lala, Edwin Murati; Armando Zani, Skerdilaid Curri; Bledi Shkembi Subs: Elvis Agolli (GK), Arjan Pisha, Klodian Duro, Rudolf Zedi, Ervin Skela, Devi Muka, Igli Tare.

Denmark (4-2-3-1): Thomas Sorensen; Thomas Helveg, Niclas Jensen, Martin Laursen, Thomas Gaardsoe; Claus Jensen, Thomas Gravesen; Dennis Rommedahl, Jesper Gronkjaer, Daniel Jensen; Jon Dahl Tomasson Subs: Stephan Andersen (GK), Henrik Pedersen, Jan Kristiansen, Martin Albrechtsen, Peter Lovenkrands, Thomas Kahlenberg, Soren Colding

There was a hug sense of anticipation as the Danes rolled into Tirana, boosted by the amazing performance the previous night of the Under 21's. If the full side could match them for commitement, then Albanians would be more than happy, and the result might well be positive. With Albania having gained very good draws with Greece and Georgia and Denmark having drawn their only match in the group so far, at home to Ukraine, forecasting a draw for this match wouldnt have been out of the park.

Nevertheless, although a draw would be a good result, I really wanted a win to show the rest of Europe that were no longer just here to make up the numbers. The Danes though had not come here for a draw, and in the opening minute they made their intentions clear as they put our defence under heavy pressure, winning a corner. Gronkjaers flighted ball was curling right in on goal, but Beqaj was able to tip it over the bar and the second corner was to come to nothing.

The natch was flowing from end to end, with both sides making chances and on 13 minutes, Zani became the first player to go into the referee's book for diving, a rather harsh decision as the player was clearly tripped. Lala had a glorious chance to open the scoring on 16 minutes, but his effort was just wide in the end, and a couple of minutes later Cipi made a perfectly timed last ditch challenge to stop Gravesen at the other end.

Gravesen again missed on 20 minutes, and then with 25 minutes gone we had a penalty. Laursen had fouled Shkembi and although it may have seemed a tad harsh, that didnt stop Zabi blasting the ball home to the delight of the Albanian crowd. Denmark almost levelled on 37 minutes when Tomasson's effort beat our keeper and was heading into the net when Cipi again came to the rescue and come half time we had a slender but probably deserved lead.

Murati almost made it 2-0 ten minutes after the restart as his free kick deflected off the wall, but Sorensen managed to save it despite that, and then three minutes later disaster struck. Daniel Jensen took a clear dive in the area, and the referee, probably in an attempt to redress the balance as they are prone to do, pointed at the spot. Gravensen took the kick and Denmark were undeservedly level.

As Denmark seemed to be a grip of the game, I replaced Curri with Muka on 67 minutes, and six minutes later Murati sent us back in front with a great solo effort. With the Albanian crowd now dancing with delight, the Danes tried in vain to get a second equalizer but the defence soaked up the pressure and we pulled off a quite remarkable triumph.

How They Played:

Albania: Arjan Beqaj 7; Ervin Bulku, 7 Nevil Dede 7, Geri Cipi MOM 9, Elvin Beqiri 8; Paulin Dhembi 7, Altin Lala 7, Edwin Murati (1) 8; Armando Zani (Y) (1) 7, Skerdilaid Curri (off 67) 6; Bledi Shkembi 7 Subs: Elvis Agolli (GK), Arjan Pisha, Klodian Duro, Rudolf Zedi, Ervin Skela, Devi Muka (on 67) 7, Igli Tare.

Denmark: Thomas Sorensen 6; Thomas Helveg 7, Niclas Jensen 7, Martin Laursen 7, Thomas Gaardsoe (off 80) 7; Claus Jensen 7, Thomas Gravesen (1) 7; Dennis Rommedahl 7, Jesper Gronkjaer (off 70) 8, Daniel Jensen (off 70) 8; Jon Dahl Tomasson 7 Subs: Stephan Andersen (GK), Henrik Pedersen, Jan Kristiansen (on 70) 7 Martin Albrechtsen (on 80) (Y) 7, Peter Lovenkrands, Thomas Kahlenberg (on 70) 7, Soren Colding

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">| Pos | Inf | Team | | Pld | Won | Drn | Lst | For | Ag | G.D. | Pts | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 1st | | Turkey | | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 | +6 | 9 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2nd | | Ukraine | | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 3 | +4 | 7 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 3rd | | Albania | | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 5 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 4th | | Denmark | | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -1 | 1 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 5th | | Georgia | | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -2 | 1 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 6th | | Greece | | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | -3 | 1 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 7th | | Kazakhstan | | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | -5 | 0 | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| </pre>

shannon2007

Kazakhstan U-21's v Albania U-21's
European U-21 Championship Group 2 Qualifier, Mtach Day 4, Tuesday 12th October 2004
Central (Almaty), Kazakhstan
6388

[i]Line Ups:

Kazakhstan (4-4-2) Eugeny Tarasov; Vladimir Tarasov, Andrey Zakharov, Denis Moskalenko, Marat Bogomolov; Vladimir Novikov, Vladimir Kim, Vitaly Guseinov, Andrey Pak; Vladimir Loria, Sergey Iskakov Subs: Euegeny Aliev (GK), Yury Badlo, Maxim Sakhalbaev, Alexandr Proskuyrin, Yury Guseinov, Igor Ismailov, Eugeny Pak

Albania (4-3-2-1) Gledis Sharra; Tefik Osmani, Bledar Shima, Armend Dallku, Altin Matelli; Ilir Kalari, Marenglen Kule, Lorik Cana; Sokol Kacani, Ergys Shameti; Taulant Ismailaj Subs: Dorian Ethemi (GK), Enri Ndreka, Edlir Tetova, Erogen Brajovic, Migen Taipi, Leonard Muzha, Albert Sejdini

With the great win over Denmark under our belts, it was with high confidence that we travelled to Kazakhstan expecting three more points that would take us that step closer to a shock qualification for the Finals. It would a great achievement of course, but as the match wore on it became clear that if we wanted to win this, we were going to have to dig deep into our resources.

Kazakhstan were putting up a solid defensive wall, and our strikers were finding it much harder to find the space, and when the chance did come the home keeper was in fantastic form, as he saved everything that was aimed at him. It looked like we would have to settle for a draw, which would still of course be a decent enough result. Two minutes from the end though, the Kazak's broke upfield and Vladimir Loria casually sent the ball home as if it was his right to do so after we had dominated so much of this match. It was a painful way for the youngsters to be brought back to earth and it shows that we still have an awful lot of work to do if we want to play with the big boys.

[i]How They Played:

Kazakhstan Eugeny Tarasov MoM 9; Vladimir Tarasov 8, Andrey Zakharov 7, Denis Moskalenko 7, Marat Bogomolov 7; Vladimir Novikov (off 60) 7, Vladimir Kim, (off 72) 6 Vitaly Guseinov 7, Andrey Pak 7; Vladimir Loria (1), Sergey Iskakov (off 60) Subs: Euegeny Aliev (GK), Yury Badlo, Maxim Sakhalbaev, Alexandr Proskuyrin (on 72) 7, Yury Guseinov (on 60) 7, Igor Ismailov, Eugeny Pak (on 60) 7

Albania (4-3-2-1) Gledis Sharra 7; Tefik Osmani 8, Bledar Shima 8, Armend Dallku 8, Altin Matelli 7; Ilir Kalari (Y) 6, Marenglen Kule 7, Lorik Cana 7; Sokol Kacani 7, Ergys Shameti 7; Taulant Ismailaj (Y) 7 Subs: Dorian Ethemi (GK), Enri Ndreka, Edlir Tetova, Erogen Brajovic, Migen Taipi, Leonard Muzha, Albert Sejdini

shannon2007

Kazakhstan v Albania
World Cup Qualifying (Europe), Group 2, Match Day 4
Central (Almaty), Kazakhstan
23,958

Line Ups

Kazakhstan: (4-4-2): Oleg Moskalenko; Konstantin Kusainov, Victor Pushkov, Vladimir Mukhametkarimov, Vladimir Loria; Alexandr Avakyanc, Sergey Rodionov, Yury Loginovskiy, Dmitry Loria; Eugeny Rodionov, Vitaly Kim Subs: Sergey Blitznyuk (GK), Igor Kusainov, Victor Moskalenko, Dmitry Zarechny, Dmitry Pak, Sergey Ganzhenko, Oleg Iskakov

Albania (4-3-2-1): Arjan Beqaj; Ervin Bulku, Nevil Dede, Geri Cipi, Elvin Beqiri; Paulin Dhembi, Altin Lala, Edwin Murati; Armando Zani, Skerdilaid Curri; Florian Myrtaj Subs: Elvis Agolli (GK), Arjan Pisha, Klodian Duro, Rudolf Zedi, Ervin Skela, Devi Muka, Igli Tare.

With the U-21's result having handed us a fair warning, the full side went out knowing that this could so easily be the match that undid all our excellent work so far. Buoyed by their U-21 success, the Kazak's got off to a flying start and forced an early corner, although thankfully it came to nothing in the end. It was just the kick we needed though to erase any linger complacency, and we created two great chances ourselves in the next five minutes or so. Our pressure was soon to pay off, as with eleven minutes gone, Edwin Murati swung in a perfect corner which Geri Cipi bulleted past the helpless home keeper.

As we continued to pressure and out play the home side, so the chances continued to present themselves, and with 20 minutes gone a fine piece of play from Florian Myrtaj set up Altin Lala with a great chance which he didn't pass up. It should have been plain sailing now, but Kazakhstan were determined to take somethung from this game as they battled their way back in, and three minutes from half time they pulled a goal back.

It would have been so easy for our side to collapse, but they showed real character as they survived an early second half storm before recovering their grip on the match. Although our domination failed to produce anymore goals, nevertheless we held on for an excellent win, and maintain our shock push to reach our first ever World Cup Finals.

How They Played:

Kazakhstan: Oleg Moskalenko (MoM) 9; Konstantin Kusainov 6, Victor Pushkov 7, Vladimir Mukhametkarimov (Y) 7, Vladimir Loria (Y) 7; Alexandr Avakyanc (off 60) 7, Sergey Rodionov (Y) (off 60) 7, Yury Loginovskiy 7, Dmitry Loria (Y) 7; Eugeny Rodionov 7, Vitaly Kim (off 71) Subs: Sergey Blitznyuk (GK), Igor Kusainov, Victor Moskalenko (on 60) 7, Dmitry Zarechny (on 60) 7, Dmitry Pak, Sergey Ganzhenko, Oleg Iskakov (on 71) (Y) 7

Albania: Arjan Beqaj 7; Ervin Bulku (inj 60) 7, Nevil Dede 7, Geri Cipi (1) 8, Elvin Beqiri 9; Paulin Dhembi (Y) 7, Altin Lala (Y) (1) 8, Edwin Murati 7; Armando Zani 7, Skerdilaid Curri (off 60) 6; Florian Myrtaj 7 Subs: Elvis Agolli (GK), Arjan Pisha (On 60) 7, Klodian Duro, Rudolf Zedi, Ervin Skela, Devi Muka, Igli Tare (on 60) 7.

retired_bootcamp_nat

Nice work so far pm7. It seems like a fine story is beginning to unravel quite promisingly for the Albanian FA.

retired_jackieschmitz

In my current game, Albania did qualify for the 2006 WC, but didn't advance past the group stages.

shannon2007

They have one or two decent players, its still gonna be tough to make the finals with a lot of hard away ties, but fingers crossed!

shannon2007

UEFA U-19 Championships, 1st Qualifying Round, Group 5
Norway, Ukraine, Moldova, Albania
16th, 20th & 23rd October 2004
All matches played at Republican Stadium, (Chisnau), Moldova

A fairly tough grouping for the under -19's, but at least it would give us a measure of where we stood. Thanks to UEFA being utter bastards, we were forced to be without three of our best under 19 players in Taulant Ismailaj, Gledis Sharra and Tefik Osmani as they had been including in the U-21 squad for a week earlier. Utter nonsense really.

Nevertheless I felt we had one or two promising youngsters still, and it would be interesting to see how they would go in my first competitive matches since taking charge. Our first match was against Norway, a game in which we had to endure a lot of pressure. For most of the match, it was a fair backs to the wall stuff, but incredibly we managed to hold out and earned what was in the end a very good nil all draw.

Our second match would be with the Ukranians, who had lost 2-1 in their opening tie with the hosts Moldova, who would also hold Norway to a goalless draw. With the top two qualifying, along with the best third placed side, we knew that if we could get a point against Ukraine we had a good chance of going through. A stunning start saw Krenar Kosumi send us into a 3rd minute lead, and just nine minutes later he added a second. It was a match we had the upper hand in, and although we couldn't match the early goals, nevertheless held on for a great 2-0 win.

We went into the final match, against Moldova, knowing that a draw would take us to the 2nd qualifying phase. An injury meant we were able to call up a replacement, and so 17 year old striker Taulant Ismailaj finally got the chance to join up with us. With 2 U-21 caps, the youngster is probably the brightest prospect in Albanian football, but after just 13 minutes he fluffed a spot kick to deny us the lead. Undaunted though by the miss, the teenager had netted twice by the break and on 72 minutes completed his hattrick. With three minutes left, and not to be completely outdone, Krenar Kosumi added a 4th and we romed into the next phase.

We won't get it quite so easy there, as there is only one qualifying place up for grabs. Not forgetting that we have much tougher opposition in the shape of France, Switzerland and Georgia. It should be a great experience though for the kids, and can only help them improve.