Arjan Beqaj
Encyclopedia
Arjan Beqaj is a former Albanian
professional footballer
from Kosovo. In a career spanning 19 years he played for seven clubs in four countries and .He is now the goalkeeping coach at Anorthosis Famagusta.
with local side Liria Prizren in 1992. He then moved to Tiranë, Albania at the start of 1995 to attend university, where he was to play for Partizani Tirana. He played in Albania for two and a half years as he left in 1997 to join OFI Crete
after being spotted playing for Albania U-21s
.
where he played 129 league games for the Greek side and even scoring a goal in the 2000-01 season. Beqaj then signed for Ionikos where he made 83 league appearances in three seasons before ending his nine year stint in Greece.
to the group stages of the UEFA Champions League 2008–09
. He was voted man of the match
in the second leg of the Champions League qualifier against Olympiacos, by making many key saves. The game ended 1–0 in Olympiacos favor, but due to the aggregate, Beqaj and his teammates were able to advance to the group stage. Beqaj and his teammates made history by becoming the first Cypriot
team to ever qualify for the Champions League group stages.
|1994-95||rowspan="3"|Partizani Tirana||rowspan="3"|Superliga||2||0||||||||||2||0
|-
|1995-96||18||0||||||||||18||0
|-
|1996-97||17||0||||||||||17||0
|-
|1997-98||rowspan="6"|OFI Crete
||rowspan="9"|Alpha Ethniki||4||0||||||||||4||0
|-
|1998-99||32||0||||||||||32||0
|-
|1999-00||27||0||||||||||27||0
|-
|2000-01||28||1||||||||||28||1
|-
|2001-02||20||0||||||||||20||0
|-
|2002-03||18||0||||||||||20||0
|-
|2003-04||rowspan="3"|Ionikos||28||0||||||||||28||0
|-
|2004-05||27||0||||||||||27||0
|-
|2005-06||28||0||||||||||28||0
|-
|2006-07||rowspan="4"|Anorthosis Famagusta||rowspan="6"|First Division
||26||0||||||||||26||0
|-
|2007-08||27||0||||||5||0||32||0
|-
|2008-09||10||0||||||11||0||21||0
|-
|2009-10||19||0||||||||||19||0
|-
|2010-11||rowspan="1"|Olympiakos Nicosia
||5||0||||||||||5||0
|-
|2010-11||rowspan="1"|Ermis Aradippou
||0||0||||||||||0||0
37||0||||||||||37||0
212||1||||||||||212||1
88||0||||||||||88||0
m||n||m||n||m||n||m||n
, SFR Yugoslavia (in present-day Kosovo
), but is an Albanian international
and has been become Albania's first choice goalkeeper since legendary Albanian goalkeeper Foto Strakosha
, who retired from both club and international football in early 2005. So far, he has made 44 appearances for the Albanian national team
.
|1998||2||0
|-
|1999||2||0
|-
|2000||4||0
|-
|2001||2||0
|-
|2002||3||0
|-
|2003||4||0
|-
|2004||0||0
|-
|2005||0||0
|-
|2006||3||0
|-
|2007||11||0
|-
|2008||5||0
|-
|2009||0||0
|-
|2010||4||0
|-
|2011||4||0
|-
!Total||44||0
|}
Anorthosis Famagusta
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
professional footballer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
from Kosovo. In a career spanning 19 years he played for seven clubs in four countries and .He is now the goalkeeping coach at Anorthosis Famagusta.
Early career
Beqaj began his profession career in KosovoKosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
with local side Liria Prizren in 1992. He then moved to Tiranë, Albania at the start of 1995 to attend university, where he was to play for Partizani Tirana. He played in Albania for two and a half years as he left in 1997 to join OFI Crete
OFI Crete
OFI , the Sportfriends Association Heraklion, is a Greek association football club based in Heraklion, on the island of Crete. Outside Greece, the club is generally known as OFI Crete F.C., however, the name Crete is not actually part of the club's official title.OFI is the club with most...
after being spotted playing for Albania U-21s
Albania national under-21 football team
The Albania national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team of Albania and is controlled by the Football Association of Albania...
.
Greece
He spent six seasons at OFI CreteOFI Crete
OFI , the Sportfriends Association Heraklion, is a Greek association football club based in Heraklion, on the island of Crete. Outside Greece, the club is generally known as OFI Crete F.C., however, the name Crete is not actually part of the club's official title.OFI is the club with most...
where he played 129 league games for the Greek side and even scoring a goal in the 2000-01 season. Beqaj then signed for Ionikos where he made 83 league appearances in three seasons before ending his nine year stint in Greece.
Cyprus
Beqaj was one of the players that helped AnorthosisAnorthosis Famagusta FC
Αnorthosis Famagusta FC is a Cypriot football and volleyball club which is originally based in Famagusta, but is now temporarily based in Larnaca, due to the Turkish invasion. Anorthosis is one of the most successful clubs in Cypriot football, having won 13 league titles, 10 Cypriot Cups and 6...
to the group stages of the UEFA Champions League 2008–09
UEFA Champions League 2008–09
The 2008–09 UEFA Champions League was the 54th edition of Europe's premier club football tournament and the 17th edition under the current UEFA Champions League format. The final was played at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome on 27 May 2009. It was the eighth time the European Cup final has been held in...
. He was voted man of the match
Man of the match
In sport, a Man of the Match or Player of the Game or Man of the Series award is given to the outstanding player, almost always the one who makes the most impact, in a particular match or series. The term was originally used more often in cricket before being adopted by other sports. This can be a...
in the second leg of the Champions League qualifier against Olympiacos, by making many key saves. The game ended 1–0 in Olympiacos favor, but due to the aggregate, Beqaj and his teammates were able to advance to the group stage. Beqaj and his teammates made history by becoming the first Cypriot
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
team to ever qualify for the Champions League group stages.
Career statistics
|-|1994-95||rowspan="3"|Partizani Tirana||rowspan="3"|Superliga||2||0||||||||||2||0
|-
|1995-96||18||0||||||||||18||0
|-
|1996-97||17||0||||||||||17||0
|-
|1997-98||rowspan="6"|OFI Crete
OFI Crete
OFI , the Sportfriends Association Heraklion, is a Greek association football club based in Heraklion, on the island of Crete. Outside Greece, the club is generally known as OFI Crete F.C., however, the name Crete is not actually part of the club's official title.OFI is the club with most...
||rowspan="9"|Alpha Ethniki||4||0||||||||||4||0
|-
|1998-99||32||0||||||||||32||0
|-
|1999-00||27||0||||||||||27||0
|-
|2000-01||28||1||||||||||28||1
|-
|2001-02||20||0||||||||||20||0
|-
|2002-03||18||0||||||||||20||0
|-
|2003-04||rowspan="3"|Ionikos||28||0||||||||||28||0
|-
|2004-05||27||0||||||||||27||0
|-
|2005-06||28||0||||||||||28||0
|-
|2006-07||rowspan="4"|Anorthosis Famagusta||rowspan="6"|First Division
Cypriot First Division
The Cypriot Championship First Division is the top tier football league competition in Cyprus. As of 2007 it is sponsored by Marfin Popular Bank and is hence officially known as Marfin Laiki League .-Format:...
||26||0||||||||||26||0
|-
|2007-08||27||0||||||5||0||32||0
|-
|2008-09||10||0||||||11||0||21||0
|-
|2009-10||19||0||||||||||19||0
|-
|2010-11||rowspan="1"|Olympiakos Nicosia
Olympiakos Nicosia
Olympiakos Nicosia is a football club in the Cypriot capital of Nicosia. The club was founded in 1931. It is a founding member of the Cyprus Football Association. The club colors are black and green. Olympiakos's home ground is the New GSP Stadium of 23,400 seat capacity...
||5||0||||||||||5||0
|-
|2010-11||rowspan="1"|Ermis Aradippou
Ermis Aradippou
Ermis Aradippou is a Cypriot football club based in Aradippou, a settlement on the outskirts of Larnaca. Founded in 1958, it currently plays in the Cypriot First Division.-History:...
||0||0||||||||||0||0
37||0||||||||||37||0
212||1||||||||||212||1
88||0||||||||||88||0
m||n||m||n||m||n||m||n
International career
Beqaj was born in PrizrenPrizren
Prizren is a historical city located in southern Kosovo. It is the administrative center of the eponymous municipality and district.The city has a population of around 131,247 , mostly Albanians...
, SFR Yugoslavia (in present-day Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
), but is an Albanian international
Albania national football team
The Albania national association football team is the national association football team of Albania and is controlled by the Football Association of Albania...
and has been become Albania's first choice goalkeeper since legendary Albanian goalkeeper Foto Strakosha
Foto Strakosha
Fotaq "Foto" Strakosha is a retired Albanian goalkeeper. Strakosha is one of Albania's most popular and greatest goalkeepers who captained the national team for a number of years before his retirement in 2005...
, who retired from both club and international football in early 2005. So far, he has made 44 appearances for the Albanian national team
Albania national football team
The Albania national association football team is the national association football team of Albania and is controlled by the Football Association of Albania...
.
National team statistics
|-|1998||2||0
|-
|1999||2||0
|-
|2000||4||0
|-
|2001||2||0
|-
|2002||3||0
|-
|2003||4||0
|-
|2004||0||0
|-
|2005||0||0
|-
|2006||3||0
|-
|2007||11||0
|-
|2008||5||0
|-
|2009||0||0
|-
|2010||4||0
|-
|2011||4||0
|-
!Total||44||0
|}
Club
Partizani Tirana- Albanian Cup (1): 1996-97
Anorthosis Famagusta
- Cypriot First DivisionCypriot First DivisionThe Cypriot Championship First Division is the top tier football league competition in Cyprus. As of 2007 it is sponsored by Marfin Popular Bank and is hence officially known as Marfin Laiki League .-Format:...
(1): 2007-08 - Cypriot Cup (1): 2006-07
- LTV Super Cup (1): 2007