Blendi Nallbani
Encyclopedia
Blendi Nallbani also known as Tata (born 30 May 1971 in Tirana
) is an Albania
n goalkeeper who currently for KF Tirana in the Albanian Superliga. He is the club's vice captain under Devis Mukaj
. He was a member of the Albanian national team
before his international retirement in 2002.
and Nigerian Ndubuisi Egbo
at the club.
. He allowed five goals to a strong English side
in his premiere at Wembley Stadium
. However, had it not been for his strong performance, Albania
would have suffered an even greater defeat. After the game, the English media praised Nallbani's performance as one of the greatest performances and Peter Shilton
was himself amazed by the performance of the young Albanian.
At 17 years old, Nallbani was also the youngest goalkeeper to play in an England
match.
After that famous English game and another one against Spain
, Nallbani had offers from other famed European Clubs (Barcelona FC, Juventus, Anderlecht
, and some Romania
n and Turkish
clubs). However, due to the "communist Albania" he wasn't allowed to play for teams outside the country or his family would be persecuted and possibly jailed.
In 1990 he was selected in the Under-21 Best Europe
an Selection, and was supposed to play a charity game against the Africa
/Asia
Under-21. However, he was not able to attend this game for the same reasons that he was not allowed to play for a European Club at that time.
After the fall of communism he was able to play for 2 years in Romania, but then moved back to Albania for good. He initially played for Partizani Tirana and then, as soon as moving between clubs was allowed in Albania
, he moved to his current team KF Tirana for a transfer fee of $
1,000,000 where has won multiple Championships, Cups, and Supercups. That was the most expensive transfer in the Albania
n Football History at that time, and made front page news of all major newspapers.
|1989||2||0
|-
|1990||0||0
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|1991||3||0
|-
|1992||0||0
|-
|1993||1||0
|-
|1994||0||0
|-
|1995||3||0
|-
|1996||4||0
|-
|1997||1||0
|-
|1998||0||0
|-
|1999||0||0
|-
|2000||0||0
|-
|2001||0||0
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|2002||3||0
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!Total||17||0
|}
This was very ironic as Nallbani is the proud father of two children, however he has never had a daughter as both of his children are boys. The referee Elvis Peza had also not booked Nallbani for a foul in the 55th minute on Partizani's Brazil
ian striker Paulo Marcel Pereira Merabet
. This prompted an investigation from the FSHF (Albanian FA) into Peza's performance during the match which received a lot of media coverage in Albania as Nallbani was involved in two key decisions during the match. Former player and now head of Refereeing in Albania Ilir Shulku
quickly jumped to Peza's defence and put him off the hook.
's KF Tirana U-19 side. When asked when he will consider retirement, he replied when his son Marvin starts to play for KF Tirana is when he'll retire from playing football.
Tirana
Tirana is the capital and the largest city of Albania. Modern Tirana was founded as an Ottoman town in 1614 by Sulejman Bargjini, a local ruler from Mullet, although the area has been continuously inhabited since antiquity. Tirana became Albania's capital city in 1920 and has a population of over...
) is an Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
n goalkeeper who currently for KF Tirana in the Albanian Superliga. He is the club's vice captain under Devis Mukaj
Devis Mukaj
Devi Muka is an Albanian footballer who plays as a midfielder for KF Tirana in the Albanian Superliga.-Early career and Croatia:...
. He was a member of 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...
before his international retirement in 2002.
KF Tirana (2004-present)
Nallbani moved back to KF Tirana for a fourth stint in the summer of 2004 after 4 seasons at rival club Partizani Tirana. He joined goalkeepers Isli HidiIsli Hidi
Isli Hidi is an Albanian goalkeeper who plays for AEL Limassol in the Cyprus First Division and the Albanian national team.-Club career:...
and Nigerian Ndubuisi Egbo
Ndubuisi Egbo
Ndubuisi Egbo is a former Nigerian footballer who plays for KS Bylis.-International career:Egbo has made several appearances for the full Nigeria national football team. He was a member of the Nigeria squad at the 2002 African Cup of Nations.-External links:* *...
at the club.
International Debut
At only seventeen years old, Nallbani was the youngest ever player to play for the Albanian National TeamAlbania 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...
. He allowed five goals to a strong English side
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
in his premiere at Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...
. However, had it not been for his strong performance, Albania
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...
would have suffered an even greater defeat. After the game, the English media praised Nallbani's performance as one of the greatest performances and Peter Shilton
Peter Shilton
Peter Leslie Shilton OBE is a former English footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He currently holds the record for playing more games for England than anyone else, earning 125 caps....
was himself amazed by the performance of the young Albanian.
"He (Shilton) was 21 when he first pulled on an EnglandEngland national football teamThe England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
jersey and that helped to produce a fascinating statistic when EnglandEngland national football teamThe England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
met AlbaniaAlbania national football teamThe Albania national association football team is the national association football team of Albania and is controlled by the Football Association of Albania...
in a World CupFIFA World CupThe FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
qualifier at WembleyWembleyWembley is an area of northwest London, England, and part of the London Borough of Brent. It is home to the famous Wembley Stadium and Wembley Arena...
in 1989. Blendi Nallbani, the goalkeeper at the other end, was only 17 and hadn't been born when Shilts made his debut."
At 17 years old, Nallbani was also the youngest goalkeeper to play in an England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
match.
After that famous English game and another one against Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Nallbani had offers from other famed European Clubs (Barcelona FC, Juventus, Anderlecht
Anderlecht
Anderlecht is one of the nineteen municipalities located in the Brussels-Capital Region.There are several historically and architecturally distinct districts within the Anderlecht municipality.-Pronunciation:* Dutch: * French:...
, and some Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n and Turkish
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
clubs). However, due to the "communist Albania" he wasn't allowed to play for teams outside the country or his family would be persecuted and possibly jailed.
In 1990 he was selected in the Under-21 Best Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an Selection, and was supposed to play a charity game against the Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
/Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
Under-21. However, he was not able to attend this game for the same reasons that he was not allowed to play for a European Club at that time.
After the fall of communism he was able to play for 2 years in Romania, but then moved back to Albania for good. He initially played for Partizani Tirana and then, as soon as moving between clubs was allowed in Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
, he moved to his current team KF Tirana for a transfer fee of $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
1,000,000 where has won multiple Championships, Cups, and Supercups. That was the most expensive transfer in the Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
n Football History at that time, and made front page news of all major newspapers.
National team statistics
|-|1989||2||0
|-
|1990||0||0
|-
|1991||3||0
|-
|1992||0||0
|-
|1993||1||0
|-
|1994||0||0
|-
|1995||3||0
|-
|1996||4||0
|-
|1997||1||0
|-
|1998||0||0
|-
|1999||0||0
|-
|2000||0||0
|-
|2001||0||0
|-
|2002||3||0
|-
!Total||17||0
|}
Relations with the media
Nallbani is known in Albania as being a bubbly and extravagant person who likes to make jokes with the Albanian media. During the 2008-2009 season in a heated derby match against his former team Partizani Tirana Nallbani was booked for handling the ball outside of his area which angered the Partizani players and fans as they thought that the keeper deserved a sending off for the offence. After the match ended Nallbani tried to explain in the changing rooms that he did not handle the ball outside his area saying
"i swear on my daughter, I didn't touch the ball with my hand."
This was very ironic as Nallbani is the proud father of two children, however he has never had a daughter as both of his children are boys. The referee Elvis Peza had also not booked Nallbani for a foul in the 55th minute on Partizani's Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian striker Paulo Marcel Pereira Merabet
Paulo Marcel Pereira Merabet
Paulo Marcel Pereira Merabet, aka Roma , is a Brazilian footballer who currently plays for Águia de Marabá Futebol Clube in the Brazilian third division, as a forward.-Career:...
. This prompted an investigation from the FSHF (Albanian FA) into Peza's performance during the match which received a lot of media coverage in Albania as Nallbani was involved in two key decisions during the match. Former player and now head of Refereeing in Albania Ilir Shulku
Ilir Shulku
Ilir Shulku is a retired Albanian football.Shulku had a brief spell with Apollon Athens F.C. in the Greek Alpha Ethniki.Shulku made 40 appearances for the Albania national football team from 1992 to 2000.-National team statistics:...
quickly jumped to Peza's defence and put him off the hook.
Personal life
Nallbani is married and has two children, both of which are boys. One of his children has followed in his father's footsteps as a footballer. His son born in 1992, Marvin Blendi Nallbani is also a footballer at the same club as his father, KF Tirana. unlike his father he plays outfield, mostly in midfield and has been training with the KF Tirana senior squad since the age of 16 and currently plays for Bedri OmuriBedri Omuri
Bedri Omuri niknamed Bedrana by the SK Tirana fans during the 1980s is a former Albanian footballer. The midfielder spent all of his playing career at KF Tirana...
's KF Tirana U-19 side. When asked when he will consider retirement, he replied when his son Marvin starts to play for KF Tirana is when he'll retire from playing football.