Alfred Zijai (7 February 1961 – 11 February 2013) was an Albanian footballer who played as a midfielder.

Club career

Born in Vlorë, Zijai spent his entire career with hometown club

Flamurtari Flamurtari FC is a professional Football team, football club based in Vlorë, Albania. The club plays in the Kategoria e Parë, which is the second tier of football in the country. Founded in 1923, the club is one of the oldest in Albania, and ...

during the 1970s and 1980s, during the club's golden years alongside fellow international players like Sokol Kushta, Kreshnik Çipi, Petro Ruçi, Alfred Ferko and

Rrapo Taho Rrapo Taho (born 17 August 1959) is an Albanian retired football central defender. Club career Taho spent his entire career with hometown club Flamurtari during the 1970s and 1980s, during the club's golden years alongside fellow international ...

. Playing for them between 1979 and 1991, he won the

Albanian Cup The Albanian Cup ( sq, Kupa e Shqipërisë) is the main "knockout" competition in Albanian football. The competition started in 1939 as Kupa e Mbretit (English:"The King's Cup"). Just after a year the cup was suspended as the Second World War st ...

in 1985 and 1988, and the

Kategoria e Parë Kategoria e Parë is the second level of professional football in Albania, behind the Kategoria Superiore and above the Kategoria e Dytë. Format Kategoria e Parë was founded in 1930. It is made up of 14 teams. The 2 best ranked teams gain pr ...

in 1991. In the 1987–88 season, he and his Flamurtari teammates managed to knock out Partizan Belgrade and Wismut Aue, before losing for a second successive year to Spanish giants FC Barcelona in the UEFA Cup.Alfrd Zijai: “Ishim një brez i artë”
- Telegraf

International career

He made his debut for Albania in an October 1986 European Championship qualification match away at Austria and earned a total of 3 caps, scoring no goals. His final international was a November 1987 European Championship qualification match against Spain.

Futsal

Zijai became a member of the Executive Committee of the Albanian Football Association, and he founded the

Futsal Organisation of Albania Futsal is a football-based game played on a hard court smaller than a football pitch, and mainly indoors. It has similarities to five-a-side football and indoor football. Futsal is played between two teams of five players each, one of whom is t ...

Personal life and death

He was a father of two and suffered from a liver disease. He died on 11 February 2013, at the age of 52.

Honours

Albanian Superliga The Kategoria Superiore, officially known as Abissnet Superiore for sponsorship reasons, is a professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the Albanian football league system, it is the country's primary football compet ...

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1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

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1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

Albania - Albania - List of Cup Finals
- RSSSF

References

External links

* 1961 births 2013 deaths Footballers from Vlorë Men's association football midfielders Albanian footballers Albania men's international footballers Flamurtari FC players Deaths from liver disease {{Albania-footy-midfielder-stub