Brian Filipi (11 August 1989 – 19 September 2009) was an
Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
n
football midfielder/striker who spent his short professional career with
Ravenna
Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the ca ...
.
Club career
Born in
Lezhë
Lezhë (, sq-definite, Lezha) is a city in the Republic of Albania and seat of Lezhë County and Lezhë Municipality.
One of the main strongholds of the Labeatai, the earliest of the fortification walls of Lezhë are of typical Illyrian cons ...
, Brian Filipi made his first team debut with Ravenna in the 2008–09 season, being protagonist of the club's successful season which almost ended in promotion to
Serie B
The Serie B (), currently named Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had been ...
from
Lega Pro Prima Divisione
Lega Pro Prima Divisione was the third highest football league in Italy. It consisted of 33 teams, divided geographically into two divisions of 16 and 17 teams for group A and B respectively. Until 2008 it was known as Serie C1.
Before the 1978 ...
, despite the Albanian's young age. Before his professional debut with Ravenna, Filipi had already played at youth international level with his native country of Albania, receiving his first call-up for the Under-19 team in 2007. He later became part of the
Under-21 team as well.
In January 2009, following his impressive performances with Ravenna, he was optioned by
Serie A
The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Cop ...
club
Palermo; however, in the 2009 summer transfer window Palermo decided not to acquire half of his registration rights, as already agreed with Ravenna, and Filipi stayed with the
Emilia-Romagna
egl, Emigliàn (man) egl, Emiglièna (woman) rgn, Rumagnòl (man) rgn, Rumagnòla (woman) it, Emiliano (man) it, Emiliana (woman) or it, Romagnolo (man) it, Romagnola (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title ...
club instead.
International career
Filipi was part of
Albania under-21 squad in the last three
qualifying matches of
2009 UEFA European Under-21 Championship
The 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Championship began on 15 June 2009, and was the 17th UEFA European Under-21 Championship. This was the first tournament after the competition reverted to a two-year format, following the single-year 2006–07 compe ...
. He made his debut on 20 August 2008 in the match against
Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...
, entering in the 55th minute as the match finished 1–1. He went on to make another appearance as substitute versus
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...
, as Albania finished
Group 1 Group 1 may refer to:
* Alkali metal, a chemical element classification for Alkali metal
* Group 1 (racing), a historic (until 1981) classification for Touring car racing, applied to standard touring cars. Comparable to modern FIA Group N
* Group On ...
at 4th position with 12 points.
Filipi continued to be part of under-21 side in the opening two matches of next
qualifying campaign. He played as substitute in the opening matchday against
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
as Albania lost 0–1 at
Ruzhdi Bizhuta Stadium.
Death
On 19 September 2009, at around 23:00
CET
CET or cet may refer to:
Places
* Cet, Albania
* Cet, standard astronomical abbreviation for the constellation Cetus
* Colchester Town railway station (National Rail code CET), in Colchester, England
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Comcast En ...
, Brian Filipi was hit by a motorist while he was walking in a street in
Cervia together with teammate
Stefano Scappini, who suffered a minor strike on his arm in the crash.
The car was driven by a 52-year-old woman who also sustained minor injuries in the event. She later travelled further to hit a number of parked vehicles in the same street. Filipi was successfully rushed to hospital, but died soon after due to the severe injuries he had sustained in the accident.
Following the events, Ravenna handed a request to delay the game scheduled for the very next day to
Foggia, which was immediately accepted by the League committee.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Filipi, Brian
1989 births
2009 deaths
People from Lezhë
Association football midfielders
Association football forwards
Albanian footballers
Albania under-21 international footballers
Ravenna F.C. players
Albanian expatriate footballers
Expatriate footballers in Italy
Albanian expatriate sportspeople in Italy
Road incident deaths in Italy
Pedestrian road incident deaths