Emrah Klimenta (; born February 13, 1991) is a Montenegrin professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who last played as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

for

USL Championship The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...

side

Oakland Roots Oakland Roots Sports Club is an American professional soccer team based in Oakland, California. The club was formed in 2018 by a group of Oakland natives, and began play in the National Independent Soccer Association in the fall of 2019. In 2021, ...

Early life

Emrah Klimenta, whose surname is derived from the Albanian highland tribe

Kelmendi Kelmendi is a historical Albanian tribe (''fis'') and region in Malësia ( Kelmend municipality) and eastern Montenegro (parts of Gusinje Municipality). It is located in the upper valley of the Cem river and its tributaries in the Accursed Moun ...

was born in

Rožaje Rožaje ( cnr, Рожаје, bs, Rožaje), ; sq, Rozhajë) is a town in northeastern Montenegro. As of 2011, the city has a population of 9,567 inhabitants. Surrounded by hills to its west and mountains to its east (notably Mount Hajla), the ...

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

during a time of turmoil in the Balkan region as the Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia was breaking apart. Klimenta and his parents initially settled in

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

, Germany. His family then moved to the United States in 1999. They settled in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

, but later moved to

Walnut Creek, California Walnut Creek is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States, located in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, about east of the city of Oakland. With a total population of 70,127 per the 2020 census, Walnut Creek ser ...

Career

Club

Klimenta began his youth career in the United States, playing as a midfielder and forward. He also played for the Olympic Development Program (ODP) for Cal North. Klimenta spent time in Europe playing for

MŠK Žilina MŠK Žilina () is a Slovak football club based in the town of Žilina, that is playing in the Slovak Superliga. Since the league inception in 1993, the club has won 7 titles and comes second in All-time table that makes them one of the most s ...

and

FC Ingolstadt 04 Fußball-Club Ingolstadt 2004 e.V., commonly known as FC Ingolstadt 04 or FC Ingolstadt, is a German football club based in Ingolstadt, Bavaria. The club was founded in 2004 out of the merger of the football sides of two other clubs: ESV Ingolst ...

, before returning to California as a midfielder for NPSL club

Bay Area Ambassadors Bay Area Ambassadors was an American soccer team based in Hayward, California, United States. Active from 2009 to 2012, the team played in National Premier Soccer League (NPSL), a national amateur league at the fourth tier of the American Soccer ...

. Klimenta joined

United Soccer League United Soccer League (USL), formerly known as United Soccer Leagues, is a Association football, soccer league in the United States and Canada. It organizes several men's and women's leagues, both professional and amateur. Men's leagues curren ...

club

Sacramento Republic FC Sacramento Republic FC is an American professional soccer team based in Sacramento, California, that plays in the Western Conference of the USL Championship, the second level in US soccer. Co-founded by Warren Smith and Joe Wagoner in 2012, the ...

in March 2014, after being selected during an open tryout. Klimenta played as a defender and has started most of the league games in the 2014, 2015 and 2016 season. In January 2018 it was announced that Klimenta had signed for

LA Galaxy LA Galaxy, also known as the Los Angeles Galaxy, are an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Galaxy competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), as a member of the Western Conference. The club began pl ...

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

, ending his tenure in Sacramento as the team's all-time leader in minutes, starts, and appearances. He was released by the club on June 14, 2018. Klimenta returned to

for the remainder of the 2018 season. On 4 April 2019, Klimenta joined USL side Reno 1868. On 5 June 2021, Klimenta joined

club

Oakland Roots SC Oakland Roots Sports Club is an American professional soccer team based in Oakland, California. The club was formed in 2018 by a group of Oakland natives, and began play in the National Independent Soccer Association in the fall of 2019. In 2021, ...

. After three seasons with the club, he was not re-signed for the 2024 season.

International

In May 2016, Klimenta was called up for to the Montenegro national team for the first time for a training camp and friendly against

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

on 29 May. On this day, Emrah made his senior debut. In the process, he became the first Sacramento Republic player to receive a senior call-up while with the club.

Honors

Sacramento Republic *

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Klimenta, Emrah 1991 births Living people People from Rožaje Bosniaks of Montenegro Soccer players from California Men's association football midfielders Montenegrin men's footballers Montenegro men's international footballers Sacramento Republic FC players LA Galaxy players LA Galaxy II players Reno 1868 FC players San Diego Loyal SC players Oakland Roots SC players USL Championship players Major League Soccer players Montenegrin expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Montenegrin expatriate sportspeople in the United States