Niko Zisi (born 24 August 1995) is an Albanian 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 plays as an

attacking midfielder A midfielder is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As #Cent ...

for

Gamma Ethniki The Gamma Ethniki ( el, Γ΄ Εθνική Ερασιτεχνική Κατηγορία, C National Amateur Division) is the third highest football league in Greece. History The Gamma Ethniki began in 1965 as an amateur championship, while in 198 ...

club Apollon Paralimnio.

Career

Early career

Zisi spent much of his early career in Greece by playing notably with

Aris Aris or ARIS may refer to: People * Aris (surname) Given name * Aris Alexandrou, Greek writer * Aris Brimanis, ice hockey player * Aris Christofellis, Greek male soprano * Aris Gavelas, Greek sprinter * Aris Howard, Former President of the Jamai ...

youth teams. He returned in Albania in September 2014 to play for

Dinamo Tirana Futboll Club Dinamo Tirana is an Albanian professional football club based in the country's capital Tirana. They play in the Kategoria e Parë, the second tier of Albanian football, in the 2022–23 season. Founded in 1950 during the communist r ...

. One year later, he returned again in Greece, this time to play for Achilleas Triandrias.

Elbasani

In January 2017, Zisi joined Albanian First Division side

Bylis Ballsh KF Bylis, also known as Bylis Ballsh, is an Albanian football club based in Ballsh, Mallakastër District. The club's home ground is the Adush Muça Stadium and they currently compete in the Kategoria Superiore. History Early history The club ...

and was sent on loan at fellow side

Elbasani Elbasan ( ; sq-definite, Elbasani ) is the fourth most populous city of Albania and seat of Elbasan County and Elbasan Municipality. It lies to the north of the river Shkumbin between the Skanderbeg Mountains and the Myzeqe Plain in central A ...

until the end of the season. He made his debut as professional footballer on 18 February by playing in the second half of the 1–3 home loss to

Apolonia Fier KF Apolonia is an Albanian football club based in Fier. The club was founded on 17 June 1925 and took its name from the nearby ruins of the ancient city of Apollonia. The club currently compete in the Kategoria e Parë and they play their home ...

. His first score-sheet contributions came later on 21 April in the 2–2 draw against the same opponent, which brought Elbasani closer to relegation. Zisi finished the second half of 2016–17 season by making 10 league appearances, scoring once as Elbasani was relegated after losing the relegation final 2–0 against Sopoti Librazhd.

Bylis Ballsh

In June 2017, Zisi returned to the club and signed a one-year contract. He made his first appearance of the season on 13 September in the match against

Tomori Berat KF Tomori is an Albanian football club based in the city of Berat. The club's home ground is the Tomori Stadium and they currently participate in the Kategoria e Parë. History The sport of football was introduced to the city of Berat in the ear ...

won 0–3. He opened his scoring account on matchday 3 in the 3–1 home win over Shënkolli. Later on 4 November, Zisi made a Man of the Match performance by scoring the winner against away against

Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...

, ending their undefeated streak and becoming the first player in 2017–18 season to score against them. Zisi concluded the 2017–18 by scoring 9 goals and giving 9 assists.

Kamza

On 13 August 2018,

Kazma Kazma () is an ancient city in Kuwait. It is located in Al Jahra Governorate, north of Kuwait City, the capital of Kuwait. It is an ancient city with a long history, known to Persians and Arabs since the Sassanid, Jahiliyyah and the early Isla ...

completed the signing of Zisi from Bylis Ballsh for a fee of

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...

40,000. The player was presented three days later, signing a contract running until June 2021.

SV Donaustauf

After it was reported, that Zisi had joined Greek

Super League Greece 2 The Super League Greece 2 ( el, Ελληνική Σούπερ Λίγκα 2) is the 28 team two-group second division of professional football in Greece, being a feeder-league to the top-level Super League usually played from September to May. His ...

club A.E. Karaiskakis in late-December 2019 - which, however, never officially was confirmed - Zisi moved to German

Bayernliga Süd The Bayernliga (English: Bavarian league) is the highest amateur football league and the second highest football league (under the Regionalliga Bayern) in the state of Bavaria (german: Bayern) and the Bavarian football league system. It is one of ...

club SV Donaustauf in January 2020.

Style of play

Zisi has been compared to

Bernard Berisha Bernard Berisha (born 24 October 1991) is a Kosovar professional footballer who plays as a left winger or attacking midfielder for Russian club Akhmat Grozny and the Kosovo national team. Club career Skënderbeu Korçë Berisha followed Fatjon ...

by Bylis Ballsh fans due to their similar playing style and pace.

Career statistics

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zisi, Niko 1995 births Living people Footballers from Fier Albanian men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Kategoria e Parë players Kategoria Superiore players KF Elbasani players KF Bylis players FC Kamza players Apollon Paralimnio F.C. players Albanian expatriate men's footballers Albanian expatriate sportspeople in Germany Expatriate men's footballers in Germany