Klodian Duro (; born 21 December 1977) is an Albanian retired professional football and current coach of Lushnja of 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 prom ...

. He was a versatile midfielder who usually played in an attacking role. His brother

Albert Duro Albert Duro (born 16 February 1978) is an Albanian former footballer. Duro is a former Albanian international and played for Romanian top division club Steaua București and Național București. He is the younger brother of Klodian Duro w ...

was also a footballer. Duro played as an

attacking midfielder A midfielder is an 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 central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

for 11 different clubs in 5 countries during a career spanning 17 years, where he won 4 Albanian Superliga titles, 3 Albanian Cups, 3

Albanian Supercup The Albanian Supercup is a single match usually at the beginning of the season between the winners of the Kategoria Superiore and Albanian Cup. Supercup final was not played in the occasions when the champion team won the Double. However, after ...

s and a

Cypriot Cup The Cypriot Cup () is the main cup competition in Cypriot football, run by the Cyprus Football Association (CFA). It began in 1934, the same season with the Cypriot Championship. It is the second most important competition for Cypriot club team ...

. He made his senior international debut in 2001, and he earned 77 caps and scored 6 goals before retiring from international football in 2011. He became the manager of Kukësi on 24 November 2015, and he won the Albanian Cup in his first season in charge.

Club career

Early career

Duro started his professional career in 1996 playing for Elbasani. He played in Albania for Elbasani,

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 ...

, Vllaznia Shkodër,

Partizani Tirana Futboll Klub Partizani, or FK Partizani for short, is an Albanian professional football club based in Tirana, that competes in the Kategoria Superiore. Founded in 1946, the club was historically affiliated to the Albanian army. Partizani's curren ...

, in

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

with

Samsunspor Samsunspor is a Turkish professional football club located in the city of Samsun. The club was formed through a merger of five clubs: 19 Mayıs, Akınspor, Fener Gençlik, Samsunspor, and Samsunspor Galatasaray.Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club'') is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul in Turkey. Most notable for its association football department, the club also consists of various other de ...

Malatyaspor Malatya Spor Kulübü is a Turkish sports club based in Malatya, mainly concentrated on football. Previously their colors were yellow and black (prior to 1984). They played in First League for 11 seasons. They are the first team located in Eas ...

and

Çaykur Rizespor Çaykur Rizespor Kulübü is a Turkish professional football club based in Rize. The club play in the TFF First League. The club was founded on May 19, 1953, with green-yellow as club colours, but later changed to blue-green. Since 1990, the team ...

, and in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

Bundesliga with Arminia Bielefeld. In the 2007–08 season, he scored 15 league goals for Tirana, making him the joint third top goalscorer.

Omonia Nicosia

On 19 May 2008, Duro completed a transfer to Cypriot outfit Omonia Nicosia, penning a two-year contract until June 2010. Then he was included in Nedim Tutić's team for the

2008–09 UEFA Cup qualifying rounds The qualifying rounds for the 2008–09 UEFA Cup began on 17 July 2008. In total, there were two qualifying rounds which narrowed clubs down to 80 teams in preparation for the first round. First qualifying round , - !colspan="5", Southern-Mediter ...

. Duro made his competitive debut in the first leg of the first qualifying round versus Milano Kumanovo as the team won 2–0. He also appeared in the returning leg as Omonia won again to qualify to the next round 4–1 on aggregate. Duro's first score-sheet contributions came later on 28 August in the second leg of second qualifying round against

AEK Athens A.E.K ( el, AEK , formally Αθλητική Ένωσις Κωνσταντινουπόλεως; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople''), known as A.E.K, is a major Greek multi-sport club based in Nea Filadel ...

, netting a brace at

Neo GSP Stadium Gymnastic Club "The Pancyprians" Stadium (GSP Stadium) ( el, Στάδιο Γυμναστικός Σύλλογος "Τα Παγκύπρια") is a football stadium in Strovolos, Nicosia District, Cyprus. Although small by international standards ...

, including one from 25 yards to rescue his team a 2–2 draw, which was enough to pass to the next round as Omonia had won the first leg 1–0. Duro continued to impress even further as he was on the score-sheet again on 18 September, where he netted the opener via a free kick against

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Fo ...

side Manchester City. The Citizens however, bounced back and won 2–1. Duro's side lost the second leg with the same result which sent them crashing out of the competition. He scored his first career hat-trick on 14 December 2008, netting three times inside 10 minutes in the 4–1 home win against APOP Kinyras.

Apollon Limassol

In the summer of 2009, Duro signed a two-year contract with

Apollon Limassol FC Apollon Limassol FC ( el, Απόλλων Λεμεσού, ''Apollon Lemesou'') is a Cypriot sports club, based in Limassol. It has football, basketball and volleyball teams. Founded in 1954, Apollon FC currently plays in the Cypriot First Divis ...

. He made an impressive start with the new team and had the hearts of many fans of Apollon for him. For Apollon it was the most important transfer during that season.

LASK

In August 2010, Duro left Cyprus after two years and joined Austrian Football Bundesliga side

LASK Linzer Athletik-Sport-Klub, commonly known as Linzer ASK () or simply LASK, is an Austrian professional football club, from the Upper-Austrian state capital Linz. It is the oldest football club in that region, and plays in the Austrian Footbal ...

on a one-year contract. He appears in 17 league matches and scored 2 goals.

Tirana

Duro returned to Albania in September 2011 with his former side KF Tirana for his third stint at the club. He signed a two-year contract on a free transfer with the club after agreeing terms with the club directors.

International career

Duro had 77 appearances for the Albania National Team and scored six goals. He scored the first goal with the Albania National Team against

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

on 16 October 2002 in a 1–4 loss of Albania in Russia. On 4 September 2004, European Champion

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 ...

lost 2–1 to Albania at Tirana. Albanian midfielder Klodian Duro was quoted as saying, "Let the world know we're the best here," and after the match fans paraded around with banners that read "This is not Portugal," a reference to the Greeks' stunning win in Euro 2004. Against

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

he scored the goal of a 1–1 draw in 2007. Duro scored against

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

twice in a 3–0 Albania win of a 2007 friendly match and in a 3–0 World Cup 2010 qualifications. He scored against

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

in a 6–1 win of Albania in August 2009. Duro also scored against the

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

national football team in a 1–1 draw in October 2010. Duro is considered to be one of the best players in the story of Albanian football and he is also one of the players with most appearances with the Albania National Team.

Managerial career

Kukësi

On 24 November 2015, Duro was appointment the new coach of Albanian Superliga side

FK Kukësi Futboll Klub Kukësi is an Albanian professional football club based in the city of Kukës. The club plays its home games at the Zeqir Ymeri Stadium and they currently compete in the Kategoria Superiore, the highest tier of Albanian football. Th ...

, replacing

Marcello Troisi Marcello Troisi Moreira (born 9 March 1976) is a Brazilian retired footballer who played as a striker, and the current coach of Turbina in the Kategoria e Parë. Career After playing for Santos, Corinthians and Remo in his home country, Tro ...

who was sacked by the club directors due to lack of results. During his presentation, Duro said that the main goal of Kukësi is to qualify in European competitions for the next season. In his first match in charge, Kukësi fall at Zeqir Ymeri Stadium to

by losing 0–1. Duro won his match as a coach four days later, however, leading Kukësi into a 1–0 away win against Flamurtari Vlorë. He won the Albanian Cup in his first season in charge, after defeating Laçi on penalties on 22 May 2016. Despite club president

Safet Gjici Safet Gjici (born 30 April 1972 in Kukës) is an Albanian businessman who is the CEO of EuroGjici Security and Kevin Construction. He is also the president of Albanian Superliga football club FK Kukësi. He was the Socialist Party Socialist P ...

stating that Duro was confirmed for the next season after winning the trophy, the manager left the club on 6 June and was replaced by Hasan Lika.

Kamza

On 4 September 2018, Kamza announced to have appointed Duro as the new team manager. His debut as Kamza manager came on 12 September in the 2–0 win at

Besa Kavajë Besa or BESA may refer to: Arts & entertainment * ''Besa'' (newspaper), a newspaper published in Albania * ''Besa'' (TV series), a Serbian-British television series produced by Adrenalin and Red Planet Pictures * ''The Besa'', a novel by Albanian ...

in Albanian Cup first round. His first league match in charge was the 2–0 home win versus newly promoted team Kastrioti Krujë.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Albania's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Duro goal.''

Managerial

Honours

Player

;Tirana * Albanian Superliga: 1998–99, 2006–07 * Albanian Cup: 1998–99, 2005–06, 2011–12 *

: 2006,

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

;Vllaznia Shkodër * Albanian Superliga: 2000–01 *

: 2001 ;Apollon Limassol *

Cyprus Cup The Cyprus Women's Cup is a global invitational tournament for national teams in women's association football. It has been held annually in Cyprus since 2008. Although the competition takes place in Cyprus, the hosts have yet to take part in t ...

: 2009–10

Manager

;Kukësi * Albanian Cup: 2015–16

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Duro, Klodian 1977 births Living people Footballers from Elbasan Albanian footballers Footballers from Tirana Albania international footballers Albania under-21 international footballers Association football midfielders KF Elbasani players KF Tirana players KF Vllaznia Shkodër players Samsunspor footballers Malatyaspor footballers FK Partizani Tirana players Çaykur Rizespor footballers Arminia Bielefeld players AC Omonia players Apollon Limassol FC players LASK players Bundesliga players Süper Lig players Austrian Football Bundesliga players Cypriot First Division players Albanian expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Turkey Expatriate footballers in Germany Expatriate footballers in Cyprus Expatriate footballers in Austria Albanian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey Albanian expatriate sportspeople in Germany Albanian expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus Albanian expatriate sportspeople in Austria Albanian football managers FK Kukësi managers FC Kamza managers Kategoria Superiore players Kategoria Superiore managers