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Qazim Laçi (born 19 January 1996) is an Albanian professional footballer who plays as a
central midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...
for Czech First League club Sparta Prague and the Albania national team. Raised in Greece from a young age, Laçi began his career with Olympiacos, spending three years there that included multiple loan spells. He signed with French club
Ajaccio Ajaccio (, , ; French language, French: ; or ; , locally: ; ) is the capital and largest city of Corsica, France. It forms a communes of France, French commune, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Corse-du-Sud, and head o ...
in 2018, helping them achieve promotion to
Ligue 1 Ligue 1 (; ), officially known as Ligue 1 McDonald's France, McDonald's for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in France and the highest level of the French football league system. Administered by the Ligue de ...
in the 2021–22 season. In late 2022, he joined Sparta Prague, winning a league and cup double in his first full season. Laçi made his senior international debut for Albania in 2020 after playing for them at various youth levels. He represented his country at UEFA Euro 2024.


Club career


Early career

Laçi was born in Peshkopi,
Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...
, with origins from
Laç Laç (; sq-definite, Laçi) is a town and a former Municipalities of Albania, municipality in Lezhë County, northwestern Albania. At the 2015 local government reform it became a subdivision and the seat of the municipality Kurbin. It was the ad ...
which can be seen from his surname, but his family moved to
Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
when he was young. His family was placed in Galatsi where he started his youth career with the most successful club in Greek football Olympiacos. Laçi was part of the Olympiacos U-19 squad which participated in the new created championship 2013–14 UEFA Youth League, a European youth club
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
competition organised by
UEFA The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; ; ) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach soccer, beach football in Europe and the List of transcontinental countries#A ...
, which was contested by the under-19 youth teams of the 32 clubs qualified for the group stage of the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League. He played 5 matches in this competition including two as a starter and Olympiacos U-19 were eliminated in the group stage. In the following season 2014–15 UEFA Youth League he became a regular starter in the team where he played all matches as a starter and managed to score 4 goals. He scored in 3 consecutive group stage matches against
Malmö Malmö is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, sixth-largest city in Nordic countries, the Nordic region. Located on ...
(3–1) and two times in two matches against Juventus (1–1 & 3–0) and then another brace against Malmo in a 2–0 win. Olympiacos managed to qualify for the next round and played against Shakhtar Donetsk where they were eliminated after the
Penalty shoot-out The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pe ...
after regular time finished in a 1–1 draw, where Laçi himself scored the 4th penalty kick. Despite he was 19-years-old according to UEFA rules, a team could take a maximum of three players born between 1 January 1996 and 31 December 1996 and Laçi managed participate with Olympiacos U-19 in another season 2015–16 UEFA Youth League. In this competition he played 5 out 6 group stage matches and all in the starting line up substituting off in just one case. Olympiacos U-19 were equally good with Arsenal and Bayern Munich, with each collecting 10 points, but Olympiacos were ranked last of them (3rd place) due to head-to-head rules.


Olympiacos

For the first time Laçi was included in the Olympiacos first team squad who participated in the 2014–15 Greek Cup semi-final game against Apollon Smyrni on 8 April 2015 by coach Vítor Pereira. He didn't manage to play in this match. Also after 3 weeks Laçi was included in the team for the second-leg against Apollon Smyrni but once again he didn't manage to make his debut and Olympiacos got a 1–1 draw to qualify for the Final with aggregate 4–1. In the 2015–16 season Laçi took part with Olympiacos first team against Dinamo Zagreb on 20 October 2015, match valid for the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League group stage, where it was his first match to participate in a major competition such as the
UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
. He made his professional debut on 3 February 2016 under coach Marco Silva in the 2015–16 Greek Cup 1/4 finals against Asteras Tripoli coming on as a substitute in the 90th minute in place of Andreas Bouchalakis.


Loan to APOEL

On 16 June 2016, Laçi joined reigning Cypriot champions APOEL on a one-year loan deal from Olympiacos, having the chance to appear in the
UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
qualifiers with his new team. On 4 January 2017, however, after failing to appear in any official games, APOEL announced that Laçi's loan was terminated, and the player would return to Olympiacos.


Loan to Levadiakos

In January 2017 Laçi was loaned to Levadiakos He made his debut a week later on 14 January 2017 against Veria F.C. playing in the last 15 minutes.


Ajaccio

In July 2017, Laçi was loaned to
Ligue 2 Ligue 2 (, League 2), also known as Ligue 2 BKT due to sponsorship reasons, is a French professional football league. The league serves as the second division of French football and is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Prof ...
club
Ajaccio Ajaccio (, , ; French language, French: ; or ; , locally: ; ) is the capital and largest city of Corsica, France. It forms a communes of France, French commune, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Corse-du-Sud, and head o ...
until the end of the 2017–18 season. He scored his first goal on 18 August 2017 against Paris FC, after coming on as a substitute in the 66th minute for fellow goalscorer Johan Cavalli. Laçi managed to score after a counter-attack to secure the 2–0 victory for his side.


Sparta Prague

On 29 December 2022, Laçi signed a contract with Czech First League club Sparta Prague. He scored his first goal for the club as a direct free-kick in a 3–3 draw against FC Copenhagen, which Sparta would go on to lose on penalties.


International career


Albania U17

Laçi was called up for the first time in international level at Albania national under-17 football team by coach Džemal Mustedanagić to participate in the 2013 UEFA European Under-17 Championship qualifying round in October 2012. He made his debut against Hungary U17 on 20 October 2012 coming on as a substitute in the first half in place of Berat Beqiri. For the other two group matches he was an unused substitute.


Albania U19

He advanced higherly in international level as he was called up in the Albania U19 squad by coach Foto Strakosha for the friendly match against Italy U19 on 14 May 2014. Laçi was invited by new Albania U19s coach Altin Lala to participate in the 2015 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualifying round for the matches against
Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
and
Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
, in the match-dates 12–17 November 2014. Under the coach Altin Lala, he played every minute in the qualifying competition but Albania U19 lost all three group matches and were ranked in the 4th last place with total of goals collected 2–7, where all two goals were scored by Esad Morina of FC Schalke 04 youth.


Albania U21

Laçi continued higherly as he was called up also in the Albania national under-21 football team by coach Skënder Gega for the start of the 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification against Liechtenstein U21 on 28 March 2015. Anyway a few days later he declared that wasn't unable to participate in this match due to the injury. However, in September he was called up by a new appointed coach at the Albania U21, Redi Jupi, for the next 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification matches against
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
&
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
on 3 & 8 September 2015. In both matches he managed to play for the full 90-minutes. Albania U21 managed to take a 1–1 equaliser against Israel with a Penalty kick won by Milot Rashica and scored by Endri Çekiçi. He played another full 90-minutes match against Hungary U21 on 13 October 2015 to help his team to take a 2–2 draw. Laçi was called up for the next consecutive matches against Portugal U21 & Liechtenstein U21 on 12 & 16 November 2015. He played the full 90-minutes match against Portugal U21 where they were beaten 0–4. He scored his first goal for Albania U21 against Liechtenstein U21 on 16 November 2015 in the 83rd minute to sign the definitive result as a 2–0 victory. Laçi was called up by coach Alban Bushi for the
Friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, scrimmage, demonstration, training match, pre-season game, warmup match, or preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sport, sporting event whose prize money and impact on th ...
against France U21 on 5 June 2017 and the 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification opening match against Estonia U21 on 12 June 2017. During the gathering for these matches Laçi among Leonardo Maloku & Emanuele Ndoj suffered injures and missed out both matches and coach Alban Bushi called up Agim Zeka and Regi Lushkja as a replacement.


Albania

On 7 September 2020, Laçi debuted for the Albanian senior team in a 2020–21 UEFA Nations League C match against
Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...
. He scored his first senior international goal in a 5–0 victory against
San Marino San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, is a landlocked country in Southern Europe, completely surrounded by Italy. Located on the northeastern slopes of the Apennine Mountains, it is the larger of two European microstates, microsta ...
in a
2022 FIFA World Cup qualification The 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification was the FIFA World Cup qualification, qualifying process which decided the 31 teams that would join hosts Qatar national football team, Qatar, who received an automatic spot, at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Par ...
on 8 September 2021. In June 2024, he was called up to represent Albania at UEFA Euro 2024. He scored in a 2–2 draw against
Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...
in the group stage.


Career statistics


Club


International

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


Honours

Olympiacos *
Super League Greece The Super League Greece 1 (), or Stoiximan Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Greece and the highest level of the Greek football league system. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and repla ...
: 2015–16 * Greek Cup: 2014–15; runner-up: 2015–16 Sparta Prague * Czech First League: 2022–23, 2023–24 * Czech Cup: 2023–24


References


External links


APOEL official profile
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Laci, Qazim 1996 births Living people People from Peshkopi Sportspeople from Dibër County Albanian men's footballers 21st-century Albanian sportsmen Albanian emigrants to Greece Men's association football midfielders Albania men's international footballers Albania men's under-21 international footballers Albania men's youth international footballers UEFA Euro 2024 players Super League Greece players Cypriot First Division players Ligue 2 players Czech First League players Olympiacos F.C. players APOEL FC players Levadiakos F.C. players AC Ajaccio players AC Sparta Prague players Albanian expatriate men's footballers Albanian expatriate sportspeople in Greece Expatriate men's footballers in Greece Albanian expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus Expatriate men's footballers in Cyprus Albanian expatriate sportspeople in France Expatriate men's footballers in France Expatriate men's footballers in the Czech Republic Albanian expatriate sportspeople in the Czech Republic