Besart Berisha

At 39 years old, Besart Berisha has this physical status:

Besart Berisha (born 29 July 1985) is a Kosovar-Australian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Australian club Western United.

With 117 goals (48 for Brisbane, 68 for Melbourne, and one for Western United), he is Australia's top goalscorer.

Personal life

Besart Berisha was born in Pristina and raised in Germany, and he is the brother-in-law of Kosovo footballers Enis Fetahu and Kosovo's international Samir Ujkani. In 2019, Berisha became an Australian citizen.

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Club career

Berisha began his youth at Berliner VB 49 academies at the age of 9. After moving to Berlin, Germany's golden boot was won by the 17-year-old Berisha, TSV Lichtenberg, SV Lichtenberg, SV Lichtenberg, SV Lichtenberg, 47, until 2003, where he continued to NOFV-Oberliga club Tennis Borussia Berlin, outclassing future Germany strikers, Mario Gomez and Lukas Podolski. He was unemployed for just a year before being recruited by Bundesliga club Hamburger SV.

Berisha wasn't in Hamburg's starting lineup for any of the games, nor for the second half, he was loaned to Danish Superliga team Aalborg Boldspilklub, where he spent a brief period of time without playing only three games and scoring no goals.

He was loaned to fellow Superliga side AC Horsens in 2005, where he scored 11 goals in 32 appearances, becoming the team's top scorer for the season.

He remained at Hamburg during the 2006–07 football season, and he was given his chance in the first team against Arminia Bielefeld on August 12, 2006, as a replacement in the 78th minute. Berisha scored his first goal in the UEFA Champions League group stages by winning his first goal for Hamburg against CSKA Moscow on December 6, 2006. Berisha scored his first Bundesliga goal against Alemannia Aachen on December 16th in the 32nd minute as the match came to a close draw 3–3. He made a total of 14 appearances for Hamburg in the 2006-07 season, including one in the German cup and two in the UEFA Champions League, with two others in the UEFA Champions League and two others as a substitute, with eleven of them as a substitute. Berisha was not part of the team's development plan after Thomas Doll's dismissal and the arrival of Huub Stevens as Hamburg's new boss, and remained on the bench for the remainder of the season.

Burnley bought Berisha from Hamburg on July 3, 2007, a huge change from Albania's heroic display against England B on Burnley's home ground Turf Moor. Following his success, many European clubs were keen to sign the player, but Berisha was eventually signed to Burnley on a three-year contract, subject to the player's being granted a work permit. The license was eventually established on July 3, 2007, and the contract was concluded.

Berisha was ruled out of the 2007-08 season after suffering an injury while playing for his country in an International friendly against Malta. It was initially thought to be a minor injury to the knee, but it was later discovered that the injury was more serious and would likely to keep the player out for 5 to 6 weeks. The player had snapped his Cruciate ligament in his knee and did not return to football for a year, according to a surgeon. Doctors had failed to diagnose the fractured ligament in the first place due to a buildup of fluid in the knee that blurred the scans' image.

Berisha returned to football in the United States against the Carolina Railhawks in the 71th minute for Joey Gujónsson, ten months after suffering a serious knee injury. Berisha had just arrived in America 24 hours earlier from Albania, which was the reason for him not having an effect on the 20 minutes he spent on the field. Burnley's match was ended with a 2–1 loss to the American team, ending the match.

In his debut against rivals Molde FK at Lerkendal Stadion, he was loaned out to Rosenborg in the fall of 2008. Rosenborg won by 3–1 over the match. Berisha won by 4–0 over HamKam on September 21, 2008.

Berisha appeared in the 2008–09 UEFA Cup qualifying rounds against Djurgrden. In the second leg, Rosenborg won 6–2 on aggregate, with him beginning in the first leg, a 2–1 loss played on August 14, 2008. He was swapping off in the 76th minute. Berisha appeared only in the second leg of Rosenborg's 3–2 victory on October 2nd. Rosenborg triumphed on aggregate 5-3 and also advanced to the Group stage, where they met Saint-Étienne, Valencia, Copenhagen, and Club Brugge. Berisha started only against Club Brugge on October 23, 2008, and he came as a replacement in the 90th minute. The game was played in a goalless draw.

Berisha joined AC Horsens on loan on January 8, 2009, but the gang relocated to Burnley, F.C., on January 8. Despite scoring some vital AC Horsens goals on May 26, 2009. Following an incident in training involving Berisha and Kenneth Emil Petersen, the Danish club ended the loan agreement.

Berisha's deal with Burnley lasted until 2010, but the club announced on July 29 that he will join Arminia Bielefeld in German Bundesliga 2 competition. According to reports, the transfer fee was estimated to be £75,000.

Berisha joined Bielefeld on August 5, 2009. Berisha made only 11 appearances in the 2009–10 season, with only two as a starter, not one as a starter, against Hansa Rostock on August 10th. Berisha came on as a replacement in the 80th minute, bringing the match a 3–1 win.

In a 3–1 loss to Bochum on September 22, he began the 2010–11 season as a replacement, scoring his first goal of the season on September 29 in a 1–2 loss to Union Berlin. He made 19 appearances, 12 as a starter, and finished the season on a total of 19 appearances. Berisha was an unused substitute in 15 games.

Berisha had agreed to a one-year contract with the 2010-11 A-League champions, Ange Postecoglou on August 16, 2011. In round two of Brisbane against Sydney FC, Berisha scored his first goal for the Brisbane club. Berisha scored four goals in a 7–1 victory over Adelaide United in round four, Brisbane's biggest ever victory and making him the first player to score more than three goals in a single game for the club.

Berisha was involved in an on-field brawl with Sydney FC defender Pascal Bosschaart on January 14, 2012. Berisha was found to have breached the FFA Code of Conduct and was barred from playing for one match despite being cleared by the referee's post-match report and the Match Review Panel. Berisha had signed a two-year contract extension on February 14, 2012, extending him to the 2013-14 season. Berisha's "volve" personality resulted in occasional clashes with colleagues, both on and off-field, as well as with opposition players. Nevertheless, he was largely praised for his vivacious participation in the sport.

Berisha scored a brace in the final seconds against Perth Glory in the 2012 A-League Grand Finals, helping the Roar win 2–1 and become the first team to win back-to-back A-League championships. When Berisha scored against F.C., he became the first Albanian to score in two different Champions Leagues. The Asian Champions League is a tournament in Tokyo, Japan. Berisha captured the Golden Boot, the Players' Player of the Year, and Members' Player of the Year awards for the 2011–12 A-League season. Berisha scored 23 goals from 35 games, a record for a player in a season of Brisbane. In the regular season of the A-League, he scored 19 goals, a new all-time record.

Berisha's 2012-2013 season was less notable than the club's debut season. However, he managed to finish what was otherwise a disappointing season for Brisbane, with 14 goals from 28 appearances in all competitions. Berisha scored a number of key goals for Brisbane as they struggled to find their form that had won them two consecutive championships; he scored the sole goal in Round 9 as ten man Brisbane defeated Newcastle Jets at home. However, none of the first four goals of Brisbane's victory over Sydney FC, which confirmed Brisbane's status in the post-season finals series, were arguably less significant.

Berisha's 2013-14 season got off to a rocky start in Round 2, when he strained his hamstring, which kept him on the sidelines for four weeks. On his return to action, he scored four goals in his next five appearances, including a second half champion against Perth Glory and a brace against a brace, but a hip injury delayed him for another two weeks. Despite Berisha's return from injury, he could not prevent the loss to Adelaide at home. He received his first red card in the A-League in the following match against Perth Glory. He was unfortunate to be banned in the first 30 seconds of the game while fighting a header with Michael Thwaite; he was then given his marching orders in the 32nd minute after being issued a second yellow card for a reckless tackle on the same player. Berisha won on his return from suspension, netting a 90th-minute winner against the Central Coast Mariners in 90 seconds. Berisha scored and gave his team the victory 1–0 over Melbourne Victory on Saturday, the A-League's semi-finals. With this win, Brisbane Roar advanced to the final match against Western Sydney Wanderers on May 4, 2014, losing the match 2–1 after extra time, with Berisha scoring the match equalizer after the Wanderers scored the opening goal. Brisbane scored the winning goal in the 108th minute by Henrique Silva and declared the champions of the 2013-2014 season, with the score 1-1 after 90 minutes. Berisha finished the 2013–14 season with a total of 20 appearances and scoring 13 goals, ranked second top-scoring of the A-League.

Melbourne Victory negotiated to sign Berisha as the club's International Marquee player after his deal with Brisbane came to an end in 2014. The deal is good for two seasons, more than double his salary in Brisbane, beginning in 2014-2015.

Berisha scored in his first match against Bayswater City SC on August 20, 2014, earning recognition for his efforts, assisting Archie Thompson's 77th-minute goal, as well as a hat-trick in the next round of the same competition in a 0–6 victory over Canberra on September 16.

In their first round match against the Western Sydney Wanderers, Berisha made his A-League debut for the Victory. Berisha's first A-League goal and his second goal of the season-led A-League season were scored in the 19th minute of the match, giving the Victory a 2-1 victory.

Berisha made his first appearance and debut for his new club in round 3 of the newly re-established Melbourne Derby against Melbourne City FC on October 25. Berisha scored Victory's second, third, and fourth goals in an eventual 5–2 victory at Docklands Stadium, with veteran teammate Archie Thompson scoring his first and last goals. Berisha had played a total of five games for the club, scoring seven goals and giving one assist at this time in his Melbourne Victory career. His goal scoring total rose to 13 goals in the regular season, assisting Melbourne Victory in winning Premiership. Berisha scored the opener against F.C.'s arch rivals in the final. Victory over Sydney defeated 3–0.

Berisha's contract with Victory extended for two more seasons on December 2, 2015, with his new deal set to end at the end of the 2017-18 A-League season.

After spending the required five years in the country to be naturalised, Berisha was declared in November 2016 as seeking Australian citizenship. In October 2017, he will be eligible for citizenship. Victory will be able to sign an additional visa player as a result of this. Berisha scored the winning goal in the 22nd Melbourne Derby on December 17, 2016. He tied Archie Thompson's score in the A-League for the first time in the league, the most ever scored by an individual in the league.

After scoring a penalty in an eventual 4–2 victory over Newcastle on January 2, Berisha became the A-League's all-time leading goalscorer.

After scoring a goal against the Central Coast Mariners on April 14, Berisha became the first A-league player to score 100 goals in the tournament since scoring a goal. This goal also increased his regular season tally to 19, putting him in a tie for the 2016-17 Golden Boot with Jamie Maclaren.

Berisha is Melbourne Victory's second-highest goalscorer behind Archie Thompson with 68 A-League goals.

Berisha left the club in June 2018 to join Sanfrecce Hiroshima in J1 League. On July 2, 2018. Berisha is officially launched after committing to a year and a half. He made his home loss to Urawa Red Diamonds in 1–4 victory on July 28, 2018, after arriving at 68th minute as a replacement in place of Teerasil Dangda.

Berisha returned to the A-League on September 27, 2019, as a rival of his old club Melbourne Victory. Berisha left the club at the end of his deal in July 2021, after two years at the club.

Berisha made his Football Superleague debut on September 15, 2021 for Kosovo team Prishtina's Football Superleague. Berisha's transfer was permanent, and the team received squad number 33. After appearing as a replacement at the 77th minute in replacement of Gauthier Mankenda, he made his debut in a 0–0 away draw against Drita on October 3rd.

Berisha revealed on Instagram that he had resigned from football on January 27, 2022.

International career

Berisha joined Albanian national team in September 2006, alongside Mrgim Mavraj, Genc Mehmeti, and Alban Dragusha, this following Hans-Peter Briegel's advice before he resigned from his position as the Albanian national team's boss. Despite the fact that these four players were tested and selected by Hans-Peter Briegel, only three of them were in the planning of Albania's next emerging coach, Otto Bari, where the Croatian coach met Berisha in Germany and coach Thomas Doll, but he had only requested his help, Mrgim Mavraj's and Genc Mehmeti's, but no one else was given a concrete number.

Berisha received his first call up and played his first game for Albania under coach Otto Bari on October 11, 2006, against the Netherlands, who ruled in Group G UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Group G and where Berisha came on as a replacement in the 79th minute for Erjon Bogdani's 79th minute. He was called up and played in all four matches, including two in the starting lineup. He came as a substitute in a goalless draw against Slovenia on March 24, 2007, replacing Devi Muka in the 86th minute and playing for the first time as an attacking midfielder behind Alban Bushi and Erjon Bogdani. Berisha played as a starter along Erjon Bogdani in the second half of the duo-strikers team's partnership, until Alban Bushi replaced him in the second half in a goalless draw in a row. Berisha returned to play in the first match against Luxembourg on 2 and 6 June 2007, but Devi Muka was forced off at halftime, but the match ended in 2–0 with both goals scored by Edmond Kapllani in the first half when Berisha played. Berisha came as a substitute in the 67th minute for Alban Bushi, but Albania won by 5–0, with Edmond Kapllani scoring for Albania.

He scored his first goal for Albania on May 25, 2007, during a friendly match with England B at Turf Moor, England, where he displayed exceptional form and was the Albanian man of the match. This goal was not achieved because the match was not between two completely senior teams. Berisha scored the first fully senior international goal in a friendly match against Malta, which Albania defeated 31-0. Berisha was in the starting lineup and scored in the 46th minute of the second half. Berisha assisted Ervin Skela's equalizing goal in the friendly match against Azerbaijan, which ended in exactly as a 1-1 draw.

He was called up to the national team for all ten group matches during the World Cup 2010 qualifiers, and he was playing in eight of them.

Because Erjon Bogdani, a regular starter in the tournament, did not participate for any time in the Italian Serie A, Arie Haan left out both games against Hungary and Denmark on March 28 March 29, 2009 and May 1, 2009. Berisha had a chance to play as a starter in the 0–1 loss to Hungary on March 28, 2009, he completed the entire 90-minute match, establishing a striker team with Hamdi Salihi. He played once more in the starting line up against Denmark on April 1, 2009, before being called off by Migen Memelli in the 85th minute. After the conclusion of the tournament, he refused to be called up for the national team's games for the national team for the permanent, owing to the fact that he is a long way away from Albania.

Berisha had made 17 appearances and scored one goal for Albania as of October 14th, his last game with the national team.

He announced on December 9, 2013, that after the start of the winter transfer season, he would sign for a football-club in Europe to be closer to Albania and to play again for the national team. He was asked by Albania's national team coach Gianni De Biasi to play again for Albania only for the official matches qualifying for UEFA Euro 2016 qualifiers on April 5th, and Berisha requested only ten days for final results. His late reply was unaffordably that he did not accept the new invitation, despite the fact that he was playing in Australia, he did not travel to Albania due to the long distance.

Berisha declared in January 2016 that he was interested in representing Albania in UEFA Euro 2016.

Berisha had accepted an invitation to represent Kosovo after being officially acknowledged by UEFA and FIFA in May 2016. Berisha's request to play for Kosovo was accepted by FIFA on November 4th, 2016. He received a call from Kosovo for a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Iceland on March 20, 2017, making his first appearance after being placed in the starting lineup.

Berisha retired from international service after the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Turkey that gave him no reason. Berisha said he'd be back for pick once Bunjaki resigns as the Kosovo national team's coach.

Career statistics

1 – includes A-League final series results 2; FIFA Club World Cup results are included in group stages starting during domestic season; i.e. (Within ACL and A-League seasons, etc.)

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