Besart Berisha

Besart Berisha

Personal information
Full name	Besart Berisha
Date of birth	29 July 1985 (1985-07-29)
Place of birth	Pristina, SFR Yugoslavia
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Playing position	Striker, Winger
Club information
Current club	Brisbane Roar
Number	7
Youth career
	Berliner VB 49
	Berliner FC Dynamo
	SV Lichtenberg
	Tennis Borussia Berlin
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2003–2004	Tennis Borussia Berlin	4	(1)
2004–2007	Hamburger SV	11	(2)
2005	→ AaB (loan)	3	(0)
2005–2006	→ Horsens (loan)	32	(11)
2007–2009	Burnley	0	(0)
2008	→ Rosenborg (loan)	8	(4)
2009	→ Horsens (loan)	13	(5)
2010–2011	Arminia Bielefeld	22	(4)
2011–	Brisbane Roar	22	(17)
National team‡
2007–	Albania	17	(2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 6 January 2012. † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 10 September 2010

Besart Berisha (born 29 July 1985) is an Albanian footballer who plays as a striker for Brisbane Roar in the Australian A-League and internationally for the Albania national football team.

Club career

Youth and Hamburger SV

Berisha began his youth career at German NOFV-Oberliga club Tennis Borussia Berlin in 2003 where he stayed for just a year before being spotted by Fußball-Bundesliga club Hamburger SV. After signing for Hamburg he was immediately loaned to Danish Superliga team Aalborg Boldspilklub where he spent a rather unsuccessful spell, playing only three games and scoring no goals. The following season he was loaned out to fellow Superliga side AC Horsens, where he scored 11 goals in 31 appearances becoming the team's top scorer that season.

For the 2006–07 football season, he remained at Hamburg and was given his chances in the first team. On 6 December 2006, Berisha became the first Albanian ever to score a goal in the group stages of the UEFA Champions League by scoring his first goal for Hamburg in the match against CSKA Moscow at home in Hamburg. He went on to make 12 appearances for Hamburg in the 2006–07 season, nine of which were as a substitute.

Burnley

On 3 July 2007, Burnley purchased Berisha from Hamburg SV for £340,000, this followed his impressive performance for Albania against England B on Burnley's home ground Turf Moor. After his performance many European clubs were interested in signing the player but Berisha was eventually signed to Burnley on a three year deal, subject to the player being granted a work permit. The permit was eventually granted on 3 July 2007 and the deal was completed.

Berisha was ruled out for the 2007–08 season when he picked up an injury whilst playing for his country in an International friendly against Malta. It was originally believed to be a minor knock to the knee but it was later discovered that the injury was more serious and was likely to keep the player out for 5–6 weeks. After seeing a surgeon it was further revealed that the player had in fact snapped his cruciate ligament in his knee and would not return to football for a year. The reason that doctors had originally failed to discover the damaged ligament was due to a build up of fluid in the knee which distorted the scans image.

Ten months after suffering his serious knee injury, Berisha made his return to football in a pre-season friendly match in the USA against Carolina Railhawks, He came on in the 71st minute for Joey Guðjónsson. Berisha had just flown to America 24 hours earlier from Albania which proved to be the reason for him not making an impact in the 20 minutes that he spent on the field. The match ended in defeat for Burnley with a 2–1 loss to the American side. Despite failing to make a single competitive start for Burnley, on 31 July 2009 it was announced that Burnley had agreed the sale of Berisha to German Bundesliga 2 team Arminia Bielefeld for a fee believed to be £75,000.

Rosenborg

He was loaned out to Rosenborg in the autumn of 2008, scoring twice on his debut against rivals Molde FK.

Horsens

Berisha joined AC Horsens on loan on 8 January 2009 and was released to return to Burnley F.C. on 26 May 2009. AC Horsens dissolved the loan contract after an incident in training involving Berisha and Kenneth Emil Petersen. Despite scoring some important goals for AC Horsens Berisha returned prematurely to Burnley, where he had a contract running until 2010.

Arminia Bielefeld

On 5 August 2009, Berisha completed a move back to Germany, joining Second Bundesliga side Arminia Bielefeld.

Brisbane Roar

On 16 August 2011, Brisbane Roar manager Ange Postecoglou announced that Berisha has agreed a one year deal with the 2010–11 A-League Champions. Berisha scored his first goal for Brisbane in round two against Sydney FC. Berisha scored four goals in a 7–1 thrashing against 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.

On 14 January 2012, Berisha was involved in an onfield melee with Sydney FC defender Pascal Bosschaart. Despite being cleared by the referee's post-match report and the Match Review Panel (MRP), Berisha was found to have breached the Football Federation Australia Code of Conduct and was banned for one match. On 14 February 2012, it was announced that striker Berisha had signed a two-year contract extension, taking him through to the end of the 2013/14 season. Berisha is currently the top scorer in the 2011-12 A-league season, with 17 goals.

International football

Berisha received Albanian citizenship in September 2006. He played his first game for the Albania national football team on 11 October 2006, against the Netherlands. He scored his first international goal for Albania on 25 May 2007, during a friendly match with England B played at Turf Moor, in Burnley, England, where he showed impressive form and was the Albanian man of the match. As of 14 November 2009 Berisha has made 17 appearances and scored one goal for Albania.

Honours

• First Albanian to score in the Champions League Group Stage.
• A-League Team of The Week (3): 2011-12 (Rounds 3, 8 & 13)

Career statistics

Club

As of 25 Feburary 2012

Club	Season	Division	League1		Cup		Continental2		Total
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Tennis Borussia Berlin	2003–04	NOFV-Oberliga Nord	4	1	-	-	-	-	4	1
AaB (loan)	2005	Danish Superliga	3	0	-	-	-	-	3	0
Horsens (loan)	2005-06	Danish Superliga	32	11	-	-	-	-	32	11
Hamburger SV	2006-07	Bundesliga	12	1	1	0	2	1	15	2
Rosenborg (loan)	2008	Tippeligaen	8	3	-	-	-	-	8	3
Horsens (loan)	2009	Danish Superliga	10	4	-	-	-	-	10	4
	Total (Horsens)		42	15	-	-	-	-	42	15
Arminia Bielefeld	2010–11	2.Bundesliga	10	0	1	0	-	-	11	0
Brisbane Roar	2011–12	A-League	22	17	-	-	-	-	22	17
Career Total			101	37	2	0	2	1	105	38

¹ – includes A-League final series statistics
² – includes FIFA Club World Cup statistics; AFC Champions League statistics are included in season commencing after group stages (i.e. ACL and A-League seasons etc.)

External links

• Brisbane Roar profile
• Official website (English) (German)
• Besart Berisha career stats at Soccerbase
• Besart Berisha at UEFA.com
• Besart Berisha at fussballdaten.de (German)