Mehmet Hetemaj
 Hetemaj with SJK in 2018. | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 8 December 1987 | |||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Skenderaj, Yugoslavia | |||||||||||||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[1] | |||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Defensive midfielder[1] | |||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||
Current team | SJK | |||||||||||||
| Number | 58 | |||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||
| 1996–2006 | HJK | |||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||
| 2005–2007 | HJK | 17 | (1) | |||||||||||
| 2007 | → Viikingit (loan) | 10 | (0) | |||||||||||
| 2008–2010 | Panionios | 11 | (0) | |||||||||||
| 2009 | → Thrasyvoulos (loan) | 9 | (0) | |||||||||||
| 2009–2010 | → AlbinoLeffe (loan) | 23 | (1) | |||||||||||
| 2010–2014 | AlbinoLeffe | 76 | (0) | |||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | → Reggina (loan) | 29 | (0) | |||||||||||
| 2014 | → Honka (loan) | 16 | (1) | |||||||||||
| 2014 | Monza | 17 | (0) | |||||||||||
| 2015– | SJK | 135 | (17) | |||||||||||
| International career‡ | ||||||||||||||
| –2009 | Finland U21 | 18 | (2) | |||||||||||
| 2009– | Finland | 6 | (1) | |||||||||||
| 2014 | Kosovo | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||
Medal record
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*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 25 July 2016 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 7 June 2017 | ||||||||||||||
Mehmet Hetemaj (born 8 December 1987), is a naturalized Finnish professional football defensive midfielder of Kosovar Albanian descent who plays for Finnish Veikkausliiga side SJK. He has represented both Finland national team and Kosovo national football team, but now he is no longer eligible to play for the latter. He started his football career in HJK youth team.
Club career
HJK Helsinki
Hetemaj started his career in Finland in HJK Helsinki where he made 17 appearances between 2006 and 2007. During 2007 season he was loaned to Viikingit for 9 matches.
Panionios
In 2008, he agreed a move to Greek club Panionios F.C.. In June 2009 he was loaned out to Serie B outfit AlbinoLeffe, where he established himself as a regular.
AlbinoLeffe
In June 2010 AlbinoLeffe announced to have completed a bid to sign the player on a permanent basis from Panionios.[2][3] He signed a four-year contract. In July 2012 he was loaned out to Serie B outfit Reggina Calcio.[4] The loan contract with Reggina ended after the 2012–13 season and Hetemaj returned to AlbinoLeffe.[5] In January 2014 it was announced that Hetemaj had signed a loan contract with a Finnish Premier League team Honka.[6][7]
Monza
In July 2014 he joined Italian club Monza.[8]
SJK
![[icon]](/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (June 2017) |
International career
Finland Under-21
Hetemaj, along with his older brother Përparim Hetemaj, was called up to represent Finland U-21 at the 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship.[9]
Finland
Hetemaj made his senior debut for Finland against Japan in February 2009. After a convincing season in AlbinoLeffe he was called up again on 21 May 2010 for a match against Estonia.
Kosovo
Hetemaj made his senior debut for Kosovo in a 6–1 loss against Turkey in May 2014, a friendly match.[10] However, he lost his eligible to switch for Kosovo in competitive match after accepting the call-up from Finland in 2016, after Kosovo became a member of UEFA and FIFA.[11]
Personal life
Of Kosovar Albanian descent, Hetemaj was born in Skenderaj, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and moved to Finland in 1992. His family first arrived at Oulu but they moved to Helsinki, looking for a milder climate, due to his father, Miftar, having asthma. He has an older brother, the footballer Përparim, and two sisters, Fatlume and Fatbardhe.[12]
Career statistics
Club
| Club | Season | Division | League | Domestic Cups | Europe | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Klubi-04 | 2005 | Kakkonen | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 |
| 2006 | Ykkönen | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 2 | |
| Total | 29 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 2 | ||
| HJK Helsinki | 2006 | Veikkausliiga | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 2007 | Veikkausliiga | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | |
| Total | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 1 | ||
| Viikingit | 2007 | Veikkausliiga | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| Total | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | ||
| Panionios | 2007–08 | Superleague | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Total | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
| Thrasyvoulos | 2008–09 | Superleague | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| Total | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | ||
| AlbinoLeffe | 2009–10 | Serie B | 23 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 1 |
| 2010–11 | Serie B | 36 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 0 | |
| 2011–12 | Serie B | 35 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 0 | |
| Total | 94 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 99 | 1 | ||
| Reggina | 2012–13 | Serie B | 29 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 0 |
| Total | 29 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 0 | ||
| AlbinoLeffe | 2013–14 | Lega Pro | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Total | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
| Honka | 2014 | Veikkausliiga | 16 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 21 | 2 |
| Total | 16 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 21 | 2 | ||
| Monza | 2014–15 | Lega Pro | 17 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 |
| Total | 17 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 | ||
| SJK | 2015 | Veikkausliiga | 31 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 37 | 2 |
| 2016 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 0 | ||
| Total | 37 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 49 | 2 | ||
| Career total | 267 | 7 | 20 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 293 | 7 | ||
International
- As of 7 June 2017[16]
| Finland national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2009 | 1 | 0 |
| 2010 | 1 | 0 |
| 2011 | 0 | 0 |
| 2012 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 |
| 2015 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | 2 | 0 |
| 2017 | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 6 | 1 |
International goals
- Scores and results list Finland's goal tally first.[14]
| No | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 7 June 2017 | Veritas Stadion, Turku, Finland |  Liechtenstein |
1–0 | 1–1 | Friendly |
Honours
Club
HJK Helsinki
References
- ^ a b Mehmet Hetemaj at National-Football-Teams.com
- ^ "UFFICIALE: AlbinoLeffe, acquistato Mehmet Hetemaj dal Panionios" (in Italian). TuttoMercatoWeb. 28 June 2010. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
- ^ "Mehmet Hetemaj acquistato a titolo definitivo dal Panionios FC" (Press release) (in Italian). U.C. AlbinoLeffe. 28 June 2010. Retrieved 2 July 2010.
- ^ "Mehmet Hetemaj vaihtaa seuraa". mtv3.fi (in Finnish). 7 July 2012. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
- ^ "Mehmet Hetemaj'n siirto jumissa". iltasanomat.fi (in Finnish). 9 August 2013. Archived from the original on 1 February 2016. Retrieved 28 August 2013.
- ^ "Hongan tuore vahvistus: "Maajoukkuetta on ollut ikävä"" (in Finnish). Iltalehti. 8 January 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2014.
- ^ "Mehmet Hetemaj passa a titolo temporaneo al Honka" (Press release) (in Italian). U.C. AlbinoLeffe. 8 January 2014. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ "Shefki Kuqi: "Mehu lähtee"" (in Finnish). Iltalehti. 9 July 2014. Retrieved 22 December 2014.
- ^ "Finland squad". Uefa.com. 17 September 2010. Retrieved 22 September 2010.
- ^ http://www.tff.org/default.aspx?pageID=471&ftxtID=20671
- ^ "Change of association to the Football Federation of Kosovo". FIFA. 7 September 2016. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
- ^ "Perhepoika ja suuri suu" (in Finnish). Ylioppilaslehti. 11 May 2007. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
- ^ http://www.national-football-teams.com/player/29772/Jukka_Raitala.html
- ^ a b https://int.soccerway.com/players/mehmet-hetemaj/8488/
- ^ "Albanian footballer Mehmet Hetemaj became a hero for saving a 10-year old boy from drowning in Finland". Oculus News.
- ^ http://www.national-football-teams.com/player/30459/Mehmet_Hetemaj.html
External links
- Mehmet Hetemaj at U.C. AlbinoLeffe (in Italian)
- Mehmet Hetemaj at National-Football-Teams.com
- Mehmet Hetemaj at Soccerbase
- Mehmet Hetemaj at Soccerway
- Profie at Welt Fussball (in German)
- 1987 births
- Living people
- People from Skenderaj
- Kosovan emigrants to Finland
- Finnish people of Albanian descent
- Naturalized citizens of Finland
- Finnish people of Kosovan descent
- Association football midfielders
- Finnish footballers
- Finland international footballers
- Finland under-21 international footballers
- Kosovan footballers
- Kosovo international footballers
- Dual internationalists (football)
- Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi players
- FC Viikingit players
- Panionios F.C. players
- Thrasyvoulos F.C. players
- U.C. AlbinoLeffe players
- Reggina 1914 players
- FC Honka players
- A.C. Monza players
- Seinäjoen Jalkapallokerho players
- Veikkausliiga players
- Serie B players
- Serie C players
- Super League Greece players
- Finnish expatriate footballers
- Kosovan expatriate footballers
- Expatriate footballers in Greece
- Finnish expatriate sportspeople in Greece
- Kosovan expatriate sportspeople in Greece
- Finnish expatriate sportspeople in Italy
- Kosovan expatriate sportspeople in Italy