England vs Albania - World Cup USA 2026 Qualifiers - 21/03/2025

[CanaYouDoIt]

I think the current core of players has reached their peak as evidenced by the drop to UNL C..

No shame in that. They had a great run but it might be time to move on..

Bajrami and Ramadani have nothing left to prove and are not the same players from a couple years ago.

Hard to improve with physically inferior players like Asani and others. Time to phase them out..

Incorporating new players who have something to prove like Medon Berisha, Muci, and others seems like a no brainer.

I agree to a certain extent.

In the next 2-3 year cycle RB and GK will become a problem, and I don’t see any Mitaj’s at RB suddenly emerging right now.

Our midfield for me should be the priority, I wanna see Pajaziti , Berisha get involved more, they just are another level technically higher than guys like Ramadani. Because the way we play it’ll be impossible to beat any good teams with Laci and Ramadani just giving the ball away. Our defence is solid, just need 2 guys next to Asllani who can also pass the ball and it’ll make us very hard to beat.

When it comes to the attack more of the same, if Broja stays relatively healthy that’s the ST position sorted, we just need to experiment with more guys on the wing, like Dallku says enough of these guaranteed starters like Bajrami , let the others compete.

We’re not far away from being a really good team, just need a couple more pieces and to be brave. Obviously the dream is to have guys like Gruda join up and it’ll make things easier but until then we just have to experiment a bit.

[artan]

There's not much promising players coming up through the youth teams and it gets harder to find diaspora players. It's why when players like Rocco Vata might be interested you have to poach them up, we are not in a position to be rejecting quality players. Thankfully we still have enough professionals to last another cycle or two before the talent starts to really catch up. Asllani, Kumbulla, Ismajli, Berisha, Mehmeti, Muci are okay enough in the next few years to maybe fight a Euro Qualifying playoff spot.

[Klejdi1023]

There's not much promising players coming up through the youth teams and it gets harder to find diaspora players. It's why when players like Rocco Vata might be interested you have to poach them up, we are not in a position to be rejecting quality players. Thankfully we still have enough professionals to last another cycle or two before the talent starts to really catch up. Asllani, Kumbulla, Ismajli, Berisha, Mehmeti, Muci are okay enough in the next few years to maybe fight a Euro Qualifying playoff spot.

The most frustrating thing about supporting Albania is that we never see our best players playing together at the same time on the field. Look at Greece destroying Scotland in their home filled with talented youngsters. I bet we would never have the mentality to do that. I think the foreign coaches are also holding us back as it’s the same theme of benching our best players. I would like to see an Albanian coach by now at least for one cycle, play our best players and see how it plays out.

[artan]

There's not much promising players coming up through the youth teams and it gets harder to find diaspora players. It's why when players like Rocco Vata might be interested you have to poach them up, we are not in a position to be rejecting quality players. Thankfully we still have enough professionals to last another cycle or two before the talent starts to really catch up. Asllani, Kumbulla, Ismajli, Berisha, Mehmeti, Muci are okay enough in the next few years to maybe fight a Euro Qualifying playoff spot.

The most frustrating thing about supporting Albania is that we never see our best players playing together at the same time on the field. Look at Greece destroying Scotland in their home filled with talented youngsters. I bet we would never have the mentality to do that. I think the foreign coaches are also holding us back as it’s the same theme of benching our best players. I would like to see an Albanian coach by now at least for one cycle, play our best players and see how it plays out.

It seems like Albania is the only country that goes out of it's way too player inferior talents. Sometimes there are strong arguments for quality players to be benched for tactical fits and what not but you can never use that excuse when they're benched for amateurs playing in random third world countries. Countries around Albania's level always play their best players and will always cap any quality player that is available. Macedonia would never not offer Rocco Vata a u21 call up over a senior NT call up. Bulgaria would have never benched Broja for Balaj in 2021 after Broja carried the team on his back. The examples go on.

I know Friday's match tactically speaking the manager was limited since we had no fullbacks but it's always been a major issue for Albania. Albania doesn't have a functioning domestic system to develop players for them to be so smug in selections. They are at the mercy of others but sometimes they act like the aren't

[CanaYouDoIt]

Duka and FSHF just are a perfect example of albanian corruption and incompetence. All the pieces are there to develop something very good but greed gets in the way of that, just like the rest of our country.

We’ve qualified for 2 major tournaments since 2016, instead of using that momentum to really invest and develop the domestic game we’ve pissed it all away. Meanwhile countries like Greece and Georgia who didn’t have the same success that we did are now seeing national teams full of domestic talent.

Just Albanians being idiots, we will never change. Duka been president since what 2005 ? and in that 20 year period who’s the best thing we’ve produced, Muci ? Uzuni ? It’s a disgrace and he parades around like he’s the dogs bollocks, don’t see any other head of FAs doing that, crony bastard I’d love to see him face to face.

I saw something recently and it shocked me, it was a UCL U19 comp and the albanian team had about 6 Nigerians playing for them, that alone tells you everything you need to know and should be enough for Duka to resign in disgrace instead he’ll be shown off as a hero. f*** him and anyone who supports him.

oh and btw it’s the only sport Albania is ok at, all our neighbours do great in a whole bunch of other sports , meanwhile this is all we have and barely compete.

[Aurora Bulkualis]

Duka and FSHF just are a perfect example of albanian corruption and incompetence. All the pieces are there to develop something very good but greed gets in the way of that, just like the rest of our country.

We’ve qualified for 2 major tournaments since 2016, instead of using that momentum to really invest and develop the domestic game we’ve pissed it all away. Meanwhile countries like Greece and Georgia who didn’t have the same success that we did are now seeing national teams full of domestic talent.

Just Albanians being idiots, we will never change. Duka been president since what 2005 ? and in that 20 year period who’s the best thing we’ve produced, Muci ? Uzuni ? It’s a disgrace and he parades around like he’s the dogs bollocks, don’t see any other head of FAs doing that, crony bastard I’d love to see him face to face.

I saw something recently and it shocked me, it was a UCL U19 comp and the albanian team had about 6 Nigerians playing for them, that alone tells you everything you need to know and should be enough for Duka to resign in disgrace instead he’ll be shown off as a hero. f*** him and anyone who supports him.

oh and btw it’s the only sport Albania is ok at, all our neighbours do great in a whole bunch of other sports , meanwhile this is all we have and barely compete.

2002 lol. It's been 23 years. The only way Duka will be removed is if someone denounces him in SPAK. Albanian politics is all about never leaving your seat. They want to die in their seats.

They get power, use that power for corruption to make money, then use that money to buy off everyone else to keep power. That's the model. The only one to do something about is SPAK by putting them in prison.

[Dallku]

Redi Jupi who worked with the youth teams said that there is bigger number of Albanian youth playing football in Italy than in actual Albania, and that number will get even bigger because Albania's population is declining fast and everyone wants to leave. So don't expect any production from there...

Albanians are a society of immigrants and the NT reflects that too. What I'm more surprised about is that the diaspora which is so big doesn't really produce a lot of high level players. It produces serviceable players but nothing special. At least in recent years..

[CanaYouDoIt]

Redi Jupi who worked with the youth teams said that there is bigger number of Albanian youth playing football in Italy than in actual Albania, and that number will get even bigger because Albania's population is declining fast and everyone wants to leave. So don't expect any production from there...

Albanians are a society of immigrants and the NT reflects that too. What I'm more surprised about is that the diaspora which is so big doesn't really produce a lot of high level players. It produces serviceable players but nothing special. At least in recent years..

I can talk all day about this, it’s 2025 and Albanians are still glorifying living in the west, it’s sad . I talked to this albanian who moved here with her husband very recently by overstaying their visa , some life you’ll have here getting overworked just to make it by. Instead of staying in albania and doing the exact same thing their except the lifestyle is much better. It’s a national sickness, obsession to leave thinking it’s better when it’s not.

previous generations had every excuse to leave , nowadays ? I don’t feel sorry at all, these young adults and kids today are causing their own problems, we will probably be in the EU in a few years , stay, make the country worthwhile instead of fleeing like cowards. Same problems all through our society , it’s a sickness.

And before anyone says anything I’m not some fake patriotic diaspora , I went backed and lived there working for a whole year, Albanians don’t know how good they have it honestly.

[Redijupison]

Redi Jupi who worked with the youth teams said that there is bigger number of Albanian youth playing football in Italy than in actual Albania, and that number will get even bigger because Albania's population is declining fast and everyone wants to leave. So don't expect any production from there...

Albanians are a society of immigrants and the NT reflects that too. What I'm more surprised about is that the diaspora which is so big doesn't really produce a lot of high level players. It produces serviceable players but nothing special. At least in recent years..

Albania's biggest diaspora is in Italy. Italy's football has regressed massively and I think that's why Albania isn't getting good talent.

[Princ]

I can talk all day about this, it’s 2025 and Albanians are still glorifying living in the west, it’s sad . I talked to this albanian who moved here with her husband very recently by overstaying their visa , some life you’ll have here getting overworked just to make it by. Instead of staying in albania and doing the exact same thing their except the lifestyle is much better. It’s a national sickness, obsession to leave thinking it’s better when it’s not.

previous generations had every excuse to leave , nowadays ? I don’t feel sorry at all, these young adults and kids today are causing their own problems, we will probably be in the EU in a few years , stay, make the country worthwhile instead of fleeing like cowards. Same problems all through our society , it’s a sickness.

And before anyone says anything I’m not some fake patriotic diaspora , I went backed and lived there working for a whole year, Albanians don’t know how good they have it honestly.

The wage in Albania is €350 a month which equates to less than €15 a day since many are working 6-7 days a week..

Price of gas is €2 a liter. Therefore, you are working all day for about 7 litres of gas. Where I am currently, the wage is $250 a day and the price of gas is lower at $1.50 a litre. Do the math..

A regular working man can hardly take his partner out for a date after work because his whole daily wage would go just to the few litres of gas he will waste, let alone the food they will eat, or the present he will buy for his partner. Prices there were thru the roof, comparable to western countries where wages are 4/5 times higher. A vast majority of young men have to live at home with their parents because they cannot afford their own place, cannot afford to start their own life.

The food there was terrible. In the west, when food goes bad, it is thrown out and replaced by fresher food. In Albania, it is still kept on the shelf to sell to the poor customers because throwing it out would be “a waste.”

Don’t get me started on the mentality. There was a car honking the horn at lady legally crossing at pedestrian crosswalk so she would move faster. Traffic was next level, no parking, cars parked illegally, driving was a total headache.

Then let’s get to physical education which is far behind western countries. Notice how Albanian athletes are so physically inferior compared to Western countries like England. Just the physical education you will receive in a Western country is on another level and if you are hard working, this will give you a chance to fulfill your dreams as an athlete.

Western countries will also pay you for having kids. 2-3 kids and your rent and most bills are already paid leaving your wage to be spent vacationing. Social benefits in most Western countries are super good. They help you out with basically anything you may need. Good luck with that in Albania..

In theory, I agree with your sentiment to stay home and improve your country but Albania is just so far beyond helping that the best thing possible is to just relocate elsewhere.