Endri Çekiçi


Endri Çekiçi is an Albanian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Slovenian club Olimpija Ljubljana.

Club career

Early career

Çekiçi started his career with his local club KS Pogradeci in 2008, where he made his professional debut on 16 February 2013 at the age of 16 years, 2 months and 24 days old. He came on as a 56th-minute substitute for the goalscorer Vangjel Zguro in a home Albanian First Division fixture against Besëlidhja Lezhë which ended in a 1–0 win for Pogradeci. He was in the starting formation for his next game a month later on 16 March in a 3–0 home win against Naftëtari Kuçovë, where he was subbed off for Kristi Laçka in the 58th minute. He scored his first professional goal on 4 May 2013 against Burreli, scoring in the 11th minute to put his side 2–0 up, but it wasn't any enough as Burreli came from behind to take the 2–3 elite and to win the match. In total he made 6 league appearances for the club during the 2012–13 season, scoring one goal in the process to help his side finish 5th in the league.
He joined Albanian Superliga side Teuta Durrës in the summer of 2013 ahead of the club's Europa League qualifier against Moldovan side FC Dacia Chișinău. Çekiçi came on as an 81st-minute substitute in the home leg of the fixture which ended in 3–1 win for Teuta Durrës.

Dinamo Zagreb

In February 2014, Dinamo Zagreb and Teuta Durrës reached an agreement for the transfer of Çekiçi for €60,000. He was assigned in the youth team after successfully passing a trial early on. He signed his first professional contract on 23 November 2014, his birthday; the contract would keep him at Maksimir Stadium until June 2019. Çekiçi stated that this was the best birthday present for him.
Çekiçi made his competitive Dinamo Zagreb debut on 11 February by entering in the last minutes of a 1–0 away win over Istra, valid for the first leg of 2014–15 Croatian Cup quarter-finals. He made his first league appearance later that month in the 1–1 draw at Osijek for the matchday 22. Çekiçi played his first match as starter on 28 February in the home match against RNK Split, notably winning a penalty kick in 16th minute which resulted in him getting injured and substituted. Following the examinations, it was reported that Çekiçi had injured achilles tendon that kept him sidelined for the next three months.
He returned on action on 2 May 2015 by playing the second half of the 1–5 away win over the same opponent which was enough for Dinamo Zagreb to clinch the 2014–15 Croatian First Football League title for the 10th consecutive time and 17 overall. He finished his first season in Croatia by making 4 league appearances, collecting 109 minutes, and one cup appearance.
During the 2015–16, on 22 September 2015, Çekiçi scored his maiden Dinamo Zagreb goals in the 7–1 victory over Oštrc Zlatar valid for the 2015–16 Croatian Football Cup. In the first part of the season, his time was even more limited, playing only 15 minutes.

Loan to Lokomotiva Zagreb

In January 2016, Çekiçi joined Lokomotiva Zagreb on a one-and-a-half loan. He made his first appearance for his new club on 12 February by appearing as a substitute in the 2–0 away loss to Rijeka. He scored his first Prva Liga goal on 13 March in the 3–2 away defeat against his parent club Dinamo Zagreb; he also gave an assist for the temporary 2–2 equaliser which earned him Fans' Player of the Week Award. He finished the second part of the 2015–16 season with three goals in eleven appearances.

Olimpija Ljubljana

In February 2019, Çekiçi signed a contract with Slovenian club Olimpija Ljubljana.

International career

Albania under-17

Çekiçi received his first Albania under-17 call-up by manager Džemal Mustedanagić for a friendly tournament developed in August 2012 in Romania.
He was called up in October 2011 to be part of the team in qualifying round of 2012 UEFA European Under-17 Championship. He debuted on 13 October by starting in the first match against Slovakia which finished 2–1 for Çekiçi's side. Çekiçi then played in the next two matches against Germany and Estonia as Albania clinched a spot for the elite round.
At the elite round, Çekiçi retained his spot at the starting lineup but Albania suffered defeats from Serbia and Netherlands but won in the third match against Republic of Ireland, eventually finishing third and eliminated.
Çekiçi continued to be part of under-17 even for qualifying round of 2013 UEFA European Under-17 Championship. He appeared in all three matches as Albania finished Group 8 in third position which confirmed elimination, but nevertheless, Çekiçi became the joint-most capped player of all-time for under-17 with 9 matches, tied with Aldo Teqja.

Albania under-19

Çekiçi was first approached to under-19 side by manager Foto Strakosha for the 2014 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualifying round. He played his first match as a starter on 12 November 2013 versus Greece as Albania slumped into a 1–0 defeat. He also played in the remaining two matches as Albania finished Group 6 in the last position with two points.
Çekiçi then was part of the squad for the following European qualifying campaign, as he was called up by Altin Lala for the 2015 edition. He captained Albania in all three Group 7 matches as Albania once again finished last, losing to Denmark, Portugal and Wales.

Albania under-21

He was called up for the first time at Albania under-21 by coach Skënder Gega for the friendly match against Romania U21 on 8 October 2014. In that match, he came on as a substitute in the second half, and Albania lost 1–3.
Çekiçi received another call up by the newly appointed coach Redi Jupi for the 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying matches against Israel and Portugal in September 2015. He debuted against the former by coming on as a second-half substitute, netting a penalty kick in the 84th minute to rescue his side a 1–1 home draw. He then played as a starter in the remaining matches, collecting 608 minutes as Albania finished Group 4 in 4th place.
Çekiçi went on to be a member of the under-21 squad in the following qualification tournament under new coach Alban Bushi; he was called up for the Friendly match 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. In the opening match of the qualifiers against Estonia U21, Çekiçi started from the bench due to a small injury and was put in play in the 86th minute in place of Kristal Abazaj where the match finished in a goalless draw. He missed out the second match against Northern Ireland U21 on 31 August 2017 as he didn't travelled with the team to Northern Ireland cause didn't received in time the Travel visa.

Career statistics

Club

Honours

Club

;Dinamo Zagreb
;Olimpija Ljubljana