Refik Resmja


Refik Shaban Resmja was an Albanian professional footballer.
He started his career with Tirana, but shortly after signed with Partizani Tirana where he established himself as one of the greatest players of all time, setting several records and winning 9 trophies. He has also been an Albanian international, winning six caps between 1952 and 1963. During his career, Resmja held only one squad number, 11.
For three years he was also the manager of Albania under-21 squad.

Early life

Resmja was born in Tirana from an ethnic Albanian family and started to play the game at a very young age along with his friends at "Xhamija Sherif" street. He also used to go with his friends at Shallvare ground, playing and watching his club Tirana play. In his youth, Resmja dreamed of becoming a goalkeeper, idolizing players such as Niko Dovana or Giacomo Poselli.

Club career

Resmja joined 17 Nëntori Tirana in 1946 where he was just 15 years old as a goalkeeper. He made his competitive debut on 28 February 1948 as a goalkeeper against Vllaznia Shkodër. His debut came as a result of goalkeeper Giacomo Poselli not appearing in the match and the staff selected Resmja to replace him. After beginning his career initially as a goalkeeper, Resmja was later converted into a forward. This happened during a training session with his teammate where Resmja preferred to play as a forward, surprising everyone with his moves, which eventually made him left the position as goalkeeper. He played with Tirana until October 1950.
On 20 October 1950, he was forced to join military by communist regime and eventually signed with the army team Partizani Tirana where he played until the end of his career. In the 1951 Albanian Superliga, Resmja recorded an astonishing 59 goals in just 23 matches, averaging 2,57 goals per match, the highest ratio in history of football. He also scored 10 hat-tricks, setting the record for most hat-tricks scored in the history of Albanian Superliga, a record which still stands. Resmja also become the only player in the history of Albanian football to score six and seven goals in one match; the striker reached the feat in the matches versus Puna Berat, Puna Fier, Spartaku Qyteti Stalin and Puna Gjirokastër.
His 59 goals ranked him the sixth player with most goals scored in a season, standing behind Archie Stark, Ferenc Deák, Gyula Zsengellér, Dixie Dean and Jimmy McGrory. Despite scoring this much, Resmja's goals were not enough to secure Partizani the title which was won by fellow capital club Dinamo Tirana. Resmja also played a match as a loanee for his first club 17 Nëntori Tirana in May 1951, a friendly against a Selection of Hungarians Unions. He scored in this match, marking thus his first goal against a foreign team.
Over the course of next years, Resmja wasn't able to reach or break his scoring record, but was able to finish top scorer in five other occasions. He would also set the record for most goals scored in the derby against Tirana. He won his first championship in the 1954 season, scoring 13 goals which were instrumental for the team which topped the league 7 points ahead of Dinamo Tirana.
Resmja was named captain in 1957. In the following year, he played in the Spartakiad tournament, an official championship of communist countries army clubs, in Leipzig, as Partizani went to the final where they were defeated by CDNA Sofia. Resmja was decisive for the team throughout the campaign, netting a brace in the 5–1 win over Vietnam's The Cong Hanoi and a goal in extra-time against Dukla Prague. His performances led Resmja to being named the best player of the tournament. Five years later, Resmja played again in this competition but wasn't able to score as Partizani finished runner-up again, this time losing to XI CSKA/SKA.
In the 1963–64 season, Resmja captained Partizani to another championship, his sixth in career, despite scoring only once the whole season. He lifted the trophy and at the end of the season. He decided to end his playing career at the age of 33 years old, having scored 184 goals in just 130 league matches which made him the all-time top scorer of Albanian Superliga at that time. Since then, his record was eclipsed by Vioresin Sinani and Daniel Xhafaj.

International career

Despite having great individual and collective success at club level, Resmja's international career was tepid as he collected only six appearances and scored once. He earned his first cap on 29 November 1952 in the 3–2 friendly win versus Czechoslovakia. He scored his first goal in his third cap, netting the second of a 2–0 home win over Poland. Resmja earned his final cap on 2 June 1963 in a 1–0 home loss to Bulgaria for the 1964 Summer Olympics qualifying phase which was also his first competitive match.

Managerial career

Resmja's managerial career begun with Partizani Tirana Youth in 1967 as he liked to work with the younger players. He stayed there until 1968, and restarted the work again in 1971 by managing Lokomotiva Durrës. In the meantime he also coached Albania under-21 squad.

Style of play

In his career, Resmja was distinguished for his strong physique, and agility which made him a target for the defenders. A predominantly a left footed player, Resmja is known to have scored most of his goals with it, some of them from outside the penalty area. His short and athletic stature made Resmja a great dribbler which allowed him to get past most of the challenges he got in the field. Resmja had also been noted for his stamina, work rate and accurate passing. The most well-known ability of Resmja was his scoring instinct, attacking movement and positioning inside the penalty area. Resmja was also a fair play player, receiving not a single red card during his 16-year career.

Legacy

A street in Shishtufinë, Tiranë is named in his honour. In 2016, he was decorated with the Honor of Nation Order by president Bujar Nishani for his contributions to Albanian football. He also hold numerous awards and accolades, such as Naim Frashëri Gold Medal, Naim Frashëri Order, Ylli i Kuq Order and Medalje e Punës etc.

Career statistics

Goals in Albanian Championship

SeasonTeamGoals
1948Tirana1*
1949Tirana2*
1950Tirana1*
1951Partizani59
1952Partizani17*
1953Partizani9*
1954Partizani13*
1955Partizani23
1956Partizani17
1957Partizani12
1958Partizani7
1959Partizani6
1960Partizani7
1961Partizani5
1962–63Partizani4
1963–64Partizani1
TOTAL184*

'''* - Incomplete data

International

Source:

International goals

Albania score listed first, score column indicates score after each Resmja goal.
No.DateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetition
129 November 1953Qemal Stafa Stadium, Tirana, Albania32–02–0Friendly

Honours

Club

;Partizani Tirana