Ardian Mema Explained

Ardian Mema
Fullname:Ardian Mema
Birth Date:16 February 1970
Birth Place:Tirana, Albania
Position:Midfielder
Youthyears1:1980–1989
Youthclubs1:Tirana
Years1:1989–1997
Clubs1:Tirana
Caps1:101+
Goals1:7+
Years2:1997–1998
Clubs2:Partizani
Caps2:26
Goals2:2
Years3:1998–2002
Clubs3:Tirana
Caps3:89
Goals3:13
Manageryears1:2007
Managerclubs1:Tirana
Manageryears2:2009–2011
Managerclubs2:Albania U17
Manageryears3:2013
Managerclubs3:Tirana B
Manageryears4:2015
Managerclubs4:Hajer Club U-19
Manageryears5:2017–2018
Managerclubs5:Skënderbeu (assistant)
Manageryears6:2018
Managerclubs6:Flamurtari (assistant)
Manageryears7:2018–2019
Managerclubs7:Tirana
Manageryears8:2022–2023
Managerclubs8:Kastrioti
Manageryears9:2023–
Managerclubs9:Vëllaznimi
Nationalyears1:1995–1998
Nationalteam1:Albania
Nationalcaps1:8
Nationalgoals1:0[1]

Ardian Mema (born 16 November 1971 in Tirana) is a former Albanian football player and coach. He played for KF Tirana 1989 and 2003 and has managed both the senior team and the reserves in 2007 and 2013 respectively.[2]

Playing career

Club

Ardian was born into the prominent Mema footballing family, as his dad was former KF Tirana and Albania international Ali Mema, and his uncles Haxhi and Osman were both professional footballers, too. His cousin Sulejman was also a footballer and former KF Tirana player, as was Klevi Mema who died at the age of 19. He joined the senior team of KF Tirana in 1989, and in the same year he began his further education at the Academy of Physical and Sports Education Vojo Kushi, where he graduated in 1993. He retired in 2003 from a 14-year career with KF Tirana where he won 6 league titles, 5 Albanian Cups and 4 Albanian Supercups, as well as being in the team of the year in 5 consecutive seasons at the height of his career in the '90s.[3]

International

He made his debut for Albania in an April 1995 European Championship qualification match against Georgia and earned a total of 8 caps, scoring no goals. His final international was a February 1998 friendly match against Latvia.[4]

Managerial career

Following his retirement Mema went into management and became the assistant coach of KF Tirana in 2007, where he was also an interim manager for one game in 2007 before the arrival of Astrit Hafizi. He then managed the Ali Dema futsal team before going on to manage the Albania national under 17 team for two and a half years in 2009. He was also instrumental in setting up the KF Tirana B team in 2013, where he was also their first manager before stepping down to become the director of the KF Tirana academy, a post which he still holds.[5]

Managerial statistics

TeamFromToRecord
Tirana12 October 2018 24 October 2019
Tirana12 October 2018 24 October 2019

Honours

Player

Tirana

1988–89, 1994–95, 1995–96,1998–99, 1999–00, 2002–03[6]

1993–94, 1995–96,1998–99, 2000–01, 2001–02

1994, 2000, 2002, 2003

Manager

Runners-up (1) Albanian Cup 2018–19

Notes and References

  1. http://www.11v11.com/players/adrian-mema-104013/ 11v11 profile
  2. http://www.footballdatabase.eu/football.joueurs.ardian.mema.57470.en.html Footballdatabase profile
  3. http://www.sot.com.al/intervista-sport/ardian-mema-ju-rrëfej-ambiciet-e-tiranës-b Ardian Mema: Ju rrëfej ambiciet e Tiranës B
  4. Web site: Player Database. eu-football.info. 2019-08-18.
  5. http://www.panorama-sport.com/ballina/ardian-mema-tiranes-i-mungon-numri-10-ja-kush-ben-diferencen-ne-ekip/ Ardian Mema: Tiranës i mungon numri 10, ja kush bën diferencën në ekip
  6. https://www.rsssf.org/players/alba-champ-teams.html Albania - Championship Winning Teams