Euro 2016 Team Guide: Group A – Albania
Euro 2016 will be Albania’s first major tournament and, predictably, they’re rank outsiders.
It’s not just their reputation as international minnows that precedes them, it’s also the bizarre way in which they somehow managed to qualify.
Finishing runners-up to Portugal in qualifying, the Eagles scored just seven goals over the course of their qualifying campaign - and five of those were against Armenia.
But by grabbing a shock 1-0 in Portugal and a 3-0 walkover win over Serbia awarded to them by the Court of Arbitration for Sport after a riot at their game in Belgrade, they edged out Denmark to take second spot.
Yet the Eagles are on an upward curve and under Italian coach Gianni De Bias their FIFA world ranking has risen sharply in the last five years.
Star Man – Lorik Cana
When Albania take to the field on June 11 for their first ever game in a major tournament finals, it will 13 years to the day since the Albanian skipper made his international debut.
Now his country’s most capped player, this 32-year-old centre half’s career has taken him from PSG to Marseille, from Sunderland to Galatasaray and now, after four successful years at Lazio, he’s returned to Ligue 1 to play for Nantes.
He’s the very definition of a journeyman pro - but in Albania he is a hero.
One to Watch – Rey Manaj
Hailed as the new Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Manaj was born in Lushnje, Albania but moved to Italy at a young age where he was spotted by Cremonese and then signed by Inter Milan for £1million in July 2015.
He’s quick, skillful and prefers to play as a second striker - buit while the 19-year-old has got bags of confidence on the pitch he has a tendency to put his size nines in it off it, most notably when he criticised coach Gianni De Biasi on social media recently.
Still, expect headlines one way or the other.
Coach – Gianni De Biasi
Appointed in 2011, former Torino boss De Bias has managed to take a rag-tag bunch of players and mould them into a genuinely well-organised outfit.
The first signs of his impact on the squad came in the qualifying campaign for the 2014 World Cup when, despite not qualifying, they still managed an impressive away win in Norway.
Now, as they enter their first finals, Di Bias’s work has been rewarded with the country’s highest civil honour, The Honour of Nation Order and the bond he’s formed with his team, and the country itself, has even seen him take Albanian citizenship too.
Factfile
Most capped player: Lorik Cana (87)
Highest goalscorer: Erjan Bogdani (18)
Best performance in Euros: N/A
FIFA world ranking: TBC
Odds: 300/1
Group A Fixtures
Friday, June 10: France v Romania (20:00, Stade de France, Paris)
Saturday, June 11: Albania v Switzerland (14:00, Stade Bollaert-Delelis, Lens)
Wednesday, June 15: Romania v Switzerland (17:00, Parc des Princes, Paris)
Wednesday, June 15: France v Albania (20:00, Stade Velodrome, Marseille)
Sunday, June 19: Romania v Albania (20:00, Stade de Lyon)
Sunday, June 19: Switzerland v France (20:00, Stade Pierre Mauroy, Lille)
All times BST