How Kosovo could have lined up against England with Xhaka and Shaqiri if they had kept their best players

THE KOSOVO national team have bravely fought back from the ravages of war - and their success is all the more impressive given how most of their potential stars play elsewhere.

It wasn't until 2014 that the Balkan territory was allowed to play its first official game with membership to UEFA and FIFA being granted two years later.

That was after the brutal Kosovo War that came amid the break-up of Yugoslava in the 1990s.

An estimated 800,000 Kosovo Albanians fled as thousands died.

From a footballing perspective, this created something of a lost generation as youngsters with Balkan roots instead grew up in countries such as Switzerland and Belgium.

Sun Sport has worked out how the team might have set up for tonight's match with England were Kosovo able to play the best players who were once eligible to do so.

Sat second in Group A on a 15-game unbeaten run, a few players do remain in place such as Manchester City goalkeeper Ante Muric and Werder Bremen star Milot Rashica.

XHAKA BROTHERS

Granit and Taulant Xhaka were both born in the Swiss city of Basel but their heritage is distinctly affected by the Balkan conflict.

Their family fled Kosovan city Podujevo after father Ragip was held as a political prisoner for demonstrating against the Communist government.

Both of the players are therefore eligible for the national team but Arsenal midfielder Granit appears for Switzerland while Taulant, still with Basel, plays for Albania.

Another Swiss international is experienced utility man Valon Behrami, a footballer also born to Kosovar Albanian parents who left when the future West Ham player was just a young lad.

STAR ATTACK

Were Kosovo able to call upon their best and brightest, a very decent frontline could be put together with current forward Vedat Muriqi, of Fenerbahce, keeping his spot.

Partnering the towering striker could have been Admir Mehmedi, the Wolfsburg forward with family roots in the region who chose to play for Switzerland having moved there aged two.

The Dardanians shouldn't struggle too much for creativity with Rashica and Swansea playmaker Bersant Celina already in their ranks, but the addition of Adnan Januzaj wouldn't be sniffed at.

Born in the Belgian city of Brussels, the Real Sociedad winger's parents left what was then Yugoslavia because his father was set to be conscripted for the bloody conflict.

Their most famous player though, would be Xherdan Shaqiri.

The town of Gjilan in Eastern Kosovo was his home before leaving for Switzerland in 1992 and being spotted by a Basel scout at the age of eight.

In 2010, Shaqiri made his Switzerland debut with the welcoming European nation also possessing a number of African-born players, such as Breel Embolo and Francois Moubandje, in their squad.

Outside of the XI we have put together, there are a number of honourable mentions that could have made the cut in previous years.

Former Finnish striker Shekfi Kuqi hails from the region as well as Pristina-born midfielder Lorik Cana, who earned 92 caps for Albania after growing up in Switzerland.