Odise Roshi
Odise Roshi is an Albanian professional footballer who plays as a right winger for Turkish TFF 1. Lig club Ankara Keçiörengücü.
A product of the Apolonia academy, Roshi has played professionally in Albania and Germany, notably in the Bundesliga with 1. FC Köln, before spells in the Croatian top flight with Rijeka, the Russian Premier League with Akhmat Grozny, as well as in Hungary and Turkey, making more than 400 senior appearances across all competitions.
Roshi has represented Albania at under-17 and -21 levels before making his senior debut in 2011. He went on to earn 71 caps and score five goals for the national side, and was part of the squad at UEFA Euro 2016.
Club career
Early career
Born in Fier, Albania, Roshi began playing football at the age of 10 with his hometown club Apolonia Fier.Roshi made his senior debut for Apolonia at age of 16 during the second-half of the 2006–07 Albanian Superliga season, appearing in four league matches as the club was relegated after finishing bottom of the table. In the following season, Apolonia returned to the top flight and competed in the 2008–09 Albanian Superliga, where Roshi made 17 league appearances as the club avoided relegation by just one point.
Flamurtari Vlorë
In July 2009, Roshi joined fellow Superliga side Flamurtari Vlorë. He scored his first goal for the club on 23 July in a UEFA Europa League second qualifying round match away to Scottish side Motherwell, netting Flamurtari's only goal in an 8–1 defeat. Roshi featured in the 2009 Albanian Supercup on 16 August 2009, coming on as a half-time substitute for Flamurtari in their 1–0 defeat to Tirana. Roshi made his league debut on 23 August in a 3–1 away win over Tirana, scoring Flamurtari's second goal while playing on the right wing. He continued to be a regular starter during the opening weeks of the campaign, before Flamurtari went scoreless in their next four league matches. Roshi ended this run on 4 October by scoring a brace in a 2–0 home win over Vllaznia on matchday six.Roshi made 29 league appearances during the 2009–10 season, logging 2,067 minutes of play, as Flamurtari finished fifth in the championship and missed out on qualification for European competitions.
In April 2010, Roshi spent several days on trial in France with PSG, training with the club's youth setup before returning to Flamurtari without securing a contract, although a move was reported as still possible after the end of the season. Although the move was reportedly valued at €250,000, the transfer did not materialize.
On 27 August 2010, in the second week of the 2010–11 Albanian Superliga, Roshi scored in a 2–1 home win over Tirana. On 7 November 2010, Flamurtari defeated Skënderbeu 4–0 on the final matchday of the first phase, a result that sent the club to the top of the league table. On 30 January 2011, Roshi scored twice in the opening minutes of a 4–2 home victory over Shkumbini on matchday 18 of the Superliga.
Flamurtari held top spot in the league from until mid-April before being chased by title rivals Skënderbeu. The club lost first place on matchday 28 following a defeat to Shkumbini, allowing Skënderbeu to overtake them at the top of the standings. On 20 April 2011, Roshi scored his 5th and final goal of the season in a 6–2 home win over Dinamo Tirana on matchday 29 of the Superliga.
Over the 2010–11 season, Roshi made 22 league appearances, Flamurtari finished the 2010–11 season as runners-up, four points behind champions Skënderbeu, while scoring 62 goals, the highest in the league.
Roshi was reported to be close to joining Belgian club Anderlecht in 2011.
1. FC Köln
On 19 May 2011, Roshi joined 1. FC Köln on a free transfer, signing a four-year contract.Roshi made his Bundesliga debut with Köln on 6 August 2011, appearing as a late substitute in a 3–0 home defeat against VfL Wolfsburg. On 5 February 2012, Roshi scored his first Bundesliga goal, giving Köln a 1–0 away victory over 1. FC Kaiserslautern; he was substituted on in the 70th minute and scored with a header one minute later from a corner kick he caused himself. Roshi earned the nickname “The Rocket” due to his exceptional pace, with reports noting his speed and prominence in the team. Roshi assisted the Milivoje Novaković's goal against 1. FC Nürnberg two weeks later in 2–1 loss.
Roshi finished the 2011–12 Bundesliga season with 20 appearances, including three starts, scoring one goal and providing one assist.
FSV Frankfurt
On 6 August 2012, Roshi joined FSV Frankfurt in the 2. Bundesliga on a season-long loan, linking up with fellow Albanian international Edmond Kapllani.Roshi made his debut for FSV Frankfurt on 12 August 2012, starting against Hertha BSC and was substituted in the 57th minute in a 3–1 victory. Five days later, Roshi made his DFB-Pokal debut, starting and playing 65 minutes in a 2–1 away win over Sonnenhof Großaspach in the first round, with all goals scored within the opening 22 minutes. On 2 September 2012, Roshi provided the assist for the winning goal in a 1–0 victory against Erzgebirge Aue. On 21 September 2012, Roshi scored his first goal for FSV Frankfurt against FC St. Pauli, netting in the 7th minute from outside the far corner of the box in a 2–1 win, which marked the club’s 100th home victory in the 2. Bundesliga. On 27 April 2013, he scored Frankfurt's second goal against Dynamo Dresden in the 84th minute, 10 minutes after coming on as a substitute in a 3–1 victory.
Roshi finished the 2012–13 2. Bundesliga season with 30 league appearances, including six starts, scoring two goals and providing one assist for FSV Frankfurt.
On 17 May 2013, Roshi signed a two-year permanent contract with the club.
Roshi spent much of the 2013–14 2. Bundesliga season as a rotational option, appearing primarily as a second-half substitute before becoming a regular starter from Round 27 onward, including multiple full 90-minute appearances, and finished with 23 league appearances, scoring once and registering four assists during the process. On 4 April 2014, Roshi started up front in place of his injured teammate Kapllani and scored in the 61st minute in a 2–1 loss against VfR Aalen; he was named in the Team of the Week. On 28 April 2014, Roshi received a one-match suspension after being sent off for unsporting behaviour in a 3–1 win over Energie Cottbus, with the club accepting the DFB’s ruling.
On 16 August 2014, Roshi recorded an assist in the opening round of the 2014–15 DFB-Pokal, setting up Zafer Yelen’s 41st-minute goal in a 3–3 draw against Sportfreunde Siegen that FSV Frankfurt went on to win 5–4 on penalties. In the 2014–15 2. Bundesliga Roshi was a regular starter, making 21 league appearances, scoring thrice and receiving five yellow cards. On 7 November 2014, Roshi scored his first goal of the season, netting the winner in a 1–0 away victory over VfR Aalen after coming on as a half-time substitute, in his first match back from injury. After recovering from muscular problems, Roshi returned on 8 February 2015 against 1. FC Nürnberg, scoring the opening goal in a 2–1 victory. Roshi scored again in the next fixture on 15 February 2015, netting the only goal in a 1–0 away win over RB Leipzig, securing three points for FSV Frankfurt.
HNK Rijeka
After declining to extend his contract with FSV Frankfurt, Roshi joined Croatian First League side Rijeka as a free agent on 6 June 2015, signing a three-year contract; he rejoined compatriot and Albania international Bekim Balaj at the club. Roshi was reported to earn around €250,000 per season.Roshi joined the club carrying a minor injury, with Rijeka manager Matjaž Kek stating that Roshi arrived with a problem sustained either at his former club or during international fixture. Roshi returned from injury for the league game against Slaven Belupo Koprivnica on 19 July 2015 and was named on the bench, remaining an unused substitute for the match. Roshi made his debut for Rijeka in the Europa League away fixture against Aberdeen on 23 July 2015. He made his league debut on 10 August 2015 in a 0–0 draw against Dinamo Zagreb, coming on as a substitute in the 58th minute for Bekim Balaj. He went on to make regular league appearances throughout the 2015–16 season, featuring primarily as a second-half substitute in most matches, and Rijeka had a strong defensive records in the league, keeping several clean sheets in many of the matches Roshi took part in. He scored his first goal for the club in their 4–1 home win against Zagreb on 4 October 2015. Roshi made a total of 20 league appearances, as Rijeka finished as runners-up behind Dinamo Zagreb. On 28 October 2015, Roshi scored once and provided an assist in Rijeka's 3–0 win over Opatija in the 2015–16 Croatian Cup second round, helping the club advance to the quarter-finals.
Roshi became the first Rijeka player to appear in a European Championship, featuring for Albania national team at Euro 2016.
Akhmat (Terek) Grozny
On 21 July 2016, Roshi signed a three-year contract with Terek Grozny in the Russian Premier League, rejoining fellow Albanian Bekim Balaj who had transferred earlier. Roshi made his debut for Terek Grozny on 31 July 2016 in the opening league match against Krylia Sovetov Samara in a 1–0 win, coming on as a substitute in the final 32 minutes of the match and providing the assist for the winning goal.During the 2016–17 season, Roshi was a regular starter for Terek Grozny, although his playing time decreased toward the end of the campaign, where he was mostly used as a substitute or featured only briefly. He also regularly provided assists for Balaj, contributing to the team's attacking play. Roshi scored his first goal on 22 October 2016, against Rubin Kazan in a 3–1 league win after coming on as a late substitute and netting in stoppage time. The goal was voted as the club’s best of the first half of the season. On 26 October 2016, Roshi scored the equaliser in the 53rd minute of a 2016–17 Russian Cup match against Ufa, which ended 1–1 after extra time before Akhmat were eliminated 4–3 on penalties. Roshi was considered a high-quality reinforcement and contributed to Terek Grozny’s strong start to the season. On 2 April 2017, Roshi provided an assist against Amkar Perm in matchday 21, which ended in a 1–1 draw. Terek Grozny ultimately finished fifth and narrowly missed qualifying for the UEFA Europa League by one point.
During the 2017–18 Russian Premier League season, Roshi featured sparingly in the first phase of the campaign, but in the second phase, he established himself as a regular starter, significantly increasing his minutes and contributing three assists, several of which came in narrow victories for Akhmat Grozny. On 8 May 2018, Roshi came on as a second-half substitute against Anzhi Makhachkala and scored in the closing minutes to seal a 2–0 win, which ensured the club’s survival in the Russian Premier League.
At the start of the 2018–19 Russian Premier League season, Roshi was an undisputed starter, playing every minute of the opening three matches before suffering an injury in the 32nd minute of the fourth matchday, on 18 August 2018, suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury, which was expected to sideline him for approximately six months. Following the injury, Roshi successfully underwent knee surgery in Italy in late August 2018 and began his recovery process shortly after the operation. Roshi returned to the matchday squad in late March 2019, when he was named on the bench in a Russian Premier League match against Spartak Moscow where he was an unused substitute. Roshi made his first appearance after the injury on 8 April 2019, approximately seven and a half months after suffering the ACL injury, coming on as a substitute in the final minutes of a 3–1 away win against Orenburg. Roshi gradually returned to regular playing time, later starting two matches, including playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–0 away victory against Anzhi Makhachkala, but for the remainder of the season, he was primarily used as a substitute in the second half of matches, finishing with a total of 13 league appearances. Akhmat Grozny ended the season in 8th place in the league.
On 27 May 2019, Roshi extended his contract with Akhmat Grozny, signing a new three-year deal with the club.
In the 2019–20 season, Roshi scored in total eight goals across league and cup, finishing as the club's top scorer that campaign, and was also ranked third in the league statistics for successful dribbles, completing 68 out of 110 attempts. On 6 August 2019, Roshi scored the winning goal in matchday 4 of the 2019–20 Russian Premier League against Orenburg, marking his first goal in over a year following a long-term injury absence. On 16 September 2019, Roshi scored a penalty in an away match against Rostov, registering his second goal of the season. On 25 September 2019, Roshi featured in a 2019–20 Russian Cup match against SKA Khabarovsk, starting the game and scoring the decisive penalty in the shoot-out as the team advanced to the quarter-finals. On 23 November 2019, Roshi scored in a 2–0 away win against Orenburg, registering his third goal of the league season. Following his performance, he was named in the "Team of the Week 17". On 4 March 2020, Akhmat Grozny were eliminated from the Russian Cup quarter-finals after losing 3–2 to Zenit Petersburg, where Roshi scored the opening goal in the 59th minute, but Zenit eventually came from behind to win the match, which was also marked by tensions between supporters. On 13 March 2020, Roshi scored in the 10th minute against Dynamo Moscow, netting his fifth goal of the league. On 1 July 2020, Roshi scored twice in a 3–1 away victory against Arsenal Tula, including a penalty. Following his performance, he was named Player of the Match in the 25th round. At the end of the season, Akhmat Grozny finished fourth from bottom in league on equal points with Tambov and Krylia Sovetov Samara, avoiding relegation only due to superior head-to-head goal difference.
On 19 August 2020, Roshi scored twice in matchday 3 of the 2020–21 Russian Premier League against Volgograd, netting the second and third goals of the game. In November 2020, Roshi suffered a partial tear of the sartorius muscle in his right thigh, ruling him out for an indefinite period and returned to Albania for treatment. He made a total six league appearances and two goals.