Full name: Naim Kryeziu
Date of birth 4 January 1918
Place of birth: Gjakova, Kosovo
Date of death: 20 March 2010 (aged 92)
Place of death: Rome, Italy
Height: 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Playing position: Right Winger
If Riza Lushta would be the one to pave the way for Albanians to the highs of Italian football, Naim Kryeziu would cement it, by becoming the first & so far only Albanian to lift the Serie A trophy. Here is the story of Naim Kryeziu, the first champion.
Two years later, and 85 kilometres south of Mitrovica, Naim Kryeziu was born in the city of Gjakova. Much like the two years older Riza Lushta, Naim left Kosovo for studies in Tirana. In 1933, at the age of 15, Kryeziu left Gjakova, and joined his brother in Tirana, who was working there as an officer. Naim’s plan was to study physics but that changed quickly as he began playing for KF Tirana. At the young age of fifteen, he took a place in the KF Tirana team together with Riza Lushta, eventually leading the team to a league title. in 1936, at the age of sixteen, he, together with Riza Lushta and ten other’s founded what has come to be known as the Albanian national team.
Naimi developed into a strong and quick winger in the Albanian first league. Following the Italian occupation of Albania in 1939, the Italians sent a physics professor to Tirana to develop the sports organization. The professor, whom was an A.S Roma supporter, quickly noted Kryeziu’s enormous talent, and sent a report to the Italian club. Since Albania was under Italian rule, all Albanians counted de-facto as Italians, making it easier for Kryeziu & Lushta to join Italian clubs.
Kryeziu decided to leave Albania since he was enrolled in the ISEF (Italian sports university) in Rome. While there, he was contacted by A.S Roma officials regarding try-outs at the club. Kryeziu explained the situation as:
‘’ I decided to go to Rome to study and there, I was contacted by a head of Rome for try-outs. I spoke only a few Italian words and asked an Albanian friend who was studying at the university to come with me. We took a taxi and went to Campo Testaccio (A.S Romas former stadium). I did a short workout and the next day I played the midweek match. I had a good shot, I was an excellent athlete, when I ran away on the wing I was unstoppable.I made a good impression, and at the end of the game the manager took me to via Tritone, where the club was located, and got me to sign my first contract. I couldn't believe my eyes, I was in seventh heaven.’’ Shortly after signing a contract, Kryeziu made his Roma debut against former Tirana team-mate, and fellow Kosovo-Albanian Riza Lushta, and his Bari. Roma won that game with 4-2, with Kryeziu assisting to one of the goals. Riza Lushta scored his first goal, equalizing the score to 1-1. Kryeziu spent eight years in total in the Italian capital, between 1939-1947. It was the 1941/42 season though that would give him legendary status with the I Giallorossi, as he would be a big part of the Roma team that secured the club's first ever Scudetto. He would become the third best goal-scorer for his club that season, with six goals on 23 occasions, scoring in important games against Internazionale Milano, AC Milan and Riza Lushta’s Juventus. In total, Kryeziu played 122 games for Roma, scoring 27 times.
A.S Romas first Scudetto winning team 1941/42
After his spell at Roma, Kryeziu became the second Kosovo-Albanian to play for Napoli, after Riza Lushta. He would stay in Naples for five seasons between 1947-1952, representing the South-Italians 168 times, scoring 39 goals. Unfortunatley, we never got to see the Kosovo-Albanian duo play together at Napoli since Lushta left the club one year prior to Kryeziu joining.
He was, as stated above, one of the first players to represent Albania at national level, but, just as mentioned in the Riza Lushta article, those games were mostly unofficial friendlies, which have not been given any official credibility by the federation.
Kryeziu, much alike Lushta, would spent the rest of his life in Italy. However, he would be more involved with football than Riza, as he would become A.S Roma’s head coach for a short spell in 1963. During this one-year stint as head coach, he managed to discover what would become Roma legend Giuseppe Giannini, while he was playing youth football for Frattocchie Marino.
Kryeziu lived in Rome until his death in 2010. He was the last living Roma player of the first historical scudetto-team. AS Roma honoured his memory by playing with black armbands in the following league game against Udinese in March, 2010.
Kryeziu was the second Kosovo-Albanian to play in the Italian top league, and the first to win the league title,Scudetto. Just as Riza Lushta developed legendary status at Juventus, Naim Kryeziu did the same at Roma.
In 2019, his hometown club of Gjakova,KF Vëllaznimi, with the initiative of Albanian & Lazio legend Lorik Cana, started the football academy 'Akademia Naim Kryeziu' named after the legendary AS Roma & Napoli player.
Lorik Cana together with a placard of Naim Kryeziu at the KF Vëllaznimi headquarters in Gjakova