Albanians abroad

[Plako]

Shkodran Mustafi's 2014 call-up has shown every scrub with an outside chance of getting a callup by Germany not to commit to any other team in the off chance that they might get a callup. And from a professional perspective it makes total sense. "German International" goes a long way on someone's resume as compared to Albanian or Kosovar International.

[Dallku]

^ Exactly and let's be honest, Germany is not known for their super talents. They are known for their mentality and system. They are not France.. they were never stacked with world class players. Just solid ones who did what they had to do. So anyone "solid" has a chance with them.

[CanaYouDoIt]

He was called up at 21 and was nothing more than a backup really , ofc it was worth it for the WC but its not like he was a scrub back then.

[Dallku]

He was called up at 21 and was nothing more than a backup really , ofc it was worth it for the WC but its not like he was a scrub back then.

That doesn't mean anything.

Mustafi was a trash can back then. He accepted De Biasi's invitation to join and Albania and then Reus got injured and he casually got called up to the world cup. lol

[Aurora Bulkualis]

Shkodran Mustafi's 2014 call-up has shown every scrub with an outside chance of getting a callup by Germany not to commit to any other team in the off chance that they might get a callup. And from a professional perspective it makes total sense. "German International" goes a long way on someone's resume as compared to Albanian or Kosovar International.

Dude resumes are a substitute for when you can't see someone day to day. It's not valid for football. When another club wants to bring in a player, they base it off performances, not who you were capped for.

[CanaYouDoIt]

He was called up at 21 and was nothing more than a backup really , ofc it was worth it for the WC but its not like he was a scrub back then.

That doesn't mean anything.

Mustafi was a trash can back then. He accepted De Biasi's invitation to join and Albania and then Reus got injured and he casually got called up to the world cup. lol

Trash can ? Come on now , lets not be silly.

[Dallku]

He was called up at 21 and was nothing more than a backup really , ofc it was worth it for the WC but its not like he was a scrub back then.

That doesn't mean anything.

Mustafi was a trash can back then. He accepted De Biasi's invitation to join and Albania and then Reus got injured and he casually got called up to the world cup. lol

Trash can ? Come on now , lets not be silly.

Ok maybe trash can is too extreme but he was really an average Sampdoria player. Because of the world cup and his new world cup winner reputation he managed to sign for Valencia and Arsenal. Mustafi proved that he's not at that top level quality though. He's literally a meme at Arsenal.

Of course an average Samdoria player would've been amazing for Albania back then. Mavraj and an error prone Cana were the starting CBs back then and no depth besides that. Mustafi would've been huge at the euros too . Oh well.

[Aurora Bulkualis]

Football is not politics. If you're not good enough you'll be found out pretty soon. Even guys like Hysaj, Roshi, etc... that came from Superliga had the chance to play in Bundesliga.

Superliga players might delay their peak by a few years due to playing in an unknown competition, but if you're already playing in a Top 5 league or Champions League, you don't need "recognition". If you're good you'll be discovered.

[Dallku]

Football is not politics. If you're not good enough you'll be found out pretty soon. Even guys like Hysaj, Roshi, etc... that came from Superliga had the chance to play in Bundesliga.

Superliga players might delay their peak by a few years due to playing in an unknown competition, but if you're already playing in a Top 5 league or Champions League, you don't need "recognition". If you're good you'll be discovered.

I see what you're saying but there is no way in hell someone like Mustafi would've signed for Arsenal if he wasn't a world cup winner with Germany.

Some doors open easier when there is a slight "push".

Albanian league players really have to showcase great talent for those doors to open. Agents/connections can only do so much with Albanian players. Tare has been trying to hook Alb players up for years only for them to be complete flops and only ruin his trust and reputation.

[CanaYouDoIt]

You do know Mustafi was signed because of his stats right . These football clubs are not foolish enough to sign a guy simply because they’re a WC winner, yes it’s a bonus but it’s not everything.

You’re acting like he was a scrub when in reality he was a top CB with Otamendi at Valencia and at the start was very good for arsenal remember he went 20 odd games undefeated before it all went downhill.

But that’s besides the main point , this wasn’t even about him and about Mergim Berisha wasting time wanting to play for them.