Naim Kryeziu

Naim Kryeziu

Personal information
Date of birth	4 January 1918(1918-01-04)
Place of birth	Đakovica, Kingdom of Serbia
Date of death	20 March 2010(2010-03-20) (aged 92)
Place of death	Rome, Italy
Playing position	Right wing
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1933-1939	KF Tirana	?	(?)
1939-1947	AS Roma	122	(27)
1947-1952	AC Napoli	168	(39)
National team
?	Albania	?	(?)
Teams managed
1965	AS Roma
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Naim Kryeziu (Serbian: Најим Кријезију, Najim Krijeziju) (4 January 1918 – 20 March 2010) was an Albanian football player famous in Italy in 1940s and 1950s.

Born in Đakovica (known in Albanian language as Gjakove), Kingdom of Serbia, Kryeziu was a particularly quick right wing able to run a time of 11 seconds in the 100 m.^[1] He left his town in Kosovo as a youngster to join his brother in Tirana, and making his footballing debut in the domestic top flight at the age of 15, and entering the national team only one year later.^[2] Following the 1939 Italian invasion of Albania, he was noted by an Italian sports professor who suggested him to AS Roma. As he was considered an Italian following the annexion of Albania, he was allowed to enroll the Rome ISEF (Italian sports university) and contemporarily play for AS Roma, where he won an Italian title in 1941-42.^[2] He played for the giallorossi until 1948, when he joined A.C. Napoli; he finally retired in 1953.

He later started an unimpressive coaching career, serving also as AS Roma head coach for a short time during the 1964-65 season as a replacement for Juan Carlos Lorenzo. He then became a scout for AS Roma, for which he discovered a young Giuseppe Giannini when played in loca club Frattocchie Marino.^[2]

Krieziu died in Rome at the age of 92. He was the last living player of the first historical AS Roma scudetto. AS Roma, who was scheduled to play a evening game against Udinese on that day, played the game with black armbands to honour him.^[3]

References

1. ^ "Naim Krieziu" (in Italian). ASR Talenti. http://www.asrtalenti.altervista.org/index.php?a=krieziu.htm. Retrieved 2007-10-01. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} "Intervista a Naim Krieziu" (in Italian). AS Roma Ultras. 2001-02-11. http://www.asromaultras.it/kriezu.html. Retrieved 2007-10-01. 
3. ^ "Morto Naim Krieziu: con i suoi gol la Roma vinse il primo scudetto" (in Italian). Il Messaggero. 20 March 2010. http://www.ilmessaggero.it/articolo.php?id=95389&sez=HOME_SPORT. Retrieved 20 March 2010. 

External links

• Profile at Enciclopediadelcalcio

Persondata
Name	Krieziu, Naim
Alternative names
Short description	footballer
Date of birth	4 January 1918
Place of birth	Đakovica, Kingdom of Serbia
Date of death	20 March 2010
Place of death	Rome, Italy