Bersant Celina

Bersant Celina (born 9 September 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Welsh club Swansea City and the Kosovo national team.

Bersant Celina
Celina playing for Manchester City in 2016
Personal information
Date of birth (1996-09-09) 9 September 1996
Place of birth Prizren, FR Yugoslavia
Height 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Playing position(s) Midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Swansea City
Number 10
Youth career
2007–2012 Strømsgodset
2012–2014 Manchester City
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014–2018 Manchester City 1 (0)
2016–2017 → Twente (loan) 27 (5)
2017–2018 → Ipswich Town (loan) 35 (7)
2018– Swansea City 73 (7)
National team‡
2011–2012 Norway U15 4 (0)
2012–2013 Norway U16 3 (0)
2013–2014 Norway U17 8 (0)
2014 Norway U21 1 (0)
2017 Kosovo U21 2 (0)
2014– Kosovo 20 (2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 22:17, 22 July 2020 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 18 November 2019

He began his professional career with Manchester City, where he made four appearances and had loans at Twente of the Eredivisie and Ipswich Town of the EFL Championship. He was signed by Swansea in 2018.

Born in FR Yugoslavia, Celina was raised in Norway. After representing them at youth level, he made his senior international debut for Kosovo in 2014.

Club career

Early career

Celina grew up in Drammen, Norway, where he moved to at the age of two.[1] He started his youth career at Strømsgodset in Norway. In 2012, he was offered a scholarship from the Manchester City Reserves and Academy in England, where he spent the next two years as a scholar.

Manchester City

On 1 July 2014, Celina signed a three-year professional contract with Manchester City.[2] At the time, Celina was injured and had a surgery; after returning from injury, he remained with the youth team whilst rehabilitating.

In late December 2014, Celina was called up to the first team by head coach Manuel Pellegrini due to the busy Christmas schedule that saw Manchester City play four games in just over a week.[3] Celina was not selected in the 18-man squad for the three matches in the Premier League, but in the fourth match valid for the third round of FA Cup against Sheffield Wednesday on 4 January 2015, he made the matchday squad. Celina remained on the bench for the entire match, which finished with a 2–1 comeback victory for City.[4]

On 19 January 2015, Celina was selected to take part in the first-team squad's mid-season Abu Dhabi training camp along with three other Manchester City academy players. He was included along with Brandon Barker, George Evans and Thierry Ambrose from Patrick Vieira's Elite Development Squad for the trip to the Middle East.[5] Celina made his first senior appearance for City as a substitute for Edin Džeko in a friendly against German side Hamburger SV.[6]

Celina made his official debut for the first team on 9 January 2016 in the FA Cup tie against Norwich City, coming on as an 85th-minute substitute in a 3–0 away win.[7] Later he also made his first Premier League appearance by playing as a substitute in a 3–1 home defeat against Leicester City on 6 February, assisting Sergio Agüero for Manchester City's only goal.[8] On 21 February, he made his first appearance in Manchester City's starting XI in an FA Cup fifth round match against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.[9]

Loan at Twente

On 25 August 2016, Celina joined Eredivisie side FC Twente, on a season-long loan.[10] He made his debut on 10 September, as a 67th-minute substitute, scoring his first goal for the club.[11] On 29 January 2017, Celina was sent off with a red card at 49 minutes, in a match against PEC Zwolle.[12] On 6 April, Celina scored his 5th goal for Twente in stoppage time, to save a 2–2 draw with PSV.[13] Following the 2016–17 campaign Celina signed a new three-year deal with Manchester City.[14]

Loan at Ipswich Town

On 3 July 2017, Celina joined EFL Championship side Ipswich Town, on a season-long loan.[15] On 22 August 2017, he scored his first goal for Ipswich in an EFL Cup tie against Crystal Palace.[16] He scored his first league goal for Ipswich in a 2–1 loss against Queens Park Rangers.

Swansea City

On 31 July 2018, Celina signed for EFL Championship side Swansea City for a reported fee of £3 million with a further £1 million to follow in performance-based bonuses.[17] One day later, the club confirmed that Celina had joined on a permanent transfer after agreeing to a four-year deal.[18] On 4 August, he made his debut in a 1–2 away win against Sheffield United after being named in the starting line-up.[19] He scored his first goal for the Swans in a 3–2 loss against his former club Ipswich on 6 October.[20]

On 13 March 2019, Celina was mocked in a 3–0 loss at West Bromwich Albion for slipping over while taking a penalty.[21] Three days later, he scored in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup to give Swansea a 2–0 half time lead over his former club Manchester City at the Liberty Stadium, though they lost 3–2.[22]

International career

Norway

Youth

In his first years at international level, Celina was capped four times for Norway under-15s and three times for the under-16 side.

Under-17

He was called up to the under-17 team by coach Bård Flovik to participate in the 2013 UEFA European Under-17 Championship. In the opening match against Malta on 29 September 2012, Celina was an unused substitute.[23] He started the second match on 1 October against Iceland before being substituted in the 77th minute for Joachim Eriksen. The match finished with a 2–0 victory.[24] For the last match, against Portugal on 4 October, he was again an unused substitute for the entire match, which finished with a 1–0 win.[25]

Under-21

On 25 August 2015, Celina was called up to play for Norway under-21 side in a U21 European Championship qualifier against England.[26] He made his debut for the U21s as an 87th-minute substitute in the match on 7 September.[27]

Kosovo

Senior

As soon as FIFA permitted the Kosovo to play sanctioned friendly matches with other FIFA members, in March 2014, Celina was called up to the Kosovo squad for their first sanctioned match against Haiti.[28] He was an unused substitute for the match, which finished in a goalless draw.

Celina missed the two upcoming friendlies against Turkey and Senegal in May due to injury, but returned in September 2014 for the match against Oman.[29] He made his debut for Kosovo in that match by playing for 83 minutes, as Kosovo won 1–0 to record its maiden win.[30]

In January 2015, Celina declared that he would turn down a call-up to the Norway, as he wanted to play for Kosovo.[31] Albert Bunjaki, the head coach of Kosovo declared that he would not be selected to play for Albania despite his holding dual citizenship from Norway and Kosovo.[32]

After making appearances with Kosovo's national side he also appeared once for Norway U21, keeping his options open. However, he all but confirmed his allegiance to Kosovo when he appeared in their first friendly as a FIFA nation, against the Faroe Islands. He made his competitive debut against Finland on 5 September 2016, coming on as a sub in the 66th minute, cap tying him to Kosovo, confirming which national team he will represent.

Under-21

On 5 June 2017, Celina received a call-up from Kosovo U21 for a 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification match against Norway U21[33] and made his debut after being named in the starting line-up.

Personal life

On 7 August 2016, Celina was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol when officers found him behind the wheel in Manchester City Centre at 3.30 am. He was fined £2,625 and banned from driving for one year. He was also ordered to pay £255 in costs.[34]

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 15 July 2020
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup League Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Manchester City 2014–15[35] Premier League 0000000000
2015–16[36] Premier League 1030000040
2016–17[37] Premier League 0000000000
2017–18[38] Premier League 0000000000
Total 1030000040
Twente (loan) 2016–17[39] Eredivisie 27510——285
Ipswich Town (loan) 2017–18[38] Championship 3571021—388
Swansea City 2018–19[40] Championship 3854300—428
2019–20[41] Championship 3421000—352
Total 7275300—7710
Career total 20519103210021723

International
As of 18 November 2019[42][43]
Kosovo national team
YearAppsGoals
201410
201511
201630
201730
201830
201991
Total202

International goals
As of match played 21 March 2019. Kosovo score listed first, score column indicates score after each Celina goal.[39][42]
International goals by date, venue, cap, opponent, score, result and competition
No. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition
1 13 November 2015Pristina City Stadium, Pristina, Kosovo2 Albania1–12–2Friendly
2 21 March 2019Fadil Vokrri Stadium, Pristina, Kosovo12 Denmark2–12–2

Honours

Individual

References
  1. Nicholas Bergh (4 January 2015). "Stortalentet vraket Norge: – Ble ikke satset på" [A great talent wreck in Norway: – Was not bet on] (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  2. "Bersant Celina nënshkruan kontratë profesionale me Manchester City" [Bersant Celina sign a professional contract with Manchester City] (in Albanian). Borozani.com. 1 July 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  3. "Bersant Celina, në ekipin e parë të Manchester Cityt" [Bersant Celina in the first team of Manchester City] (in Albanian). Telegrafi. 24 December 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-12-27. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
  4. "Manchester City vs. Sheffield Wednesday 2 – 1". Soccerway. 4 January 2015. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  5. David Lynch (19 January 2015). "EDS quartet join Man City first team on Abu Dhabi trip". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  6. "Bersant Celina debuton me ekipin e parë të Manchester Cityt [video]" [Bersant Celina debutes with the first team of Manchester City [video]] (in Albanian). Koha.net. 21 January 2015. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  7. Simon Bajkowski (10 January 2016). "Bersant Celina's family toast his debut in style". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  8. "Report: Manchester City 1–3 Leicester City". The Mancunion. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  9. "Chelsea v Manchester City: FA Cup fifth round – live!". The Guardian. 21 February 2016.
  10. Ben Warner (25 August 2016). "FC TWENTE SIGN BERSANT CELINA ON LOAN". ReadMancity.com. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  11. "SC Heerenveen wint met 3–1 van FC Twente" [SC Heerenveen won 3–1 at FC Twente] (in Dutch). omropfryslan.nl. Retrieved 12 September 2016.
  12. Oatway, Caroline (30 January 2017). "Loan Watch: Roberts Shines Again". www.mancity.com. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
  13. Bajkowski, Simon (7 April 2017). "Man City loan stars Bersant Celina and Enes Unal impress again". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  14. "Bersant Celina's Manchester City FC profile". www.mancity.com. Archived from the original on 17 March 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  15. "Bersant Celina signs on loan". Ipswich Town F.C. 3 July 2017.
  16. "Crystal Palace 2–1 Ipswich". BBC. 22 August 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  17. "Pictured: Manchester City starlet Bersant Celina signs for Swansea City". City Watch. 30 July 2017.
  18. "Celina joins Swans". Swansea City A.F.C. 31 July 2018.
  19. "Sheffield United 1–2 Swansea City". Swansea City A.F.C. 4 August 2018. Archived from the original on 4 August 2018. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
  20. "Swansea 2–3 Ipswich". BBC Sport. 6 October 2018. Retrieved 7 October 2018.
  21. "Bersant Celina: Swansea midfielder 'has to rise above' mocking after penalty miss". BBC Sport. 14 March 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  22. Skelton, Jack (16 March 2019). "Swansea City 2-3 Manchester City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
  23. Norway U17 vs. Malta U17 – 29 September 2012 – Soccerway
  24. Norway U17 vs. Iceland U17 – 1 October 2012 – Soccerway
  25. Portugal U17 vs. Norway U17 – 4 October 2012 – Soccerway
  26. "Norway U21 vs. England U21 2 – 1". Soccerway. 7 September 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  27. "U21: – SURT AT VI IKKE FÅR MED OSS POENG" (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 2016-01-10.
  28. "Kosova shpall listën anti-Haiti" [Kosovo unveils anti-Haiti list] (in Albanian). albeu.com. 2 March 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  29. "Kosova, Bunjaki shpall listën anti-Oman" [Kosovo, Bunjaki unveils anti-Oman list] (in Albanian). albeu.com. 4 September 2014. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  30. "Kosova shijon fitoren e parë, mposht 1–0 Omanin" [Kosovo enjoys first win, defeats Oman 1–0] (in Albanian). Ora Sport. 7 September 2014. Archived from the original on 2017-03-27. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  31. "Celina do të luajë për Kosovën" [Celina will play for Kosovo] (in Albanian). Telegrafi. 25 January 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  32. "Celina refuzon Norvegjinë, Bunjaki: Nuk do luajë për Shqipërinë" [Celina turns down Norway, Bunjaki: He's not gonna play for Albania] (in Albanian). albeu.com. 23 January 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  33. "Kombëtarja U21 filloi përgatitjet për sfidën me Norvegjinë" (in Albanian). Football Federation of Kosovo. 5 June 2017.
  34. Manchester City starlet Bersant Celina fined and banned from driving after being caught over legal alcohol limit Manchester Evening News
  35. "Games played by Bersant Celina in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  36. "Games played by Bersant Celina in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  37. "Games played by Bersant Celina in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  38. "Games played by Bersant Celina in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  39. "B. Celina: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  40. "Games played by Bersant Celina in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  41. "Games played by Bersant Celina in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  42. Bersant Celina at National-Football-Teams.com
  43. "Bersant Celina". eu-football.info.
  44. "Bialkowski Players' Player of the Year". TWTD.co.uk.
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