Zëri – Ballgjini – Përnaska | The golden trio of Albanian football!

Liri

First came Liri. it was the year of 1967 when the great Skënder Jareci gave Dinamo a new age by affirming in the first team two young men who would later become legends of Dinamo football.

Ilir Përnaska and Faruk Sejdini. Iliri is only 16 years old. Since his debut, he scored two goals in the away victory against the local Traktori in the 1-3 victory. From that day until he left football, Ilir Përnaska would be the big name of Dinamo’s attack.

In all of Albania, even to this day, he is known as the Albanian “Gerd Myleri”. Ilir was a goal machine, an exceptional striker. Capable of scoring from any place and in any way, outside the area, inside the area with the head, with his feet, at the last minute, during a mess in the area, he was always the fearsome.

Ilir Përnaska!

One of the most prominent moments is when during the Albania – Germany 0-2 match in April 1981, after passing the German captain, center back Bernard Dietz, the latter, left behind, inside the area, violently pulls him a few meters from his jersey. To the shame of the referee, Albania was denied a clear penalty!

Its the late 70-ties, when Dinamo-Flamurtari is played . At the ’87 , the score is 0-0. After a cross from the right, goalkeeper Berberi of Flamurtari , comes out and punches the ball. Outside the zone, the “killer” Ilir Pernaska, gets up in the air and stops the ball with his chest – he rises – and without letting the ball fall to the ground with a powerful and technical shot, he sends it straight to the triangle of Flamurtaris goal .

I’m in the 20s and I`m in “Qemal Stafa”, among the fans of a full stadium, without realizing that in that atheist country, I had to thank God (and my Dinamo fans) that I was there, in that temple where everything was allowed and every age had reserve a seat. Where such pieces of puzzle completed a chapter of brilliant football history.

Liri left football in 1982 after 15 years at Dinamo when he got in the team as a unknown child. He left as a man and his jersey with No. 7 weighed heavily. Ilir Pernaska is a myth to this day. The shirt with number 7 was worn by several Dinamo players. No one could value that number like Ilir Përnaska. Iliri himself gave it to Sulejman Demollari, but this is another story…

Pernaska – Kola

Ilir Pernaska

6 times – Albanian Golden Shoe titles 1971–72, 1972–73, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1976–77 !
“Master of Sports”; “Merited Master of Sports”; “Grand Master –Order of Naim Frashëri”
The best goalscorer in the history of Dinamo, with over 150 official goals scored between the seasons 1971-1981.
5 Championships won: 1972–73, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1976–77, 1979–80
4 Republic Cups: 1970–71, 1973–74, 1977–78
6 times in a row Top Scorer of the Championship (which constitutes an absolute record).

Vasillaq Zeri

It was the year 1973. Before the start of the Natinal Championship, the news had gone around the Tirana fans. Vasillaq Zëri from the extraordinary spark of the students went to Dinamo. One more value in the Dinamo attack, in which Përnaska, the top scorer of the Albanian championships, was already was playing there for several seasons. Llaqi, as he was called for short, with no. 9, was one of those players who hardly appear twice in a century. In fact, they hardly ever appear again.

The king of dribbling in Albania was also an excellent scorer. The player who scored in big matches, from those that remain unforgettable in the memory of fans such as Dinamo – Tirana, Dinamo – Partizani or Dinamo – Vllaznia.

The winning scorer against Carl Zeiss Jena, the fear of Aberdeen’s defense and Ajax Amsterdam. Even the leaders of Ajax asked for him to get an agreement for a contract, but in communist Albania, player signings were not allowed out of the country and football was amateur. All the players, include we are talking about are semi-professional.

Zeri was a striker based on dribbling but also a sniper in shooting, which were really his specialty. Perhaps the most popular player in Albania because he represented beautiful, and fun football. It is the reason that most of today’s 50-60-year-old Dinamo fans fell in love with this team as children, precisely because of the beautiful game of the unforgettable Vasillaq Zëri!

In a way, just like Garrinça, Llaqi was the joy of the people in the years he played football, especially with the colors of Dinamo from 1973 to 1984.

I don’t remember if I was in the third or fourth grade. I don’t remember well if it was 1978 or 1979. Also, I can’t say for sure that I was a Dinamo fan, but I was a fan of Llaqi, Vasillaq Zeri!

That afternoon, my father took me to the stadium to watch the Dinamo-Skenderbeu match. Just before the end of the match, when Dinamo was already leading 1-0 with a goal from Zeri, Llaqi is outside the area with a defender in front of him. He avoids him effortlessly, running to his left, as if by magic. At the entrance of the area, the last defender intervenes. Again, as if by magic, he avoids the second defender by running away from the right and after this mini slalom he is now in front of Jani Kaci. Jani, the goalkeeper of the national team at that time, jumps to his feet, but Llaqi passes the ball above Kaci`s body and is the only one who enters the goal with the ball!

What could a child in Brazil feel if he saw Garrinca score such a goal? Exactly those feelings electrified me as a child once in “Qemal Stafa”!

Shyqyri Ballgjini

He is the last of the legendary Dinamo trio. Pernaska from 1967 and Zeri from 1973 were already there. In fact, Zëri had just finished the first season with Dinamo. Ballgjini, with no. 11 on his back, was the most suitable man to complete a formidable attacking trio.

With his running down the left wing that resembled a tirelessly working compressor, with his perfect crosses from the left, with an “iron lung”, he best connects the sniff inside the area of the “assassin” from the air and land, Pérnaska, with the dribbler and the shooter like Zëri.

Irresistible in one-on-one duels, with good shots and the scorer’s sniff, Ballgjini who arrived from Durrës, gives another impulse to that trio, makes it scary and to this day, maybe the best attack line of all time in Albanian Fotbooll.

Cloudy afternoon. The “Qemal Stafa” stadium is full. It`s the return match, the second leg of the final match of U21 “Shpresat” for the Balkan Cup, Albania vs Romania.

Looking to reverse the 1-3 first leg loss in Romania.

Ballgjini is team`s captain. Already, when the result reached 6-1 for our boys of Albania, he scored and served for others. It’s his game! Just before the end, outside the area, passing the ball over his head, he leaves behind the last defender and heads for the goal.

The goalkeeper rushes out to stop him. The defender from behind, with both hands, by all means, pulls Ballgjini`s from his body and shirt. Before crashing, Ballgjini manages to shoot the ball above the goalkeeper, sealing the Albania-Romania score 7-1!

After the match, as the captain of the team, now as the Champion of Balkan, he takes the Cup from the hand of Loro Borici! In the same temple, against the same opponent, he takes the trophy from the hand of a legendary captain back 1946 when Albania won the Cup in rank of National Teams!

Coincidences that repeat themselves are no longer called coincidences!

Shyqyri Ballgjini

Five – titles Five championships 1972–73, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1976–77, 1979–80

Two – Republic Cups 1973–74, 1977–78

One – Under21 Balkan Champion, 1978 .

Zeri – Ballgjini – Pernaska!

During a decade, the trio counted over 400 matches (national and international activities), scoring over 300 goals in total. Unfortunately, very few in international matches. In the beginning of the 70s, after a 1-4 defeat with the Olympic team of Romania in Tirana, the F.SH.F. notified UEFA and FIFA, for a self-suspension, after which came the three-year official disqualification (1973- 76), for Albanian football with clubs and representatives (the third in our history, after the periods 1953-1957 and 1958-1963).

This was the great misfortune of the football careers of that time in Albania. The good thing was that those people, although they never became rich, enjoy forever the title of respected man!