Bekim Balaj (Albanian: Bekim Balaj; born January 11, 1991) is an Albanian footballer who plays as a forward. In the 2021/2022 season he played for the Nizhny Novgorod club Pari Nizhny Novgorod in the Russian Premier League.[3]
Career
He began his professional career at the Albanian club Vllaznia (2009/2010 season, 30 matches, 9 goals), then played for the Tirana-based club Tirana (2010–2012, 37 matches, 15 goals).[3] In the 2012/2013 season he moved to the Czech club Sparta Prague (12 matches, 3 goals), after which he played for the Polish club Jagiellonia (2013/2014, 31 matches, 7 goals) and the Czech club Slavia (2014/2015, 13 matches, 3 goals).[3]
In 2014–2016 he played for the Croatian club Rijeka, appearing in 46 matches and scoring 18 goals.[3] In 2016 he moved to the Russian club Terek (later renamed Akhmat): over three seasons in the RPL he played 61 matches and scored 12 goals, with the 2016/2017 season being the most productive (26 matches, 9 goals).[3] In July 2019 he moved to the Austrian club Sturm Graz, where he spent two seasons — 57 matches, 9 goals.[1][3]
Height: 188 cm; weight: 80 kg.[3]
In Nizhny Novgorod
In July 2021, Balaj moved to Nizhny Novgorod (now Pari Nizhny Novgorod), which had returned to the RPL after being promoted.[1] In the 2021/2022 season the forward played 15 matches in the Premier League without scoring a single goal, and in January 2022 his contract was terminated.[1][3]
After Russia and Current Status
After leaving Nizhny Novgorod, Balyay played for the Turkish clubs Boluspor (second division, 14 matches, 4 goals in the 2021/2022 season) and Kecioren Gucu (14 matches, 1 goal in the 2022/2023 season), and then returned to his homeland to join Vllaznia.[3] In the 2023/2024 season he was one of the club's top scorers: 22 matches, 14 goals in the Albanian championship. In the 2025/2026 season he continues to play for Vllaznia — 14 matches, 8 goals.[3] Over his career he has played 379 matches and scored 104 goals.[3]
Sources
- sports.ru — Bekim Balaj — news, the latest and most up-to-date news today, fresh events from his career and life right now on Sports.ru
- soccer.ru — Security Check
- sports.ru — Bekim Balaj — footballer, forward, Vllaznia, 35 years old, goals and statistics 2026, career, results, number, contract, biography, Wikipedia, Transfermarkt, news, video on Sports.ru