Ansi Nika (born 22 August 1990) is an

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the ...

n professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who plays as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

for Albanian club

Flamurtari Vlorë Flamurtari FC is a professional football club based in Vlorë, Albania. The club plays in the Kategoria e Parë, which is the second tier of football in the country. Founded in 1923, the club is one of the oldest in Albania, and it is also one ...

Club career

Nika begun his professional career with Ada Velipojë where he played for two seasons, before joining his boyhood club Vllaznia Shkodër at the start of 2009–10 season. Nika signed a new one year contract with Teuta Durrës on 19 June 2014. A day later, he was loaned out to Kukësi for their

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...

qualification games. However, this deal later turned to be a permanent deal, as Nika remained at the club for the entire 2015–16 season. On 5 July 2016, Nika joined

Tirana Tirana ( , ; aln, Tirona) is the capital and largest city of Albania. It is located in the centre of the country, enclosed by mountains and hills with Dajti rising to the east and a slight valley to the northwest overlooking the Adriatic Sea ...

on a two-year contract. He was presented three days later along with fellow midfielder

Afrim Taku Afrim Taku (born 4 August 1989) is an Albanian professional footballer. Club career Early career Taku began his football career as a 13-year-old when he joined the KF Tirana academy, where he progressed through the ranks before eventually bei ...

. He scored his first goal for the club on 26 October in the 4–1 away win against Luftëtari Gjirokastër, valid for the first leg of Albanian Cup's second round. Nika terminated his contract by mutual consent on 7 January due to lack playing of time, having collect only 338 minutes in league during the first part of the season. In an interview one day later, Nika cited that he left the club on his free will. On 10 January 2017, Nika agreed personal terms and signed a contract until the end of the season with Albanian Superliga strugglers Laçi. With the number 14, Nika made his competitive debut with the club on 28 January by playing full-90 minutes in a 0–1 vital win over Korabi Peshkopi. He netted his maiden Laçi goal on 18 March, the winner against

Laçi Stadium Laçi Stadium ( sq, Stadiumi Laçi) is a multi-use stadium in Laçi, Albania. It is used mostly for football matches and hosts the home games of KF Laçi of the Kategoria Superiore. The stadium currently has an official seated capacity of 8,000. ...

as the team took three vital points in their bid to escape relegation. Nika finished the season by making 15 league appearances, including 2 in cup, as Laçi avoided the relegation by just one point by winning in the last matchday against Teuta Durrës. After initially announcing his departure from the club in the start of July, Nika returned to the club in the first days of August ahead of the new season. In the 2017–18 season, Nika continued to be a consistent starter in the midfield as he finished it with 30 league games and 2 goals. On 27 May 2018, he played in the 2018 Albanian Cup Final match versus

Skënderbeu Korçë , reign = 28 November 1443 – 17 January 1468 , predecessor = Gjon Kastrioti , successor = Gjon Kastrioti II , spouse = Donika Arianiti , issue = Gjon Kastrioti II , royal house = Kastrioti , father ...

which ended in defeat. He left the club in June 2018, concluding his spell with the club by playing 51 matches between league and cup. On 4 July 2018, Nika left Albania for the first time to sign with Football Superleague of Kosovo side Gjilani. On 18 August 2019, Nika was announced as the newest player of

, returning in Albanian Superliga after one season.

Personal life

His younger brother is also a footballer who currently plays for Ada Velipojë. Nika is a fan of his hometown club Vllaznia, whom he played in 2009–10 season.

Career statistics

Honours

;Kukësi *

Albanian Cup The Albanian Cup ( sq, Kupa e Shqipërisë) is the main "knockout" competition in Albanian football. The competition started in 1939 as Kupa e Mbretit ( English:"The King's Cup"). Just after a year the cup was suspended as the Second World War s ...

: 2015–16

References

External links

FSHF profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nika, Ansi 1990 births Living people Footballers from Shkodër Albanian footballers Association football midfielders KS Ada Velipojë players KF Vllaznia Shkodër players KF Teuta Durrës players FK Kukësi players KF Tirana players KF Laçi players SC Gjilani players Flamurtari Vlorë players Kategoria e Parë players Kategoria Superiore players Football Superleague of Kosovo players Albanian expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Kosovo Albanian expatriate sportspeople in Kosovo