The President of the Albanian Football Federation, Armand Duka, spoke in an interview with Klan News, touching on some of the most important current issues in Albanian football, from goalkeeper Elia Caprile’s approach to the situation of Armando Broja and developments within the institution he leads.
Duka confirmed that goalkeeper Elia Caprile has expressed his desire to represent Albania, while noting that the process is also linked to the documentation and status of his wife.
“Caprile has expressed his desire to play for Albania. His wife’s status is also involved, as she needs to be issued a passport, but this is not something entirely in our hands, as there are several documents we are working on. If it happens, it will not happen now. It would be an added value for us,” said the head of the FSHF.
Another important topic was Armando Broja. Despite the difficulties the striker has faced, Duka continues to believe in his potential, describing him as the greatest talent Albania has had.
“Broja? The greatest talent we have and have had. I still believe in him, as neither we nor he have gotten the maximum out of him,” Duka stated.
The FSHF president also expressed disappointment at the failure to approve the sponsorship law, an issue that, in his view, has been discussed for years and remains important for the development of Albanian sport.
“I am disappointed by the failure to approve the sponsorship law. We have been talking about it for so many years. I hope it gets approved, as we were promised some time ago,” he stressed.
Regarding relations with Kosovo, Duka rejected any idea of rivalry between the two federations: “No competition with Kosovo, we lobbied for them to become members and to have representative teams.”
On the discussions surrounding coaches Maran and Sylvinho, Duka was diplomatic, emphasizing that he always supports the coach who is in office.
As for player selection and the national team squad, the head of the FSHF stressed that decisions belong to the coach and are essentially subjective.
“Subjective. He picks those he thinks can deliver results,” concluded Armand Duka.