Taulant Xhaka

Taulant Ragip Xhaka (born 28 March 1991) is a professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Swiss club Basel. Born in Switzerland, he represents the Albania national football team.

Club Career

Early years

Taulant Xhaka started playing football at the age of 6 and entered at FC Concordia Basel in 2000 before moving along with his brother to FC Basel two years later. He played for various FC Basel youth teams and from 2008 became a regular member of the under-21 team for two years in the Swiss 1. Liga playing overall 37 games, scoring six goals.

Basel

At the beginning of the 2010–11 season, he and his brother Granit moved up into the first team squad where he begun playing as a defender. He made his first team debut on 19 September 2010 in the 5–0 Swiss Cup win against FC Mendrisio-Stabio. He made his Super League debut on 27 February 2011 in the 1–0 away win against Luzern. At the end of the season, the team won the Super League title, Xhaka's first silverware with the club.

In the next season, Xhaka scored his first Basel goal on 10 September during the 4–0 away league win against Servette, where he came on as a substitute. On 27 September, he made his UEFA Champions League debut as a substitute in the 3–3 away draw against Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Loan to Grasshoppers

On 18 January 2012, it was announced Xhaka was sent on loan to Grasshoppers to gain first-team playing experience. He made his Grasshoppers debut on 12 February during the 2–0 away defeat to Zurich, and until the end of the season he established himself in the starting lineup, making 13 appearances during the second part of 2011–12 season. He also spent the 2012–13 season on loan to the Grasshoppers. But for the following season Basel recalled him into their squad.

Return to Basel

Basel coach Murat Yakin recalled Xhaka to the Basel squad as defensive midfielder. During the 2013–14 seas

This page also has a version in other languages :  Таулянт Джака (russian)