*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 7 November 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 12 June 2022
Veton Berisha (born 13 April 1994) is a Norwegian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Molde in Eliteserien. His parents are from Kosovo and he is the younger brother of Valon Berisha. Berisha has represented Norway at every level from under-15 to full international level.
Club career
Berisha was born in Egersund,[2] and started his career in the local club Egersunds IK. He was considered one of the biggest Norwegian talents at his age and, like his brother Valon, Veton was on a trial with Manchester City before he signed for Viking in May 2009, but did not join the club until the summer of 2010.[3] He made his debut for Egersunds' first-team in 2009 against Hundvåg,[4] and in total he played 21 matches for the Third Division side.
After joining Viking, Berisha trained with the first team in the pre-season ahead of the 2011 season,[5] and made his debut for the club when he replaced Erik Nevland after 60 minutes in the first round of the 2011 Norwegian Cup against his old club Egersund.[2] Berisha got his first minutes of playing-time in Tippeligaen in the 1–3 loss against Tromsø on 19 May 2011,[6] and started his first match for Viking when Brann was beaten 3–0 on 17 June 2011.[7]
On 19 June 2011, Berisha and his brother Valon became the first brothers to start a match for Viking in 22 years since Jan and Egil Fjetland played against Molde in the 1989 Norwegian Cup final.[8] After the match, Viking's manager Åge Hareide said that "It's fun to start the game with two brothers, I only wish they could pass the ball to others than themselves, as it would create a lot more chances for us, but since they are brothers I guess we can forgive them.[8] In the match against Aalesund on 17 July 2011, Berisha got his first league-goal when he scored the match-winning goal 12 minutes after he came on as a substitute to replace Erik Nevland.[9]
During the mid-summer break in the 2012 season, Berisha expressed a concern about his lack of playing time; he had only played 69 minutes in the league that season and his last appearance in Viking's starting line-up was on 7 August 2011. But Berisha was hoping for a fresh start after Kjell Jonevret was hired as the new head coach following Hareide's departure.[10] In the fourth round of the 2012 Norwegian Cup, Berisha scored Viking's first goal after only one minute on the pitch, but Brann eventually won 3–2.[11]
On 15 July 2012, Berisha secured Jonevret his first victory as Viking-coach, when he scored the match-winning goal in the stoppage-time against Hønefoss.[12]
On 22 April 2013, it was reported that Berisha fractured his right elbow and would be absent for two months.[13]
After scoring 11 goals in 14 matches halfway through the 2015 season, Berisha joined 2. Bundesliga side Greuther Fürth on a free transfer on 1 July 2015.[14] On 1 September 2017, he signed a three-year contract with Austrian club Rapid Wien.[15]
On 30 March 2019, he returned to Norwegian football, signing a four-year contract with Brann.[16] In January 2020, Berisha joined his former club Viking for a reported fee of around NOK 6.5 million. He signed a four-year contract with the club.[17][18]
On 23 July 2022, Berisha transferred to Hammarby IF in the Swedish Allsvenskan, signing a four-and-a-half-year deal.[19] The transfer fee was reportedly set at around 20 million Norwegian kroner, making it a record breaking transfer for Hammarby.[20] In total, Berisha made 15 competitive appearances for Hammarby, scoring four goals, helping the side to reach a 3rd place in the 2022 Allsvenskan table.[21]
On 24 January 2023, Molde announced the signing of Berisha to a four-year contract.[22] He was sought out as a replacement for David Datro Fofana and the transfer fee was reportedly set at around 35-40 million Swedish kronor, with potential bonuses included.[23][24][25]
International career
Having played one match for Norway U15 in 2009, Berisha played nine matches for Norway U16 the next year where he scored three goals. In 2011, Berisha also scored three goals in nine matches while representing his country, this time for the under-17 team. He made 14 appearances and scored eight goals for Norway U18 before representing the under-19 team twice in 2013, scoring one goal. Between 2013 and 2016, Berisha played 17 matches and scored two goals for the under-21 team.[26]
On 29 May 2016, Berisha debuted for the Norwegian senior squad in a friendly match against Portugal.[27] He scored his first goal for Norway on 5 June 2016 against Belgium.[citation needed]
Like his brother Valon, he was approached by Kosovo when the country became FIFA members in May 2016. Veton Berisha decided to keep representing Norway.[28][29]
^ abNilssen, Knut Arne (20 June 2011). "Familien Berishas store dag". Stavanger Aftenblad (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 22 August 2011. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
^Aas, Odd Inge (29 May 2016). "Høgmo slapp ikke til spilleren "alle" ville se". Stavanger Aftenblad (in Norwegian). Mot det fjerde best rangerte laget i Europa slapp landslagssjefen til hele fem debutanter. Anders Trondsen og Veton Berisha fra start, Iver Fossum, Alexander Sørloth og Niklas Gunnarsson fra benken. [Against the fourth best-ranked team in Europe, national team manager [Per-Mathias Høgmo] introduced five debutants. Anders Trondsen and Veton Berisha from the start; Iver Fossum, Alexander Sørloth, and Niklas Gunnarsson from the bench.]
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