Edon Zhegrova

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Edon Zhegrova
Zhegrova asselosc 2425 (cropped).jpg
Zhegrova with Lille in 2024
Personal information
Full name Edon Lulzim Zhegrova
Date of birth (1999-03-31) 31 March 1999 (age 26)
Place of birth Herford, Germany
Height 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Right winger/right midfielder
Team information
Current team
Juventus
Number 11
Youth career
2012 Flamurtari
2012–2015 Prishtina
2015 Standard Liège
2015–2017 Sint-Truiden
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2017–2019 Genk 19 (2)
2019–2022 Basel 60 (9)
2022–2025 Lille 80 (15)
2025– Juventus 0 (0)
International career
2018– Kosovo 42 (5)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 19:00, 14 December 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 18 November 2024

Edon Lulzim Zhegrova (born 31 March 1999) is a professional footballer who plays as a right winger or right midfielder for Serie A club Juventus. Born in Germany, he plays for the Kosovo national team.

Contents

Club career

Early career / Genk

Zhegrova is a product of youth team systems of the different Kosovan and Belgian sides. In 2012, he was chosen as the best player of the Milan Junior Camp which was held in Kosovo. [1] [2] [3] On 22 March 2017, Zhegrova joined Belgian First Division A side Genk. [4] On 10 September 2017, he made his debut in a 1–1 away draw against Gent after coming on as a substitute in the 80th minute in place of Ruslan Malinovskyi. [5]

Basel

Period on loan

On 4 February 2019, Genk announced the loan of Zhegrova to Swiss Super League side Basel. [6] On the same day later, the Swiss club confirmed that he had joined on a one and a half season loan contract and received squad number 30. [7] On 23 February 2019, he made his debut in a 2–0 away win against Neuchâtel Xamax after coming on as a substitute in the 83rd minute in place of Valentin Stocker. [8] [9] He scored his first goal for his new club on 25 September 2019 in the home match in the St. Jakob Stadium against Zürich as Basel won 4–0. It was the third goal of the game. [10]

Return as a permanent player

On 22 September 2020, Zhegrova signed a three-year contract with Swiss Super League club Basel and received squad number 30. [11] Five days later, he made his debut in a 1–0 away win against Servette after being named in the starting line-up. [12] Seven days after debut, Zhegrova scored his first goal for Basel in his third appearance for the club in a 3–2 home win over Luzern in Swiss Super League. [13]

On 14 January the club announced that Zhegrova had transferred out and signed for French team Lille for undisclosed fee. [14] During his three years with the club from January 2019 to January 2022 Zhegrova played a total of 89 games for Basel scoring a total of 15 goals. 60 of these games were in the Swiss Super League, 3 in the Swiss Cup, 11 in the Europa League and Conference League and 15 were friendly games. He scored 9 goals in the domestic league, 2 in the Conference League and the other 4 were scored during the test games. [15]

Lille

On 14 January 2022, Zhegrova signed a four-year contract with Ligue 1 club Lille and received squad number 23. [16] Lille reportedly paid a €7 million transfer fee. [17] Eight days later, he was named as a Lille substitute for the first time in a league match against Brest. [18] His debut with Lille came on 6 February in a 1–5 home defeat against Paris Saint-Germain after coming on as a substitute in the 85th minute in place of Jonathan Bamba. [19] One month after debut, Zhegrova scored his first goal for Lille in his fourth appearance for the club in a 4–0 home win over Clermont in Ligue 1. [20]

On 23 October 2024, Zhegrova scored his first UEFA Champions League goal in a 3–1 away win over Atlético Madrid during the 2024–25 season. [21] He missed out on the second half of the season due to a hip adductor injury suffered in a 1–1 league draw to Marseille on 14 December 2024. [22] On 24 August 2025, Zhegrova returned from injury and was named as a substitute for Lille in their second Ligue 1 match against Monaco. [23]

Juventus

On 1 September 2025, Zhegrova signed a five-year contract with Serie A club Juventus and received squad number 11. [24] Juventus reportedly paid a €15.5 million transfer fee. [25] His debut with Juventus came fifteen days later in the 2025–26 UEFA Champions League league phase against Borussia Dortmund after coming on as a substitute at 86th minute in place of Kenan Yıldız and was involved in the fourth goal as he launched the attack and passed to Dušan Vlahović, who assisted Lloyd Kelly to tie the score at 4–4. [26]

International career

Being an ethnic Kosovo Albanian, Zhegrova had the option to represent both Albania and Kosovo, but decided to represent the latter. [27] In August 2017, he refused a call-up from Kosovo U21 with the pretence that it was important for him to concentrate on playing at the club level for now. [28] On 6 March 2018, Zhegrova finally decided to play for Kosovo. [27] Thirteen days later, he formalizes the decision and accept their call-up for the friendly matches against Madagascar and Burkina Faso. [29] His debut with Kosovo came five days after the call-up in the friendly match against Madagascar after being named in the starting line-up. He scored his side's only goal during a 1–0 home win, thus becoming, at 18 years and 11 months, Kosovo's youngest goalscorer ever, [30] beating the record of Bersant Celina.

Personal life

Zhegrova was born in Herford, Germany to Kosovo Albanian parents from the village Dobrajë e Madhe of Lipjan, [31] which later would be his temporary residence after his family returned to Kosovo’s capital, Pristina, after the end of Kosovo War. [28] Zhegrova's younger sister, Valza is a former singer. [32] [33]

On 22 August 2025, Zhegrova obtained an Albanian passport, [34] which enabled his transfer to Juventus in Serie A eleven days later as players holding an Albanian passport are considered local within the league. [35]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 16 September 2025 [36]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeagueNational cup [a] Europe OtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Genk 2017–18 Belgian Pro League 121201 [b] 0151
2018–19 Belgian Pro League71114 [c] 2124
Total192314210275
Basel (loan) 2018–19 Swiss Super League 801090
2019–20 Swiss Super League142103 [c] 0182
Total2222030272
Basel 2020–21 Swiss Super League305101 [c] 0325
2021–22 Swiss Super League82007 [d] 2154
Total3871082479
Lille 2021–22 Ligue 1 132001 [e] 0142
2022–23 Ligue 122331254
2023–24 Ligue 13363311 [d] 34712
2024–25 Ligue 1124009 [e] 4218
Total80156421710726
Juventus 2025–26 Serie A 00001 [e] 010
Career total1592612537111020942
  1. Includes Belgian Cup, Swiss Cup, Coupe de France
  2. Appearance in Belgian Pro League championship play-offs
  3. 1 2 3 Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. 1 2 Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
  5. 1 2 3 Appearance(s) in UEFA Champions League

International

As of match played 18 November 2024 [37]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Kosovo 201882
201990
202050
202120
202241
202361
202481
Total425

Scores and results list Kosovo's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Zhegrova goal.

List of international goals scored by Edon Zhegrova
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetitionRef.
124 March 2018Stade Municipal Jean Rolland, Franconville, FranceFlag of Madagascar.svg  Madagascar 1–01–0 Friendly [38]
229 May 2018 Letzigrund, Zürich, SwitzerlandFlag of Albania.svg  Albania 3–03–0 [39]
32 June 2022 AEK Arena – Georgios Karapatakis, Larnaca, CyprusFlag of Cyprus.svg  Cyprus 2–02–0 2022–23 UEFA Nations League C [40]
428 March 2023 Fadil Vokrri Stadium, Pristina, KosovoFlag of Andorra.svg  Andorra 1–01–1 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying [41]
512 October 2024 Darius and Girėnas Stadium, Kaunas, LithuaniaFlag of Lithuania.svg  Lithuania 1–02–1 2024–25 UEFA Nations League C [42]

Honours

KRC Genk

FC Basel

Individual

References

  1. "Taçi Oil" dhe "Milan Junior Kamp" çojnë dhjetë talente kosovarë në "San Siro" ["Taçi Oil" and "Milan Junior Camp" sent ten Kosovar talents to "San Siro"]. Telegraf.al (in Albanian). 2 November 2012.
  2. "Edon Zhegrova: Der Superlativ-Magnet aus dem Kosovo" [Edon Zhegrova: The superlative magnet from Kosovo] (in German). GOAL. 9 January 2018.
  3. "Goal.com: Edon Zhegrova, supertalenti nga Kosova që ëndërron Barcelonën" [Goal.com: Edon Zhegrova, a super-talent from Kosovo who dreams of Barcelona] (in Albanian). Telegrafi. 9 January 2018.
  4. "Edon Zhegrova nënshkruan me Genk" [Edon Zhegrova signed with Genk] (in Albanian). Koha Ditore. 22 March 2017.
  5. "Zhegrova debuton në futbollin belg" [Zhegrova debuts in the Belgian football] (in Albanian). Radio Television of Kosovo. 10 September 2017.
  6. "Zhegrova trekt naar Basel" [Zhegrova moves to Basel] (in Dutch). K.R.C. Genk. 4 February 2019.
  7. "Edon Zhegrova leihweise zum FC Basel 1893" [Edon Zhegrova on loan to FC Basel 1893] (in German). FC Basel. 4 February 2019. Archived from the original on 18 April 2019. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  8. "Der FCB gewinnt gegen Xamax" [The FCB wins against Xamax] (in German). FC Basel. 23 February 2019. Archived from the original on 18 April 2019. Retrieved 23 February 2019. FCB: Omlin; Widmer, Suchy (72. Frei), Kaiser, Petretta; Xhaka, Kuzmanovic (77. Zuffi); Okafor, Campo, Stocker (83. Zhegrova); Ajeti
  9. Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv” (23 February 2019). "Neuchâtel Xamax FCS - FC Basel 0:2 (0:1)". Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv”. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
  10. Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv” (25 September 2019). "FC Basel - FC Zürich 4:0 (1:0)". Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv”. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  11. "Edon Zhegrova unterschreibt beim FCB bis Sommer 2023" [Edon Zhegrova will sign with FCB until summer 2023] (in German). FC Basel. 22 September 2020. Archived from the original on 1 October 2020. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  12. "Eine bittere Penalty-Niederlage in Genf" [A bitter penalty defeat in Geneva] (in Albanian). FC Basel. 27 September 2020.[ permanent dead link ]
  13. "3:2 gegen Luzern – drei hart erkämpfte und verdiente Punkte" [3:2 against Luzern – three hard-fought and deserved points] (in German). FC Basel. 4 October 2020.
  14. FC Basel 1893 (14 January 2022). "Edon Zhegrova wechselt zum Französischen Meister OSC Lille". Edon Zhegrova moves to the French champions Lille OSC. FC Basel 1893 AG. Retrieved 14 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  15. Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv” (2022). "Edon Zhegrova - FCB-Statistik". Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv”. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  16. "Edon Zhegrova, un nouveau talent chez les Dogues" [Edon Zhegrova, a new talent for the Dogues] (in French). Lille OSC. 14 January 2022. Archived from the original on 14 January 2022. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  17. Domenighetti, Joël (14 January 2022). "Lille va engager Edon Zhegrova" [Lille will sign Edon Zhegrova]. L'Équipe (in French). Archived from the original on 14 January 2022. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  18. Lille OSC [@LOSC_EN] (22 January 2022). "Our #SB29LOSC line-up... #LOSC | @Hello_Lille" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  19. "LOSC–PSG (1–5): Une soirée à oublier" [LOSC–PSG (1–5): An evening to forget] (in French). Lille OSC. 6 February 2022. Archived from the original on 6 February 2022. Retrieved 6 February 2022.
  20. Lille OSC [@LOSC_EN] (6 March 2022). "EDON GETS HIS FIRST LILLE GOAL!!! | 4–0 #LOSCCF63 | #LOSC | @Ligue1_ENG" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  21. "Edon Zhegrova punishes Atletico Madrid with a Euro goal". Telegrafi. 23 October 2024.
  22. "Zhegrova's return to the field is postponed - the Kosovar star will be absent for another six weeks". Telegrafi. 26 January 2025.
  23. "Edon Zhegrova returns to Lille, invited for the match against Monaco". Telegrafi. 24 August 2025.
  24. "Zhegrova is Bianconero!". Juventus FC. 1 September 2025.
  25. "Agreement reached with Lille for the permanent transfer of player Zhegrova" (PDF). Juventus FC. 1 September 2025.
  26. "Edon Zhegrova makes his debut with Juventus in the spectacular match against Dortmund". Telegrafi. 16 September 2025.
  27. 1 2 "Edon Zhegrova i thotë "Po" Kosovës" [Edon Zhegrova says "Yes" to Kosovo] (in Albanian). Football Federation of Kosovo. 6 March 2018.
  28. 1 2 "Genkenaar stuurt bondscoach wandelen: "Ik had daar weinig zin in" [Genkenaar sends national coach walking: "I did not feel like it]. Voetbalprimeur (in Dutch). 5 September 2017.
  29. "Lista e futbollistëve të ftuar nga Bernard Challandes për miqësoret e marsit" [List of invited footballers by Bernard Challandes for the March friendlies] (in Albanian). Football Federation of Kosovo. 19 March 2018. Archived from the original on 21 September 2019. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  30. "Challandes e nis me fitore, Zhegrova debuton me gol" [Challandes starts with victory, Zhegrova debuts with a goal] (in Albanian). Football Federation of Kosovo. 24 March 2018. Archived from the original on 25 April 2019. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
  31. "Edon Zhegrova nga Dobraja e Madhe mbrëmë Luajti dhe e Përfaqësoj Kosovën A, vetem 19 vjeqar.! #KrenarmeZhegroven" [Edon Zhegrova from Dobraja e Madhe last night Played and Represented non existent national team of Kosovo A, only 19 years old.! #ProudwithZhegrova]. Facebook (in Albanian). KF Arbëria. 22 March 2019. [self-published]
  32. "Valza Zhegrova : Biografia" [Valza Zhegrova : Biography]. Tekste Shqip (in Albanian).
  33. "Fol Shqip" Show – Edon & Valza Zhegrova – 27.04.2019 on YouTube
  34. "Për dhënie të shtetësisë shqiptare" [For granting Albanian citizenship] (in Albanian). Qendra e Botimeve Zyrtare. 22 August 2025.
  35. "Edon Zhegrova receives Albanian passport, opens the door to transfer to Juventus". Telegrafi. 22 August 2025.
  36. Edon Zhegrova at Soccerway OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  37. "Edon Zhegrova". EU-Football.info. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
  38. "Kosovo (1–0) Madagascar". EU-Football.info. 24 March 2018.
  39. "Kosovo (3–0) Albania". EU-Football.info. 29 May 2018.
  40. "Cyprus (0–2) Kosovo". EU-Football.info. 2 June 2022.
  41. "Kosovo (1–1) Andorra". EU-Football.info. 28 March 2023.
  42. "Lithuania-Kosovo". UEFA. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  43. "Edon Zhegrova, joueur du mois de mars de la Ligue 1 Uber Eats!" [Edon Zhegrova, Ligue 1 Uber Eats player of the month for March!] (in French). National Union of Professional Footballers. 16 April 2024. Retrieved 16 April 2024.