Sadriu’s message to Romanian hooligans: Kosovo exists, we have an identity and history

Kosovo defender Leard Sadriu is playing in Romania for Arges Pitești. The 24-year-old played a few minutes for Kosovo against Slovenia on October 10, while on October 13 he was on the bench in the 1–0 win in Sweden.

Sadriu recently gave an interview to the Romanian newspaper “Gazeta Sporturilor”, in which he spoke about various topics. Among other things, he discussed the insults from fans, specifically Romanian hooligans, directed at Kosovo.

Sadriu is indispensable at Argeș. He scored three goals in 20 league appearances in the autumn.

“I was welcomed very well at Argeș, with open arms by everyone. I have worked well during this period and hope to continue in the same way in the second half of the championship,” said the Ferizaj native.

He considers Romania’s championship to be good and to open doors to even bigger leagues. Sadriu is focused on successfully finishing the championship at Argeș and will then look to the future.

Teams from other countries are interested in Sadriu, but he said that for now his mind is only on the team he plays for.

The Kosovo defender feels good in Romania and said that he likes the country very much. He noted that people are very respectful.

Groups of Romanian hooligans continually insult Kosovo. This was especially the case when Kosovo played Romania in Bucharest, where the insults were numerous. Sadriu was part of the team in one of these matches.

“People respect your work and who you are, not where you come from. That is very important to me. I was part of the national team (of Kosovo) in the Nations League match when what happened, happened. As a player, when something like that happens in a country and then the opportunity to transfer there comes up, you think that perhaps you won’t be welcomed in the best way. But that wasn’t the case. I was welcomed in the best way possible. I first came here for the Romania–Kosovo match. I don’t want to talk about what happened then. A few months later, the offer came. The people are respectful, and we owe our success to them. People who love the club always come,” Sadriu emphasized.

Sadriu spoke to the Romanian outlet about the challenges he faced at the start of his career, like all other players in Kosovo.

He does not rule out the possibility that Kosovo and Romania could win their playoff semifinals and meet in the playoff final for qualification for this year’s World Cup. Kosovo play Slovakia, while Romania play Turkey.

At the end, Sadriu was asked whether he had a message for the “ultras” who unfurled the banner “Kosovo is Serbia”. They are referring to the group of hooligans known as “Uniti Sub Tricolor”.

“This is more about politics, and I don’t want to get into that. We are a country. We play for and represent our country. We have no other name. We are Kosovo. We have our own flag, history, and identity. We are a country recognized by FIFA and UEFA. If you are not a country, you cannot be part of FIFA and UEFA. If you come to our country, you will see that we have our own identity. That we exist. I know who we are, I know that we have an identity. This is the reality,” Leard Sadriu emphasized.

He was at Mura in Slovenia for three years before transferring to Argeș Pitești. He has also played for Shkëndija of Tetovo and Skënderbeu of Korçë. He began his youth career at Ferizaj.

So far, none of Kosovo’s players have had any problems at their clubs in Romania. They have all emphasized that they were welcomed very well. But the situation changes when Kosovo plays.