Lorik Cana

Early career

Cana was born in Pristina, Kosovo, to Albanian parents, with his father Agim having represented Prishtina during one of the club's most successful periods in the 1980s. Due to his father's career abroad, Cana spent part of his childhood in Austria, Croatia and Turkey before the family eventually settled in Lausanne, Switzerland, following the Samsunspor bus accident in 1989 and the outbreak of the Yugoslav Wars in 1990, which affected the wider Cana family. In Lausanne, Cana joined the youth academy of Lausanne-Sport in 1995, beginning his football development and continuing the family's connection with the sport established by his father. In 2000, after impressing at a youth tournament in Spain, Cana attracted interest from Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal, with the latter inviting him for a trial at the age of 16, although he was unable to attend after being denied a British visa. He later spent a week on trial with Paris Saint-Germain, where reserve team coach Antoine Kombouaré was impressed by his performances. The club subsequently signed him for its youth academy and assisted with regularising his immigration status in France, allowing his family to join him after the end of the Kosovo War. Cana progressed through Paris' youth system to the reserve team, competing in the fourth-tier Championnat de France Amateur, where he made four appearances during the 2000–01 season before a knee injury interrupted his progress. He returned the…

Cana was initially named in the Albania national team squad for an unofficial friendly against his native Kosovo, part of the Brotherly derby, where he came on as an 80th-minute substitute for Besnik Hasi. He was granted Albanian citizenship on 6 March 2003, becoming eligible to represent Albania alongside Switzerland and France, whose citizenship he also held, before choosing to represent Albania. Initially, he was intended to play for the Albania under-21 team, but instead joined the senior national team. He made his competitive debut for Albania seniors on 11 June 2003 at the age of 19, coming on as a substitute in a 3–2 away defeat to Switzerland in a UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying match. During the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification, Cana established himself as a regular starter at centre-back under Hans-Peter Briegel, missing only one qualifier through suspension after accumulating yellow cards. He began the campaign with a 2–1 home victory over reigning European champions Greece on 4 September 2004, after which an Albanian immigrant supporter celebrating the victory was attacked and killed by local hooligans in Greece. Albania subsequently faced stronger opposition in Ukraine, Denmark and Turkey, suffering five 2–0 defeats, while also recording two victories over Kazakhstan, one over Georgia and a draw against Ukraine. The team finished third from bottom in the group with 13 points, its highest total and best placing in a World Cup qualifying campaign up to that time. He…

Club

International

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

Born in Pristina, Cana has paternal roots in Gjakova and has two sisters, Lea and Laure. He is also a cousin of siblings Genta Cana, a former sports presenter at Klan Kosova, and Granit Cana, a former footballer who played in the First Football League of Kosovo and the Albanian Kategoria Superiore with Teuta. Granit Cana later appeared in Big Brother VIP Albania season 1. From an early age, Cana regularly attended FC Prishtina matches and described himself as an avid supporter of the club. In an interview, Cana stated that archeology is one of his biggest interests and that he planned to work in the Albanology field after his football career, having studied history at university. He has served as an ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme's anti-poverty initiatives, starting from December 2006. In November 2008, Cana was awarded the title of Ambassador of the Nation (Ambasador i Kombit) by the President of Albania, Bamir Topi. On 9 October 2010, Cana was named UNICEF Ambassador for Children's Rights in Albania. He married Monica Ercoli, an Italian, in June 2014, with the ceremony taking place on 27 June 2014. They have a son named Boiken and reside in Tirana, Albania. On 28 December 2011, Cana was appointed Special Ambassador of Kosovo Sports in the World by the Kosovo Olympic Committee to support the international promotion and recognition of Kosovo sport. On 15 January 2015, Cana was named Honorary Ambassador of Kosovo. On 29 September 2018, Cana received…