Fotaq "Foto" Strakosha (; born 29 March 1965) is an Albanian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper and is currently a goalkeeping coach with Lazio Youth.
Strakosha is regarded as one of Albania's most popular goalkeepers. During his 20-year playing career, he represented 11 different clubs, starting in Albania before moving to Greece in 1991, where he spent the majority of his career until his retirement in 2005.
Strakosha began his senior career with Minatori Tepelenë in 1985 before moving Dinamo Tirana. In his first season with Dinamo, he won the Albanian Cup and the Albanian Supercup. The following season proved even more successful, as he won all three domestic competitions: the Albanian Superliga, the Albanian Cup, and the Albanian Supercup. After spending another half-season at Dinamo, Strakosha moved to Greece, joining PAS Giannina for the remainder of the 1990–91 season. He later played in Piraeus for Ethnikos Piraeus for two years before joining Olympiacos, where he spent four seasons. During his time at Olympiacos, the club consistently finished among the top teams in the Greek top-flight, winning the league title in the 1996–97 season. He then signed for Panionios, where he played for two seasons, becoming the club's first-choice goalkeeper and winning the Greek Cup in his first season. Strakosha later joined Ionikos, spending three and a half seasons there, before moving to Kallithea for the first half of the 2002–03 season. He continued in the Greek second division with Kalamata and later Ethnikos Asteras. He returned to the top flight with Proodeftiki for the remainder of the 2003–04 season, before rejoining Panionios for the 2004–05 season, which marked the end of his playing career.
At international level, Strakosha captained the Albania national team for several years. He earned 73 caps between 1990 and 2005, becoming Albania's most capped player at the time of his retirement.
Early life Fotaq Strakosha was born on 29 March 1965 in Memaliaj, to Lefter Strakosha and his wife Theano Jerasimo Duni. He spent his childhood and completed his early education in his hometown Memaliaj, near Tepelenë, an area known for its coal mines, where he also worked for a short period. In his hometown, he began playing football at a young age, initially through school and local sporting activities. From the age of nine, he showed an early interest in the sport, playing regularly with his peers in local fields and developing the foundations of his goalkeeping skills, which he also mentioned being influenced by goalkeepers he admired, including Harald Schumacher, Rinat Dasayev, and Jean-Marie Pfaff. Strakosha later joined the youth teams of local club Minatori in 1982, progressing through the club's youth system before being promoted to the senior team, which competed in the Kategoria e Parë.
Club career Early career Strakosha played for Minatori Tepelenë between 1985 and 1988. He made his debut senior debut in a league match against Apolonia, coming into the team after the first‑choice goalkeeper was injured; Minatori lost 3–0, but Strakosha was noted for his performance in goal. During this period, he established himself as the team's first-choice goalkeeper and was identified as a promising young goalkeeper earning a regular place in the first team by early age. He attracted attention from several clubs competing in the Albanian top division, including Flamurtari, Luftëtari and Apolonia. Despite this interest, potential transfers were delayed due to political and biographical restrictions in place during the communist period in Albania.
In 1986, discussions regarding a move to Dinamo Tirana were initiated following contacts between Minatori head coach Skënder Ibrahimi and Dinamo coach Bejkush Birçe. The transfer was eventually completed after assurances were given by state authorities that Strakosha would not face restrictions related to his background, allowing him to continue his career at a higher competitive level. His move to Dinamo marked a significant step, transitioning from a non-elite club in the lower divisions to one of Albania's most successful teams of the era.
Dinamo Tirana Strakosha joined Dinamo Tirana in 1988, where he competed for the goalkeeper position alongside Ilir Bozhiqi. He established himself as a regular member of the squad during his first season, adapting quickly to the demands of playing for one of Albania's most successful clubs. Through consistent performances, he became the club's first-choice goalkeeper during the following campaigns. Strakosha made 38 league appearances for Dinamo in the Albanian National Championship. During his time at the club, Dinamo won the Albanian Cup in the 1988–89 and 1989–90 seasons, the Albanian Supercup in 1989, and secured the Albanian National Championship title in the 1989–90 season. His performances during this period contributed to Dinamo's domestic success before his departure from the club in 1991.
Strakosha also made his debut in European competition during the 1989–90 European Cup Winners' Cup Preliminary round, featuring in the second leg against Chernomorets. He kept a clean sheet in a 4–0 home victory, which allowed Dinamo to overturn a 3–1 first-leg defeat and advance to the regular rounds of the competition. In the first round of the competition, Strakosha featured against Dinamo București in September 1989. He kept a clean sheet in the first leg, a 1–0 home victory for Dinamo Tirana, but conceded two goals in the return leg, a 2–0 away defeat, which resulted in Dinamo's elimination from the tournament on aggregate.
In the 1990–91 European Cup First round, Strakosha played both legs against Marseille. Dinamo Tirana lost the first leg 5–1 away, and although Strakosha kept a clean sheet in the second leg at home in a goalless draw, the team was eliminated.
PAS Giannina Following the collapse of the communist regime in Albania and the opening of the country's borders, in December 1990, Strakosha arrived in Greece and applied for political asylum; he underwent a trial with PAS Giannina and subsequently signed a contract, marking the beginning of his professional career in Greek football.
He made his debut for the club during the latter part of the 1990–91 season, marking his first experience outside Albania. In one of his early appearances, Strakosha featured in a match against Panathinaikos, during which he saved a penalty, despite PAS Giannina's defeat. During his brief spell at the club, he made three league appearances in total.
His performances at PAS Giannina contributed to his continued progression in Greek football, leading to further opportunities within the country's top divisions later in his career.
After a six-month spell at PAS Giannina, during which he made three official appearances, Strakosha left the club due to administrative and documentation issues.
Ethnikos Piraeus He subsequently joined Greek side Ethnikos Piraeus in 1991, but however his registration with the club was delayed for several months due to administrative and contractual issues related to his previous agreement with PAS Giannina. That transfer however marked the beginning of a longer and more stable period in his career in Greece. Between 1991 and 1993, Strakosha established himself as the club's first-choice goalkeeper, making 33 league appearances for Ethnikos. His regular involvement at the club contributed to his growing experience in Greek football and helped consolidate his position as a reliable goalkeeper at senior level.
Following his first season at the club, he held discussions regarding a potential transfer to AEK Athens, including meetings with the club's officials. The move did not materialise after Ethnikos requested a transfer fee that was not accepted.
Following the unsuccessful transfer negotiations, Strakosha remained with Ethnikos Piraeus and competed with the club in the Greek second division (Beta Ethniki) during the following season. He later transferred to Olympiacos.
Olympiacos Strakosha had attracted the interest of Olympiacos early in 1993, and he joined the club, signing a long-term contract and becoming part of the squad alongside experienced goalkeeper Alekos Rantos. His move represented a step up to one of the most competitive teams in Greek football at the time. During his spell at Olympiacos, Strakosha worked under several head coaches, including Ljupko Petrović, Nikos Alefantos, Stavros Diamantopoulos, Thijs Libregts and Dušan Bajević , and competed regularly for the goalkeeper position, contributing to the team's consistent presence near the top of the Greek top division.
Strakosha made his debut early in the start of the 1993–94 Alpha Ethniki season on 29 August 1993 in a 1–1 draw away to Aris Thessaloniki, appearing . In his first league stages, Strakosha established himself as a regular starter, keeping four clean sheets in his first nine league appearances and conceding only five goals. Olympiacos finished in third place in the final league standings.
Strakosha also featured in European competition during the season, making three appearances in the 1993–94 UEFA Cup. The club recorded two wins against Botev Plovdiv and one loss against Tenerife across two rounds of the tournament.
In the 1994–95 Alpha Ethniki, Strakosha began the campaign with a clean sheet in a 1–0 victory against Doxa Drama and made three early league appearances. He did not feature again until February 1995, after which he played in all remaining league matches, bringing his total to 17 appearances for the season and recorded five clean sheets and conceded 17 goals, while Olympiacos suffered only one defeat in games in which he appeared. Olympiacos finished in second place in the Greek top division, behind Panathinaikos in the final league standings.
In the 1995–96 Alpha Ethniki season, Strakosha played 12 matches, Olympiacos finished in third place in the final league standings. Strakosha featured also in the 1995–96 Greek Cup.
At the start of the 1996–97 season, Strakosha featured in the opening two 1996–97 Alpha Ethniki matches under a new head coach Dušan Bajević. keeping clean sheets in both fixtures as Olympiacos recorded two victories. He also appeared in both legs of the first round of the 1996–97 UEFA Cup against Ferencváros, with Olympiacos being eliminated 5–3 on aggregate.
Despite his involvement at the beginning of the season, these proved to be his only appearances during the 1996–97 campaign. For a variety of reasons, he was unable to establish himself further in the team. Olympiacos went on to win the league title for the first time after a decade. Upon the completion of the fourth year of his contract, Strakosha requested to leave the club, despite the management's desire for him to stay. He had originally signed a five-year contract with the club, but however a mutual agreement was reached, allowing him to depart under the condition that he would not join a direct rival, and he subsequently joined Panionios.
Panionios Strakosha joined Panionios in the summer of 1997 on a two-year contract, arriving with the aim of re-establishing himself as a regular first-team goalkeeper.
Strakosha made his debut for Panionios on 31 August 1997 in a 3–0 home defeat against Panathinaikos in the Greek top division.
Following his debut, he went on to establish himself as the team's first-choice goalkeeper, recording two clean sheets in the matches that followed. Throughout the season, the club faced administrative and financial difficulties; however, the squad maintained cohesion on the pitch, where Strakosha played a key role for the club, contributing to a successful period that included the winning of domestic silverware with Panionios.
During the 1997–98 Alpha Ethniki season, Strakosha made 32 league appearances for Panionios, keeping eight clean sheets in total. Panionios however ended 11th in ranking table.