Hamilton's Gramoz Kurtaj hopes to gatecrash Albania Euro party with former Celtic defender

Former Celtic player Rudi Vata

HAMILTON midfielder Gramoz Kurtaj is hoping to gatecrash Albania’s Euro 2016 party – with a little help from ex-Celtic defender Rudi Vata.

 

Kurtaj visits Parkhead today knowing a good show would help raise his profile back home.

Vata played a part in encouraging his compatriot to move to Scotland in the summer, and has even had a word with the Albanian FA about keeping tabs on the 24-year-old.

Now the stage is set for Kurtaj to shine as he tries to bag a late pass for their Euro finals debut in France.

He said: One of the biggest dreams of my career is to score a goal at Celtic Park and hopefully it happens.

“If I can make them quiet for a moment I would really enjoy it.

“Every player waits for these kind of matches in his career. 

“I’ll just enjoy it and I hope to show my quality against big players in the league.”

Kurtaj was born in Kosovo but left Pristina aged two to forge a new life in Germany.

 

He holds a German passport, but it’s his dream to wear the red shirt of Albania.

Kurtaj said: “They qualified for the European Championship finals and I’m doing my best in the hope they invite me.

“One of my good friends is Rudi Vata and he is a big name in Albania. He tried to make contact with them, so I know the Albania coach knows my name.

“It’s very difficult for him to make many changes in the team, but if somebody gets injured then hopefully I’d receive the call.

“If I score against a big team like Celtic then the Albanian newspapers will know that, but every good performance and every goal can help me to achieve my dream.”

Kurtaj and his family left Kosovo five years  before the civil war destroyed much of his home city and caused so much chaos and death.

But Kosovo has been rebuilt and Kurtaj would be honoured to represent his nation.

He said: “We are very proud of our country and it was amazing when we qualified for Euro 2016. Everybody went crazy.

“It was a big moment for every Albanian. If they were to call me for the Euros or even a game, it’d be the biggest moment of my life.”