Klaidi Cela
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date of birth | July 16, 1999 | ||
Place of birth | Mississauga, Ontario, Canada | ||
Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) | ||
Position(s) | Defender | ||
Team information | |||
Current team | Richmond Kickers | ||
Number | 16 | ||
Youth career | |||
Mississauga Falcons | |||
2012–2016 | Toronto FC | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2015–2016 | Toronto FC III | 23+ | (0) |
2015 | Toronto FC II | 1 | (0) |
2016–2018 | Gafanha | 0 | (0) |
2018 | Sigma FC | 1 | (0) |
2019–2020 | Forge FC | 10 | (1) |
2021 | Sigma FC | 4 | (1) |
2021 | → Forge FC (loan) | 1 | (0) |
2021 | Forge FC | 4 | (0) |
2022 | Toronto FC II | 4 | (0) |
2023 | Vaughan Azzurri | 2 | (0) |
2023 | Valour FC | 23 | (2) |
2024 | Liria Prizren | 12 | (0) |
2024– | Richmond Kickers | 6 | (1) |
International career‡ | |||
2015 | Canada U18 | 2 | (0) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of June 15, 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of November 23, 2024 |
Klaidi Cela (born July 16, 1999) is a Canadian soccer player who plays for the Richmond Kickers in USL League One.
Early life
[edit]Cela began playing youth soccer at age four with Mississauga Falcons SC.[1] In October 2012, he joined the Toronto FC Academy.[2]
Club career
[edit]In 2015, he began playing with Toronto FC III in League1 Ontario.[3] He also played with them in 2016 in both League1 Ontario[4] and the Premier Development League.[5]
In May 2015, Cela joined Toronto FC II in the USL Championship, signing an academy player agreement.[6] He made his debut on September 24, 2015 in a substitute appearance against the Rochester Rhinos.[3]
In 2016, Cela signed with Campeonato de Portugal club Gafanha, where he would play for two seasons.[7]
In 2018, after leaving Gafanha, Cela returned to Canada and spent the remainder of the 2018 season with Sigma FC in League1 Ontario.[8]
In April 2019, Cela signed with Canadian Premier League side Forge FC.[9] He scored his first goal on October 2, 2019, in a 1-0 victory over FC Edmonton.[10] He won the league title with the club in 2019 as well.[11] In January 2020, he re-signed with the club for an additional season.[12] On August 19, 2020, Cela tore his ACL in a match against the HFX Wanderers, causing him to miss the remainder of the season.[13] Forge won the CPL title again in 2020, with Cela departing after the season.[14]
In 2021, he returned to Sigma FC of League1 Ontario.[15] In August 2021, he returned to Forge on a short term emergency loan deal.[16][17] Cela rejoined Forge for a single game in September, and was eventually signed in October by Forge for the remainder of the 2021 Canadian Premier League season.[18][19]
In March 2022, Cela signed with MLS Next Pro side Toronto FC II.[20]
In 2023, he began the season with League1 Ontario side Vaughan Azzurri.[21] With Vaughan, he played in the 2023 Canadian Championship against Major League Soccer club CF Montréal.[22]
In April 2023, Cela signed with Canadian Premier League club Valour FC, following injuries occurred to Matthew Chandler and Andrew Jean-Baptiste.[23][24]
In February 2024, Cela signed with Liria Prizren in the Football Superleague of Kosovo.[25]
In August 2024, Cela signed with the Richmond Kickers in USL League One.[26][27]
International career
[edit]Due to Cela's parents being born in Albania, he is eligible to represent both Canada and Albania. In 2013, he made his debut in the Canadian national team program, attending a Canada U15 camp in November 2013, also attending another camp in September 2014.[1][28]
In October 2015, he was called up to the Canada U18 team for a pair of friendlies against the United States U18, playing in both matches.[29]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Klaidi Cela at the Canadian Soccer Association
- ^ "Toronto FC II sign Stefan Karajovanovic and Klaidi Cela". Toronto FC. March 31, 2022.
- ^ a b Campos, Anthony (September 24, 2015). "Match Recap: TFC II Suffer Defeat in Season Finale". Toronto FC.
- ^ "Kladi Cela 2016 L1O Stats". League1 Ontario.
- ^ "Kladi Cela 2016 PDL Stats". USL League Two.
- ^ "Academy athletes make the move". Toronto FC. May 1, 2015.
- ^ Urciuoli, Anthony (April 3, 2019). "Forge FC adds Canadians Anthony Novak, Klaidi Cela to inaugural roster". Global.
- ^ "Klaidi Cela 2018 L1O Stats". League1 Ontario.
- ^ "Forge inks former L1O top scorer Anthony Novak, defender Klaidi Cela". Canadian Premier League. April 3, 2019.
- ^ Sandor, Steven (October 2, 2019). "'We've struggled here': Forge breaks FCE's spell at Clarke". Canadian Premier League.
- ^ "Klaidi Cela: Favourite Forge FC Memory". Forge FC. June 12, 2020.
- ^ Jacques, John (January 8, 2020). "Forge FC Wraps Up Last Of Inaugural Roster Re-Signings". Northern Tribune.
- ^ Jacques, John (October 8, 2020). "Forge FC's Cela Undergoes Successful Knee Surgery". Northern Tribune.
- ^ O'Connor-Clarke, Charlie (June 24, 2021). "The Kickoff: Forge FC 2021 CPL season preview". Canadian Premier League.
- ^ Jacques, John (August 1, 2021). "Canadian Premier League Athletes To Watch In League1 Ontario". Northern Tribune.
- ^ Jacques, John (August 4, 2021). "Klaidi Cela Returns To Forge On Short-Term Deal". Northern Tribune.
- ^ "Forge FC re-sign Cela as a short-term replacement player". Forge FC. April 4, 2021.
- ^ "Forge FC brings back Klaidi Cela for rest of 2021 season". Canadian Premier League. October 8, 2021.
- ^ Jacques, John (October 8, 2021). "Forge FC Adds Cela For Remainder Of Season". Northern Tribune.
- ^ Jacques, John (March 31, 2022). "Toronto FC II Adds CPLers Karajovanovic And Cela". Northern Tribune.
- ^ "Klaidi Cela 2023 L1O Stats". League1 Ontario.
- ^ Tait, Ed (April 27, 2023). "Klaidi Cela: "Hey, if you need me there in five hours or whatever it is to play a game, I'm there in five hours. I'm ready to go."". Valour FC.
- ^ "Valour FC sign Canadian defender Klaidi Cela". Valour FC. April 27, 2023.
- ^ Jacques, John (April 27, 2023). "Valour Adds Former Forge, TFC2 Defender Klaidi Cela". Northern Tribune. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
- ^ "Liria nuk dorëzohet, prezanton tre prurje cilësore" [Liria does not give up, it presents three quality streams]. Telegrafi (in Albanian). February 24, 2024.
- ^ Heintschel, Nathan (August 13, 2024). "Gritty Veteran Defender Klaidi Cela Joins Kickers". Richmond Kickers.
- ^ Jacques, John (August 13, 2024). "Richmond Kickers Call For Cela". Northern Tribune.
- ^ Urciuoli, Anthony (October 8, 2021). "Forge FC Hamilton re-sign Mississauga-native, Klaidi Cela to full-time contract". In the Hammer.
- ^ "U.S. U-18 MNT splits two-game set with Canada". Soccerwire. October 30, 2015.
External links
[edit]- Klaidi Cela at the Canadian Soccer Association
- Klaidi Cela at Soccerway
- Klaidi Cela at ForaDeJogo (archived)
- Klaidi Cela club profile at the Portuguese Football Federation (in Portuguese)
- 1999 births
- Living people
- Men's association football defenders
- Canadian men's soccer players
- Soccer players from Mississauga
- Canadian people of Albanian descent
- Canadian expatriate men's soccer players
- Expatriate men's footballers in Portugal
- Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Portugal
- Toronto FC II players
- Forge FC players
- USL Championship players
- Campeonato de Portugal (league) players
- League1 Ontario players
- Canadian Premier League players
- G.D. Gafanha players
- Sigma FC players
- Toronto FC Academy players
- MLS Next Pro players
- Valour FC players
- Vaughan Azzurri players
- KF Liria Prizren players
- Richmond Kickers players
- 21st-century Canadian sportsmen