Granit Jaka, family, and the road to invincible triumph

It's a dark night in London. Granit Jaka has his hat on his face. He's dressed simply, in comfortable clothes, and nothing tells of the difficult days he's been through. He laughs, laughs, is in good mood like his father, Ragip, who is with him. Ragip and Eli Jaka are guests in London, as Granit and his wife Leonita have only become parents five weeks ago: Ayana's daughter is the oldest of their three daughters.

But private happiness is only one side of the coin. Granit is also deeply hurt and deeply moved because he was offended, his whistled at Arsenal fans, and his captain's tape removed after his reaction. It is 2019 and no one could predict how this man would first be forced back to the Arsenal and then lead Bayer Leverkusen to the championship title in Bundesliga.

To understand Granit Jaka, you need to talk to his family. Ragip's father, mother Eli and Brother Taulant are everything to him. Together, they have often faced trials, fought hardships, and always, but have always been able to find their way to success.

When Graniti was still fast attacker

Family history starts at Basel. On September 27, 1992, Granit Jaka, a year and a half after his brother, was born.

As a child, we did a lot of crazy”, says Taulanti: “always broke things into our apartment. We tied ten socks together to make a ball and played soccer in the hallway. Once I even got blood. ”

Graniti had hit him hard with the sock ball. It fell on the lamp, it fell and hit me in the head, above the right eye. I started bleeding and crying. My parents were shocked at first. But when they saw that it was football at home and that I quickly calmed down, they laughed at us. In 20 minutes, we played again. My eye mark is still on me today. ”

Their names tell of strength: The Taulanti is named after a mountain in Albania, while Graniti is solid rock.

The Jaka kids spent all day playing soccer in St. Park. Johanns in Basel. A man who saw them every day asked them one day: When they said no, he told them that they should definitely join Concordia. And there they went: Graniti was then attacked, very fast and strong in the head game. Taulanti was more of a defense midfielder, or quarterback, and captain.

At school, Graniti was better. I must admit, he had less difficulty,” says Taulanti. Both were then joined by FC Basel, and both still carry 34 days because they always went to training with bus number 34.

Parents from the garden gave the keys to Granit because Taulanti always lost things. It's the same today,” he says laughing. The parents gave the money to Granit when we needed it.” At first I got offended, but then she realized it was better.

The only case they argued was PlayStation. Whenever he won, he was provocative. Always. We hate defeat, but he always provoked us after victory. ”

Family Above All

In 2011 everything changed. Graniti went to Borussia Mönchengladbach, and Taulanti of the Grasshoppers. Father Ragip obtained free work permits as a gardener and accompanied him to Germany, originally sleeping in a hotel room with him.

It was a hard time: Graniti often sat on the bench, even wanting to return a year later. But Coach Lucian Favre encouraged him not to give up. Patience was worth it: He matured and became captain.

At that time, Leonita, the great love, entered his life. “She did very well,” says Taulanti. He always wanted a big family. ”

Family has always been a priority. By the time of Gladbach, Granit had said: “Because everything we owe to our parents, we want to give it back to them every month we give them 80% of our income. ”

The battle between Switzerland and Albania in Euro 2016, where the two brothers faced, was also emotionally severe. Mom barely slept with emotion. We spoke on the phone the day before: we're opponents in the field, but still brothers after the match. ”

Arsenal Crisis

The most marked event took place on October 27, 2019 against Crystal Palace. Arsenal fans applauded when replaced and then began whistling. Granit reacted by provoking them, put his hand behind his ear, waved his head, and finally removed the fan. Some English media even said they read from his lips “Fuck off!”.

After that, he was suspended for weeks, his captain's tape was removed, and he was personally attacked. It was a great humiliation.

When I saw my number on the fourth judge's table and heard my fans cheers, it hurt. I still don't understand this reaction,” he said later.

On the social network, the insults went much further: your daughter has to get cancer” was one of the worst messages. Granit published a communique, stressing that everything was beyond the limits.

I've always protected fair play, respect and loyalty. What I experienced here has nothing to do with either of these,” he wrote.

Still, his associates supported him, and many fans from around the world condemned the conduct of those in the stadium.

Father's story, Ragip Jaka, the warrior

To understand Graniti, the story of his father, Ragip. Born in Pristina in 1963, he was arrested at the age of 23 as a political prisoner following student demonstrations against the Yugoslav regime.

He spent three and a half years in prison, was tortured every day for six months in a row, but never admitted to <x0-lynning” nothing. His family got his job, his home, everything.

After the release, there was no future in Kosovo. He was forced to flee with his wife to Switzerland, where he received asylum with the help of Amnesty International. He worked there as a waiter, a builder, and later as a gardener.

When I came to Switzerland and got permission to stay, it was the greatest feeling of freedom,” he says, scan Express, broadcast  Periscope.

Heritage

Ragip's story explains why Graniti reacted to the two-headed eagle against Serbia in the 2018 World. It was just emotion, not politics,” Ragip says.

Today, Graniti has become the record with Switzerland, a legend of Arsenal and then the leader of Bayer Leverkusen, with whom she won the title in Bundesliga in 2024. He already thinks of the future as a coach.

For me and Taulant, the biggest thing is seeing pride in our parents' eyes. We always wanted to return the sacrifices to them. And I think we've done well so far and hope to do it in the future,” says Graniti. /Periscope/