Raymond Vella

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Raymond Vella (born January 11, 1959 in Marsa ), often shortened to Ray Vella and known by the nickname Il-Mundu , is a former Maltese soccer player who mainly played in midfield . He has been voted Footballer of the Year in Malta twice .

career

society

Vella began his career in 1975 at Marsa FC and made his debut in the Maltese First Division on November 9, 1975 in a game against the capital club Valletta , which was lost 3-1. Although some of the big clubs in Malta soon tried to sign him, Marsa FC successfully fended off all attempts at poaching and was able to keep its "superstar" for almost ten years.

It was not until 1985 that he moved to the Ħamrun Spartans for an alleged “record sum” , who went through the best phase of their club history in those years. In the 1986/87 and 1987/88 seasons, Vella won the double , the championship title and the cup competition twice in a row with his new club , and was also voted Footballer of the Year in the 1986/87 season ; an award that would be bestowed upon him four seasons later . In the same season he won the championship with the Spartans again, while in 1989 and 1992 he was able to look forward to two more cup wins.

After the midfielder had passed his zenith, Vella moved to FC St. Andrews in 1992/93 , where he then acted as a libero . In 1995 he ended his active career.

National team

Vella made his debut for the Maltese national team on May 23, 1984 in a World Cup qualifier against Sweden , which was lost 4-0. Almost ten years later, Vella completed his 67th and last international match on February 16, 1994, which ended in a 1-0 win against Belgium .

Vella scored his only international goal on February 10, 1988 in a 2-1 win over Tunisia .

successes

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Profile at EU-Football.info (English)

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Vella, Raymond
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Il-Mundu (nickname)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Maltese soccer player
DATE OF BIRTH January 11, 1959
PLACE OF BIRTH Marsa , Malta