Sliema Wanderers F.C.

Sliema Wanderers Football Club, nicknamed "tax-Xelin" (of the shilling),[1] is a professional Maltese football club.[2] It is the most successful team in Malta and hails from the seaside town of Sliema. It currently plays in the Maltese Premier League.

Sliema Wanderers
Full nameSliema Wanderers Football Club
Nickname(s)The Blues
The Wanderers
Founded3 November 1909 (1909-11-03)
GroundTigne Sports Complex,
Sliema,
Malta
Capacity1,000
ChairmanKeith Perry
ManagerPaul Zammit
LeagueMaltese Premier League
2022–23Maltese Challenge League, 1st of 18 (promoted)

History

The club was founded in 1909. The club competed in the first ever Maltese Premier League season in 1909–10 and finished in second position to Floriana after the five-game season came to an end.

Ten years down the line Sliema Wanderers finally made their mark in Maltese football by winning the Maltese Premier League title in the 1919–20 season. Since then the team have gone on to win the title 26 times, a record for Malta; the last three being in 2002–03, 2003–04 and 2004–05.

Sliema Wanderers also hold the record for the most FA Trophy wins, with their first coming in 1935, when they overpowered Floriana with a 4–0 victory. The club have gone on to win this particular honour 20 times, most recently in 2000, 2004 and in 2009; the last title was won against Valletta 7–6 on penalties after the match finished 3–3 following extra time.

With all these honours, Sliema Wanderers are currently the most successful team in the history of Maltese football with approximately 113 honours. Sliema Wanderers train at the Tigne Sports Complex, in Sliema. Grant Tissot almost played for them, which would've been a major acquisition for such a club.

Sliema Wanderers also had a futsal team, which participated in Malta's top futsal league.

2000s

The 2000s saw Sliema Wanderers becoming a dominant club in the Maltese scene again.

Summer 2003 had President Robert Arrigo signing Maltese internationals Jamie Pace, Djibril Sylla and Daniel Bogdanovic.[3]

Season 2004-05 saw the Wanderers, under the presidency of Robert Arrigo, win their 26th Maltese Premier League title.[4] Part of this success was Michael Mifsud's return to his boyhood club after being leaving 1.FC Kaiserslautern on a free.[5]

Season 2005-06 started with a UEFA Champions League qualifier against Sheriff Tiraspol.[6] Much to Arrigo's chagrin, lost Michael Mifsud to Lillestrøm SK, in a move made possible by Nikki Dimech who acted as his representative, albeit being a lengthy transfer saga that was complicated by International Transfer Clearance issues and compensation fees.[4][7][8]

2010s

Sliema Wanderers clinched an Maltese FA Trophy in season 2015-16.

Keith Perry was confirmed as president in the beginning of season 2016-17 despite rumours.[9] John Buttigieg was appointed as Head Coach.[10]

2020s

The club endured a rough start to the 2020s. The club started off with a bang, signing former Arsenal F.C. midfielder Denílson.[11][12][13][14][15] Further players were signed and Keith Perry was appointed chairman of the club, and Jeffrey Farrugia took over as president.[16][17] A sponsorship deal was struck with Catco Group, an oil investment company based in China and Tunisia. Catco Group however, failed to pay its dues, citing technical reasons. This gave way to unrest within the club, with captain Mark Scerri and head coach Andrea Pisanu making public statements regarding the financial situation of the club, proceeding with resignations such as Perry and team manager Alex Muscat.[18][19] Players went unpaid for months, with another sponsor, Sixt, finally paying the players directly just before Christmas.[20] Eventually a new sponsor was brought on board.[21][22] Farrugia was later ousted as Keith Perry returned in the President's seat in preparation for the upcoming season.[23]


Season 2021-22 was disastrous from a technical point of view. Despite signing two new players in Djibouti international Warsama Hassan and Japanese Yuki Uchida,[24] up until November 19, 2021, the club had not yet won a match, and sat at the bottom of the Maltese Premier League.[25][26][27] The first win came on November 20, stunning Valletta with a 2-1 result.[28] The dying minutes of the match however, proved fatal, as Warsama Hassan was introduced at 90 minutes. However, the player had just returned from Egypt, where he had featured for his Djibouti national football team in a match against Algeria. Warsama was supposed to be in quarantine, having returned from a Dark Red listed country. Valletta lodged a formal complaint, which was upheld by the Malta Football Association, awarding a 3–0 win to Valletta.[29] Sliema Wanderers' next match was against Birkirkara F.C., resulting in a further loss.[30] On 10 April 2022 Sliema Wanderers lost against Valletta with a 2-1 result, and were relegated to Maltese Challenge League after thirty-seven years in the top flight.

Players

Current squad

As of 1 October 2023. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Malta MLT Timothy Aquilina
2 DF Malta MLT Jean Borg
4 DF Malta MLT Miguel D'Alessandro
5 DF Malta MLT James Vella
6 MF Cameroon CMR Joseph Minala
7 MF Malta MLT Jake Engerer
8 MF Malta MLT Mark Scerri
9 FW Slovenia SVN Vito Plut
10 MF Malta MLT Aidan Friggieri
11 DF Malta MLT Myles Beerman
12 GK Malta MLT Fabian Lauri
15 DF Brazil BRA Gustavo Alcino
18 MF Malta MLT Edmond Agius
No. Pos. Nation Player
20 DF Ivory Coast CIV Denis Kouao
21 MF Malta MLT Neil Frendo
22 GK Malta MLT Rashed Al-Tumi
31 DF Brazil BRA Murilo Freire
33 FW Ghana GHA Geoffrey Acheampong
39 FW Brazil BRA Samuel Gomes
55 FW Brazil BRA Rael
70 FW Malta MLT Lydon Micallef
77 MF Somalia SOM Mohamed Awad
88 DF Malta MLT Dejan Vuković
99 FW Ghana GHA Karim Abubakar

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF Malta MLT Jean Borg (at Sirens until 30 June 2024)
— MF Malta MLT Brite Anayochi Ihuomah (at Zurrieq until 30 June 2024)
No. Pos. Nation Player
— FW Malta MLT Jean Paul Farrugia (at Mosta until 30 June 2024)

European record
Season Competition Round Country Club Home Away Aggregate
1963–64 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Preliminary Round Wales Borough United 0–0 0–2 0–2
1964–65 European Cup Preliminary Round Romania Dinamo București 0–2 0–5 0–7
1965–66 European Cup Preliminary Round Greece Panathinaikos 1–0 1–4 2–4
1966–67 European Cup Preliminary Round Bulgaria CSKA Sofia 1–2 0–4 1–6
1968–69 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1. Round Luxembourg US Rumelange 1–0 1–2 2–2(a)
2. Round Denmark Randers Freja 0–2 0–6 0–8
1969–70 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1. Round Sweden IFK Norrköping 1–0 1–5 2–5
1970–71 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup 1. Round Denmark Akademisk BK 2–3 0–7 2–10
1971–72 European Cup 1. Round Iceland ÍA Akranes 0–0 4–0 4–0
2. Round Scotland Celtic 1–2 0–5 1–7
1972–73 European Cup 1. Round Poland Górnik Zabrze 0–5 0–5 0–10
1973–74 UEFA Cup 1. Round Bulgaria Lokomotiv Plovdiv 0–2 0–1 0–3
1974–75 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1. Round Finland Lahti 2–0 1–4 3–4
1975–76 UEFA Cup 1. Round Portugal Sporting CP 1–2 1–3 2–5
1976–77 European Cup 1. Round Finland TPS Turku 2–1 0–1 2–2(a)
1977–78 UEFA Cup 1. Round West Germany Eintracht Frankfurt 0–0 0–5 0–5
1979–80 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1. Round Portugal Boavista 2–1 0–8 2–9
1980–81 UEFA Cup 1. Round Spain Barcelona 0–2 0–1 0–3
1981–82 UEFA Cup 1. Round Greece Aris Thessaloniki 2–4 0–4 2–8
1982–83 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1. Round Wales Swansea City 0–5 0–12 0–17
1987–88 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1. Round Albania Vllaznia Shkodër 0–4 0–2 0–6
1988–89 UEFA Cup 1. Round Romania Victoria București 0–2 1–6 1–8
1989–90 European Cup 1. Round Albania KF Tirana 1–0 0–5 1–5
1990–91 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1. Round Czechoslovakia Dukla Prague 1–2 0–2 1–4
1993–94 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup Qualifying Round Sweden Degerfors 1–3 0–3 1–6
1995–96 UEFA Cup Preliminary Round Cyprus AC Omonia 1–2 0–3 1–5
1996–97 UEFA Cup Preliminary Round Georgia (country) Margveti Zestafoni 1–3 3–0 4–3
Qualifying Round Denmark Odense BK 0–2 1–7 1–9
1998 UEFA Intertoto Cup 1. Round Hungary Diósgyőr 2–3 0–2 2–5
1999–00 UEFA Cup 1. Qualifying Round Switzerland FC Zürich 0–3 0–1 0–4
2000–01 UEFA Cup 1. Qualifying Round Serbia and Montenegro FK Partizan 2–1 1–4 3–5
2001–02 UEFA Cup 1. Qualifying Round Slovakia Matador Púchov 2–1 0–3 2–4
2002–03 UEFA Cup 1. Qualifying Round Poland Polonia Warsaw 1–3 0–2 1–5
2003–04 UEFA Champions League 1. Qualifying Round Latvia Skonto Riga 2–0 1–3 3–3(a)
2. Qualifying Round Denmark Copenhagen 0–6 1–4 1–10
2004–05 UEFA Champions League 1. Qualifying Round Lithuania FBK Kaunas 0–2 1–4 1–6
2005–06 UEFA Champions League 1. Qualifying Round Moldova Sheriff Tiraspol 1–4 0–2 1–6
2006–07 UEFA Cup 1. Qualifying Round Romania Rapid București 0–1 0–5 0–6
2007–08 UEFA Cup 1. Qualifying Round Bulgaria Litex Lovech 0–3 0–4 0–7
2009–10 UEFA Europa League 2. Qualifying Round Israel Maccabi Netanya 0–0 0–3 0–3
2010–11 UEFA Europa League 1. Qualifying Round Croatia Šibenik 0–3 0–0 0–3
2013–14 UEFA Europa League 1. Qualifying Round Azerbaijan Khazar Lankaran 1–1 0–1 1–2
2014–15 UEFA Europa League 1. Qualifying Round Hungary Ferencváros 1–1 1–2 2–3

Managerial history

See Sliema Wanderers F.C. Managers

Manager Period
Malta Salvinu Schembri 1963–1964
Hungary János Bédl1 July 1964 – 30 June 1966
Malta Victor Scerri 1968–1978
Malta Edward Aquilina 1979–1983
Malta Robbie Buttigieg 1981–1982
Malta Tony Formosa 1982–1986
Malta Lawrence Borg 1987–1989
Nigeria Augustine EguavoenJuly 1999 – October 1999
Malta Martin Gregory1999–2000
England Jeff Wood 2001–2002
Malta Lawrence Borg 2001–2002
Malta Edward Aquilina2002–2006
Malta Ray Farrugia2006–2007
Malta Stephen Azzopardi1 November 2007 – 30 May 2010
Malta Mark Marlow1 July 2010 – 30 June 2011
Serbia Danilo Dončić3 February 2011 – 27 May 2012
Malta Clive Mizzi27 May 2012 – 7 August 2012
Italy Alfonso Greco1 July 2012 – October 2014
Malta Stephen AzzopardiOctober 2014 – December 2015
Italy Alfonso Greco 1 January 2016 – May 2016
Malta John ButtigiegJune 2016 – 2019

Honours

References
  1. Cassar Pullicino, J. (1956). "Social Aspects of Maltese Nicknames" (PDF). Scientia. 22 (2): 92.
  2. Micallef, Sandro (29 January 2016). "LaLiga: the best show in Malta". Liga de Fútbol Profesional. Archived from the original on 16 July 2019.
  3. Azzopardi, Kevin (3 July 2003). "Bogdanovic is a Sliema player says Arrigo". Times of Malta.
  4. "Making Sliema the most successful team was my primary aim – Robert Arrigo". The Malta Independent. 4 May 2005.
  5. "Mifsud heads back to Malta". UEFA.com. 21 November 2003.
  6. "Sheriff challenge for Sliema Wanderers". Times of Malta. 24 June 2005.
  7. Dalli, Jesmond (2 July 2004). "Mifsud returning home as Sliema stand firm over clearance issue". Times of Malta.
  8. "Mifsud set to leave Sliema for Norway's Lillestrom". Times of Malta. 19 June 2004.
  9. "Keith Perry stays at the helm of Sliema Wanderers". Times of Malta. 8 June 2016.
  10. Azzopardi, Kevin (1 July 2016). "John Buttigieg 'honoured' to coach Sliema". Times of Malta.
  11. Camilleri, Valhmor (6 August 2020). "Sliema Wanderers sign former Arsenal midfielder Denilson". SportsDesk.
  12. "Once a Gunner, Now a Wanderer: Sliema Sign Denilson". 89.7 Bay. 6 August 2020.
  13. "Sliema Wanderers sign former Arsenal midfielder Denilson". The Malta Independent. 7 August 2020.
  14. Busuttil, Antoine (7 August 2020). "Denilson joins Sliema Wanderers". MaltaFootball.com.
  15. Sapiano, Luigi (6 August 2020). "Qassam Denilson! Former Arsenal Midfielder Set To Join Sliema Wanderers". LovinMalta.com.
  16. Attard, Mark (14 August 2020). "Jeffrey Farrugia jinħatar President ta' Sliema Wanderers FC" [Jeffrey Farrugia is appointed President of Sliema Wanderers FC]. Television Malta (in Maltese).
  17. Busuttil, Antoine (14 August 2020). "Sliema Wanderers sign four new players, appoint new president". MaltaFootball.com.
  18. Azzopardi, Karl (27 January 2021). "Sliema Wanderers official Keith Perry steps down amid player row over unpaid salaries". Malta Today.
  19. Lia, Gianluca (4 February 2021). "Watch: Sliema players battled poverty due to unpaid wages, says coach Pisanu -". SportsDesk.
  20. Borg, Jacob (3 January 2021). "Adrian Delia aims to set up charity foundation after sensational donation pledge". Times of Malta.
  21. Busuttil, Antoine (15 February 2021). "NM Group announces Sliema Wanderers sponsorship". MaltaFootball.com.
  22. Brincat, Diane (16 February 2021). "NM Group announces Sliema Wanderers F.C. Sponsorship". NM Group.
  23. Camilleri, Valhmor (13 May 2021). "Keith Perry tipped for return as Sliema Wanderers plan to hold AGM next month". SportsDesk.
  24. Busuttil, Antoine (6 August 2021). "Sliema Wanderers sign two new foreign players". MaltaFootball.com.
  25. Busuttil, Antoine (31 October 2021). "Sliema Wanderers pile up further misery with Mosta defeat". SportsDesk.
  26. Busuttil, Antoine (24 October 2021). "Santa Lucia held by ten-man Sliema". MaltaFootball.com.
  27. Lia, Gianluca (17 October 2021). "Watch: Hibernians go top after brushing aside Sliema Wanderers". SportsDesk.
  28. Farrugia, Simon (20 November 2021). "Premier League: Sliema finally register first win". The Malta Independent.
  29. Camilleri, Valhmor (26 November 2021). "Valletta awarded win over Sliema Wanderers as protest upheld by Malta FA". SportsDesk.
  30. Busuttil, Antoine (27 November 2021). "Watch: Montebello double lifts Birkirkara past struggling Sliema Wanderers". SportsDesk.
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