Clayton Failla (born 8 January 1986) is a Maltese professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who plays for Maltese Premier League side

Mosta FC Mosta Football Club is a Maltese football club from the town of Mosta. The team played four seasons in Malta's highest league 1974–75, 1987–88, 2002–03 and 2005–06. They achieved promotion to the Maltese Premier League again in 2010–11 ...

, where he plays as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

and occasionally as a defender.

Playing career

St. Patrick

Failla was born in Żabbar,

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

. He began his career with his boyhood team Żabbar St. Patrick as a trainee. In 2001–02 he was promoted to the senior team squad, getting three games as a substitute. He was a first team regular when the team won promotion in 2003–04. He made his Premier Division debut during the 2004–05 season. Failla showed potential, despite St. Patrick's disappointing season,. In January 2005, Failla moved to Hibernians. During his time with St. Patrick, he made 33 appearances and scored two goals.

Hibernians

Failla continued the second half of the 2004–05 season with Hibernians, and played in their first team squad. Failla helped his new side to a third-place finish in the Maltese Premier League, making 11 appearances and scoring one goal in the process. Failla began the 2005–06 season as an established member of the first team squad. Hibernians managed their second third-place finish in as many seasons. Failla did however get his hands on his first piece of silverware with Hibernians as the club won the

Maltese Cup The FA Trophy, currently known as the IZIBET FA Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual football cup competition that takes place in Malta. The cup was founded in 1933; following a match between England and Italy, played in Rome in May 1933, ...

, after beating

Floriana Floriana ( mt, Il-Furjana or ''Il-Floriana''), also known by its title Borgo Vilhena, is a fortified town in the South Eastern Region area of Malta, just outside the capital city Valletta. It has a population of 2,205 as of March 2014. Floriana i ...

1–0 in the final. During the season Failla made 23 appearances and scored one goal. For the 2006–07 season Failla made 22 appearances, but failing to find the net, as the team recorded a fifth-place finish in the Maltese Premier League. Failla did however add to his previous success as Hibernians beat Sliema Wanderers on penalties to retain the Maltese Cup. Failla made 22 appearances and scored twice in the 2007–08 season. In the 2008–09 season, Hibernians won the Maltese Premier League for the first time in seven years, after beating

Valletta Valletta (, mt, il-Belt Valletta, ) is an Local councils of Malta, administrative unit and capital city, capital of Malta. Located on the Malta (island), main island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, i ...

to the top table finish by one point. During the season Failla made 27 appearances, scored seven goals and provided 11 assists. He was chosen as Man of the Match nine times during the season, most for any Premier Division player. Failla also added to his honours the

Maltese Player of the Year The Maltese Player of the Year Award is an annual award given to the player who is adjudged to have been the best of the year in Maltese football. The award has been presented since the 1954–55 season and the winner is chosen by a vote amongst th ...

award.

Sliema Wanderers

On 17 June 2009, Failla made the move from Hibernians to Sliema Wanderers and was allocated the number 77 shirt. He made his Premier League debut for Sliema Wanderers on 30 August 2009 in a 1–0 defeat to

Qormi Qormi ( mt, Ħal Qormi ; pronounced in the Qormi dialect), also known by its title Città Pinto, is a city in the Southern Region of Malta, southwest of Valletta in the centre of the island. It has a population of 16,324 (as of March 2018), mak ...

, he played 77 minutes of the match, before been substituted for Matthew Bartolo. Failla scored his first Premier League goal for Sliema Wanderers on 17 October 2009, when he scored the third goal in a 5–0 victory over Ħamrun Spartans.

Hibernians

On 9 August 2011, Failla returned to his former club Hibernians, for the 2011–12 season of the Maltese Premier League. Failla had a trial with Hull City of England, playing for the team in a summer tournament. Failla is also the current captain of Hibernians.

Floriana

On 28 May 2017, Clayton was officially announced as a signing for the Maltese Premier League Club Floriana. Failla thanked Hibernians for the past experience with the Paolites whilst looking forward for his experience with the Greens.

International career

Failla is also an international player for the

Malta national football team The Malta national football team ( mt, Tim nazzjonali tal-futbol ta' Malta) represents Malta in international football and is controlled by the Malta Football Association, the governing body for football in Malta. The first official game playe ...

. He made his international debut in 2008. He is usually played in defence but is sometimes played in the midfield. In 2014, in a friendly match Malta against Slovakia, he became a famous meme, because the system sound of the stadium played Numb, from

Linkin Park Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. The band's current lineup comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist/keyboardist Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, bassist Dave Farrell, DJ/turntablist Joe Hahn and drummer ...

, instead of Malta National Anthem and the cameras got him laughing with the music.

Career statistics

International goals

Honours

Club

Hibernians * Maltese Premier League: 2008–09, 2014–15 * Maltese FA Trophy: 2006–07, 2007–08,

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

, 2013–14

Individual

: 2008–09, 2011–12

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Failla, Clayton Living people 1986 births People from Żabbar Men's association football midfielders Men's association football defenders Maltese men's footballers Malta men's international footballers Żabbar St. Patrick F.C. players Hibernians F.C. players Sliema Wanderers F.C. players Floriana F.C. players Birkirkara F.C. players Ħamrun Spartans F.C. players Maltese Premier League players Competitors at the 2005 Mediterranean Games Mediterranean Games competitors for Malta