Michael Degiorgio (born 15 November 1962) is a Maltese former 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 lea ...

. Degiorgio played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

until the end of his career, when he switched to a

central defender In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...

. Degiorgio started his career with Hamrun Spartans and then also played for

Naxxar Lions Naxxar Lions Football Club is a professional football club from the town of Naxxar in northern Malta. Their historical and arch-rivals are Mosta FC. A match between Naxxar Lions and Mosta FC, is known as the derby of the north, but because th ...

, Lija Athletic and

Marsaxlokk Marsaxlokk () is a small, traditional fishing village in the Southern Region, Malta, Southern Region of Malta. It has a harbour, and is a tourist attraction known for its views, fishing and history. As of March 2014, the village had a populati ...

. Degiorgio is now managing

Fgura Fgura (, ) is a town in the Port Region of Malta. It has a population of 13,066 as of 2021. Its northern fringes are bordered by the Cottonera Lines of fortifications while it merges with the towns of Żabbar to the east and Paola and Tarxien ...

Early life

Degiorgio was born on 15 November 1962 in

Pietà The Pietà (; meaning "pity", "compassion") is a subject in Christian art depicting the Mary (mother of Jesus), Blessed Virgin Mary cradling the mortal body of Jesus Christ after his Descent from the Cross. It is most often found in sculpture. ...

. A product of amateur club Ħamrun Liberty, he started his playing career in the MAFA League.

Ħamrun Spartans

Degiorgio was soon promoted to the Ħamrun Spartans . On 13 October 1979 he substituted Tonio Pace in a league game against

Żebbuġ Rangers F.C. Żebbuġ Rangers Football Club is a football club from the town of Żebbuġ in Malta. The club currently competes in the Maltese Challenge League The Maltese Challenge League (referred to as the Bank of Valletta, BOV Challenge League for sp ...

On 10 November 1979 Degiorgio played his first full league game in a 0–0 draw against Floriana. Between 1982 and 1993, the Spartans, with Degiorgia won four championships, six

FA Trophy The Football Association Challenge Trophy, also known as the Isuzu FA Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is a men's football knockout cup competition run by and named after The Football Association (the FA) and competed by mainly National League ...

winners' medals, and 20 major trophies. Degiorgio played for the Spartans against

Ballymena United Ballymena United Football Club is a semi-professional football club from Northern Ireland. Based in Ballymena, County Antrim, the team competes in the NIFL Premiership and plays home matches at the Ballymena Showgrounds. The club has been man ...

, of Ireland. Ħamrun won both legs 1-0 and 2–1 to reach the second round of the Cup Winners' Cup. In the Champions Cup against

Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scotland, Scottish professional association football, football club based in the city of Dundee. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1923. United are nickname ...

, he played in all 18 matches in Europe, 10 in the Champions Cup and eight in the Cup Winners' Cup. In 1989–90, he was named MFA player of the year.

National team

On 4 April 1981 Degiorgio earn his first international cap in a national team game against

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

. Malta lost 1-2 but Degiorgio's performance earned him a regular place in the National XI. By his own admission, Degiorgio's best international match was in 1985 against

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

. The national team lost 3–2, but Degiorgio scored one goal.

Later career

In 1993 Ħamrun transferred Degiorgio to the Naxxar Lions. He then help his new club gain promotion to the Premier Division in Malta. In 1996–97, he returned briefly to Ħamrun but the next year went back to Naxxar for two seasons. In 1999 to 2000, Degiorgio joined Lija Athletic in the First Division and the next season he went to Marsaxlokk. In 2001–02, Degiorgio returned to Ħamrun. However, a successful protest against his eligibility forced him to stop after playing only one game in the Premier League. The next season he played six matches as a substitute before deciding to retire.

Legacy

Degiorgio was also the first player to be included in the newly established professional scheme for national team players. It was a singular honour for the young midfielder, which continued to enhance his reputation as one of the best Maltese footballers of the modern era. In a career spanning 23 years, Degiorgio rarely missed a game. Injuries hardly affected him. It was only towards the end of his career that he started to miss matches. By the end of his career, Degiorgio had played 77 times for Malta.

Career statistics

International goals

References

External links

Michael Degiorgio at MaltaFootball.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Degiorgio, Michael 1962 births Living people People from Ħamrun Men's association football defenders Men's association football midfielders Maltese men's footballers Malta men's international footballers Hamrun Spartans F.C. players Naxxar Lions F.C. players Lija Athletic F.C. players Marsaxlokk F.C. players Maltese Premier League players Maltese Challenge League players Maltese football managers Marsaxlokk F.C. managers Ħamrun Spartans F.C. managers Maltese Premier League managers