Ian Azzopardi (born 12 August 1982 in Zejtun,

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 ...

) is a Maltese

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 currently plays for

Maltese Premier League The Maltese Premier League, known as BOV Premier League for sponsorship reasons with Bank of Valletta (colloquially known as ''Il-Kampjonat Premjer''), is the highest level of professional football in Malta. Managed by the Malta Football Associa ...

side Senglea Athletic, where he plays as a defender.

Playing career

Floriana

Ian Azzopardi began his career with

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 ...

as a trainee, and made his debut for Floriana during the 2000–01 season. Azzopardi notched up just two appearances, but failed to score any goals, as he helped his side to a 5th-place finish in the

. Ian went into the 2001–02 season in search of more first team football, as he hoped to break into the first team; however the season turned out to be a carbon copy of the previous one, with Azzopardi again making two appearances and scoring no goals, as Floriana finished in 6th position in the Maltese Premier League. For the 2002–03 season, Azzopardi established himself as the club's first-team left back, and even forced his way into the Maltese international football team. Ian made a total of 20 appearances during the season, but again failed to find the net, as Floriana recorded a 7th-place finish in the Maltese Premier League. With the profile of Azzopardi growing, and a character known by all as a very quite and humble person, he continued to impress in a Floriana shirt, making 26 appearances, but again failed to score, as Floriana finished the 2003–04 season in 5th place. For the 2004–05 season, Azzopardi had firmly cemented the left back position as his own, as he made 22 appearances and even scored his first league goal, but Floriana finished one worse than the previous season with a 6th-place finish in the

. Azzopardi went into the 2005–06 season looking to try to achieve some glory with Floriana, but the team went on to finish in 7th position. Ian made 18 appearances, but managed to notch two goals to help the team's cause. For the 2006–07 season, Azzopardi continued his good form, but again Floriana could only manage another 7th-place finish, with Azzopardi making 22 appearances and scoring one goal.

Sliema Wanderers

With

continually failing to seriously challenge some of their biggest rivals in Maltese

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

, Ian Azzopardi decided in June 2007, to move onto

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

following the end of his

contract. Azzopardi began his

career at the start of the 2007–08 season. Ian very quickly established himself as the club's regular first team left back. In his first season Ian made a total of 21 appearances but failed to score any goals, as

recorded a 3rd-place finish in the

. Ian's second season ( 2008–09) with

was even more productive, as Ian made 24 appearances and scored his first goal for the club, and although

finished one position lower in 4th, than the previous season, Azzopardi got his hands on his first piece of silverware as

defeated

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 win the U*Bet FA Trophy. For the 2009–10 season, Ian had competition in the left back position, following the signing of Clayton Failla from Hibernians. Ian scored his first goal of the season on 24 January 2010, as he added his team's third goal, in a 3–1 victory over Dingli Swallows. –

International career

Malta

Azzopardi received his first cap for

on 14 December 2003 in a match against

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. Ian scored his first goal, and the opening goal on 20 August 2008, in a 1–2 defeat to

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

in a

Friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

. On 9 September 2009, Azzopardi scored an

own goal An own goal, also called a self goal, is where a player performs actions that result in them or their team scoring a goal on themselves, often resulting in a point for the opposing team, such as when a football player kicks a ball into their own ...

in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

, which

went on to lose 1–0.

International goals

Honours

Sliema Wanderers

Winner * 2009

Maltese FA Trophy 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, ...

Career statistics

''Statistics accurate as of match played 1 August 2009.''

External links

Ian Azzopardi at MaltaFootball.com
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Azzopardi, Ian Living people 1982 births Men's association football defenders Maltese men's footballers Malta men's international footballers Floriana F.C. players Sliema Wanderers F.C. players Valletta F.C. players People from Żejtun