Jonathan Caruana (born 24 July 1986) is a 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

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 ...

, where he plays as a defender. On 26 September 2017, Caruana was handed a four-year ban from football. The 31-year-old was provisionally suspended by the

Malta Football Association The Malta Football Association (MFA; mt, Assoċjazzjoni tal-Futbol ta' Malta) is the governing body of football in Malta. The Association organises the Maltese Football League and several other competitions, including a knockout competition ...

after he returned a positive sample during an out-of-competition test conducted by the National Anti-Doping Organisation (NADO) back in March 2017. In September 2018 after having his ban cut short, he returned to Valletta.

Playing career

Hibernians

Caruana started his career with Hibernians, and made his debut during the 2003–04 season. Making the transition from youth team to first team, he was only used as a bit part player, and went on to make just one appearance during the season, with Hibernians going on to finish in third position in the Maltese Premier League. The 2004–05 season, saw Caruana gain a few more first team opportunities. He helped Hibernians to another third-place finish in the Maltese Premier League, with Caruana going on to make four appearances, without scoring and goals. Caruana still struggled to make his mark in the Hibernians first team, and went into the 2005–06 season hoping to establish himself. Caruana still failed to mark a first team place his own and up to the January transfer window of 2006, he only made one appearance. He was sent out of loan for the remainder of the season to fellow Maltese Premier League team Mosta, who were struggling against relegation. He made 17 appearances, without scoring, but unfortunately Mosta failed to avoid relegation after finishing in ninth position in the Maltese Premier League. Caruana's parent club, Hibernians went on to secure a fourth-place finish. Caruana returned to Hibernians for the 2006–07 season. The loan move had paid off, as Caruana cemented a first team place, making 19 appearances, but failing to score as Hibernians finished in fifth position in the Maltese Premier League. He did gain his first taste of success as Hibernians secured 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, ...

for the second consecutive season. The 2007–08 season turned out to be a very disappointing one for Hibernians, as the club finished the first phase of the season in the relegation pool, before finishing the season in seventh position. Caruana went on to make 21 appearances, but failed to score any goals. However, the club won the

Maltese Super Cup The Maltese Super Cup is an annual super cup tie held in Malta between the champions of the previous Maltese Premier League season and the holders of the Maltese FA Trophy. In the event that the Premier League champion also won the FA Trophy, the ...

. Caruana's form did however not go unnoticed, as he received his first cap for the Maltese national team during the season. Hibernians went from one extreme to the other during the 2008–09 season. Under the guidance of new manager Mark Miller, the club shocked the critics and beat

by two points to win the Maltese Premier League title. Caruana made 26 appearances and chipped in with three goals. Caruana hoped to help Hibernians retain the Maltese Premier League title for the 2009–10, however the quest took some severe setbacks, as Hibernians sold 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 ...

, Clayton Failla to Sliema Wanderers, and

striker Striker or The Strikers may refer to: People *A participant in a strike action *A participant in a hunger strike *Blacksmith's striker, a type of blacksmith's assistant *Striker's Independent Society, the oldest mystic krewe in America People wi ...

Terence Scerri Terence Scerri (born 3 April 1984 in Senglea, Malta) is a professional footballer currently playing for Zurrieq Football Club Playing career Hibernians Terence Scerri was spotted playing for the St. George's youth team, and was snapped up ...

joined Valletta. In July 2021, Caruana retired after making over 300 Maltese Premier League appearances.

Honours

;Hibernians * Maltese Premier League: 2008–09 * Maltese FA Trophy: 2007 *

: 2007 ;Valletta *

: 2011, 2012 * Maltese Premier League:

2010–11 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 ...

, 2011–12

Individual

* Malta Football Awards ** Best Defence *** Winner: 2010–2011 with

Valletta F.C. Valletta F.C. is a professional football club based in Valletta, the capital city of Malta, and competes in the Maltese Premier League, the top flight of Maltese football. The club was founded in 1943 after a merge of Valletta Prestons, Valletta ...

*** Winner: 2011–2012 with

Career statistics

''Statistics accurate as of match played 9 August 2009.''

International goals

:''Scores and results list Malta's goal tally first.''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Caruana, Jonathan 1986 births Living people Maltese men's footballers Men's association football defenders Hibernians F.C. players Mosta F.C. players Valletta F.C. players Maltese Premier League players Malta men's youth international footballers Malta men's under-21 international footballers Malta men's international footballers