Mario Muscat (born 18 August 1976) 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 le ...

and manager. Muscat spent almost the entirety of his football career with Hibernians in the

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 ...

, and was capped over 60 times for the Maltese national team.

Playing career

Hibernians

Muscat began his career in the 1993–94 season, when he was called into the first team squad of Hibernians. In his debut season, he helped Hibernians win the

title, going on to make 18 appearances for the team during the season. Continuing with Hibernians for the 1994–95 season, Muscat again won the Maltese Premier League title, making 12 appearances during the season. In the 1995–96 season, Muscat went on to record 13 appearances, as Hibernians finished in fourth position in the Maltese Premier League. Despite Muscat failing to win the title with Hibernians for the third time, he was rewarded with a spot within

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

during the season. Muscat went into the 1996–97 season hoping to emulate the form that had seen him called up to the national team. However, Hibernians recorded a disappointing finish in the Maltese Premier League. Muscat went on to make 15 appearances during the season. The 1997–98 season saw Muscat maintain his form for Hibernians and the national team. Muscat went on to make 23 appearances, winning 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, and helped the club win 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 several years without a title, Hibernians were crowned champions of the Maltese Premier League for the 2001–02 season, with Muscat as a mainstay of the team. Muscat would leave the club in 2014 after a period on loan to Vittoriosa Stars, having won in the interim six more titles, including the Maltese Premier League, the Maltese Cup and the Maltese Supercup.

Later career and retirement

After a two year spell with Pembroke Athleta, also in the Maltese Premier League, Muscat retired in 2017.

Managerial career

After his retirement, Muscat started his coaching career in his former club, Hibernians, later having spells with

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 ...

and Senglea Athletic.

Career statistics

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

Honors

Hibernians *

: 1993–94, 1994–95, 2001–02, 2008–09 *

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, ...

: 1997–98, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2011–12,

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 ...

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 ...

: 2007 Individual *

: 1997–98

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Muscat, Mario 1976 births Living people Maltese men's footballers Malta men's international footballers Hibernians F.C. players Men's association football goalkeepers Maltese Premier League players Vittoriosa Stars F.C. players Hibernians F.C. managers Maltese Premier League managers Maltese football managers