A Maltese youngster, Anthony Vassallo, an 18-year-old, from London, Canada, had made the headlines when he became the youngest player in the Canadian Professional Soccer League four years ago, writes Morris Dalla Costa on the Online newspaper, The London Free Press.

In a detailed article, Morris claimed Vassallo (pictured) was 14 when he made his debut for the London City team.

The Maltese youngster, however, was aware that football was not a top sport in Canada and decided to come back to Malta. He was offered a trial by Birkirkara when he was 15 years old and at 16, he signed an amateur contract with the Stripes to play for the club’s youth and reserve sides.

He used to live in Gozo with his grandparents, but he moved to Birkirkara where he lived with another young player.

His progress has been quite steady. Last June, the attacking midfielder was called to join the Malta Under 18 team and in September he was asked to train with the Under 20 squad. At present, he is in Israel with the Malta Under 19 squad taking part in the UEFA qualifiers.

Morris quoted Vassallo as saying: “It will be a good chance to play at a high calibre and be noticed.”

The youngster plays for Birkirkara’s youth side, but added the main team did not use much of their young players, preferring, like all big clubs, to purchase older players in an effort to be successful.

The writer, after having mentioned the fact that Malta has met Canada twice and won on both occasions, went on to say that Vassallo was happy to be here. Said Vassallo: “They are a lot more serious here about football than in Canada. People talk soccer all the time. They follow the English and Italian leagues. It’s a good atmosphere. They play a very defensive game to get results but Maltese teams play in all the major competitions.”

It was a sacrifice for Vassallo to leave his family and dream of playing professional football even though in a small country such as Malta is. However, he hopes this is just a stepping stone towards a much better future. “Of course, I want to play somewhere else,” he was quoted as saying. “Many players in Malta are a little old fashioned. They want to stay here and play here and not take any risks. I want to move on, take some risks. I want to play in a higher professional league,” said Vassallo.