Louis Arpa was born on 2 August 1949, son of Alfred and Domenica nèe Micallef. From his first marriage Louis has two boys aged 38 and 27 whereas from his second marriage he’s got an eight-year-old boy.

Going back down memory lane Louis started recounting his childhood days. “My childhood was as simple as can be. Apart from the educational side I used to go straight from home to the playground in Floriana. It was where there is today the Italian Embassy. I also had my fair share of naughty moments but nothing out of this world since I was always hundred per cent focused on football.”

“As regards my educational background I attended Stella Maris College until Form 5 and subsequently I joined our family business.”

But was football the only sport than interested Louis? “To be honest yes. No other sport ever interested me apart from athletics which I consider part and parcel of my physical preparation.”

Louis started with Floriana at the age of 12 and kept climbing up the ladder with the Greens. “I started with the Under 12 and kept going in the Under 14 and 16, Minors and the first team. I started with the Greens and finished with them. I was a club man, which in today’s world, is difficult to find both locally and abroad.”

Floriana had one of the greatest teams, best known as the team of Louis Arpa and Willie Vassallo. They were a dominant force during their time. “We were lucky to have been a group of players who started from the Minors and proceeded into the first team. Players such as Willie Vassallo, Frankie Micallef, George Attard, Raymond Xuereb, George Xuereb, Edwin Farrugia, Salvu Bonello, John Holland and Alfred Debono, to name a few.  I think that was the golden era of Floriana. This was in the early 70s. We replaced another great team with the likes of Tony Cauchi, Freddie Vella James, Lolly Debattista, Lolly Borg and Pullu Demanuele, among others. But the team, though with practically new faces, formed up brilliantly and in the first season we won the Trophy followed by the League a year later. That was the beginning of a successful era.”

Arpa delved also into the wonderful memories that he has of the Empire Stadium. “Nice memories especially when we used to normally go out from beneath our supporters. But there was also the odd laughing moment as in that dressing room they also kept the horse of Baron Testaferrata, the owner of the stadium. But at that time that was the only ground available. Comparing our times to todays is a totally different picture. To play on grass and have multiple pitches is an added incentive.”

The main rivals at that time were Sliema Wanderers and obviously our neighbours, Valletta. Louis recalled some of those nerve-wrecking times. “Against Sliema it was always an interesting match since we were the dominant forces of local football at the time. Even if you look into the history books of football you find that we were the teams who won the most titles and trophies. Sliema and Floriana were the teams to beat. As for Valletta, being neighbours and moreover the family cult and mixture between Valletta and Floriana, always made a Floriana-Valletta match an interesting one.”

Turning our attention to the national team Louis talked about his international career. “I’ve got wonderful memories of the national team. At that time we were limited as practically all the players had a full-time job before going down for training. We used to meet a week before a big match and take time off from our vacation leave entitlement to practise. Although this came with a lot of personal sacrifice, it was a nice experience. We played against England, Austria, Sweden and many other big European guns. True we used to lose but especially at home we always gave our opponents a hard time.”

Arpa had his ups and downs during his short and intensive career. “The first time that we won the League was when I was just 17 years old. It was a very memorable moment. But for me 20 September 1972 will always remain an unforgettable day; we made football history.  Against all expectations, Floriana beat the star-studded Hungarian side Ferencvaros 1-0 at the Empire Stadium. We had the likes of George Ciantar, Edwin Farrugia, John Holland, Alfred Debono, Frankie Micallef, Ray and George Xuereb and Willie Vassallo. I scored the all-important goal in our first attack. One has to remember that they had six national players within their ranks.”

“But at that time it was standard practice to play against a big European team like Real Madrid, Juventus, Manchester United and Inter, to mention a few. Today they play against teams on a par with us, so we can advance more.”

And bad moments? “I’m not a person that if we lose I take it badly. I always considered football as just a sport. But if I have to mention a particular moment is the match in which we were in a decider with Sliema for the league crown. After just five minutes Charlie Galea was sent off and we played the entire match in inferiority. We played well but we lost in extra time. We still had our revenge for this defeat in the Trophy final of the same season when we beat them 3-0.”

Louis talked about the facilities that they had, compared to today. “When I think of our time I don’t know if I should laugh or cry.  During those days we didn’t have football shoes to play on the turf when we went abroad. Given the facilities that they have nowadays the players of my time would have made great strides. All the teams like Sliema, Valletta and Hibernians had class players. Few are aware that to play in an official league match we were given just one ball supplied by the Baruni and that was it.”

And what about his view of individual players? A lot of critics say that you were one of the all-time best players. “I always say that every era has its particular players. Players like Lolly Borg, Salvinu Schembri, Willie Vassallo, Frankie Micallef, Carmel Busutill, John Buttigieg, Ray Vella and a number of others were all great players. During my time we were lucky that at Floriana we had a great team with many individually talented players.”

Arpa hanged up his boots when he still had so much to offer. “I had to retire early although it wasn’t my wish. I stopped after just 10 years. Being the youngest in my family, my dad was already 82 years old and he had his family business to run. One day he called me and told me that he was going to call it a day and wanted me to take over. So I opted to continue running our family business since I knew I couldn’t make a living out of football.”

Louis also expressed his opinion about the current situation. “I never agreed with the format of the league and all those teams even when I was in the Executive Committee of the MFA. And I still disagree. I opt for a 10-team league. Before I was committed within the MFA but nowadays I’m more of an armchair critic. But I humbly ask, did we make progress? Looking at other countries that we used to beat like Cyprus and Luxembourg they made more progress than we did. Why do we sometimes struggle against teams from San Marino and Andorra?”

But what is the solution from Arpa’s point of view. “One of the problems is the lack of professionalism from our teams. But the road is a long one. And another problem is the open market as regards foreign players. Are we importing good foreign players? What are we getting from them? Are they giving their hundred per cent? I agree that we had some good players like Miller, Zacchau, Lawrence and some others. But if these are being paid good money why not involve them in teaching our young children.”

Turning onto his daily routine Louis still goes to his office daily but works till one in the afternoon and after that it’s free time. Living in Mellieha makes it easier as during the summer months I take a dip in the beautiful sea whereas in winter it’s picnics and barbeques in the countryside.”

And what is his favourite food? “Talking about Maltese traditional food my top choice is kusksu and imqarrun il-forn. Apart from that I always love to enjoy a good piece of meat or some fresh fish.”

Arpa chooses Rome as his favourite travel destination. “The Eternal City, I feel so much at home. The people, the food, the language. They’ve got it all.”

And hobbies? “I like to watch all kinds of sport on TV. Obviously football is still my top pick but I also love watching tennis and NBA.”

Louis ended this interview with a strong message to all those who want to further their career in sport. “If you want to make the grade you have to take it seriously. During our time we made it cause it was our love for the game not the contract or the money. Yes you have to make sacrifices to succeed but being smart and dedicated helps in achieving your goal.”