Discover this Sunday League Squad Featuring Nearly Two Thousand Top-Flight Games

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
The substitutes for Wythenshawe Veterans during a six-two victory against their opponents on 19 October (from left to right) - Oumar Niasse, another, Marcel Edwards, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

How do you enhance a excellent experienced team who have won consecutive titles, including a double triumph boasting thirty wins from 32 games?

Sign a raft of former professionals who have performed at the elite tier of club and global football as you pursue further honors.

A Manchester team has an non-professional vets squad with 9 former Premier League footballers in their present lineup.

Two Hundred Twenty-Two Top Division Goals, 325 Global Caps

Wythenshawe Veterans Over-35s are based in southern the city and compete in the Cheshire-based Vets League Premier Division.

The lineup this campaign includes 9 former top-flight footballers, with a total over 1,800 Premier League matches.

This elite squad also contains 222 Premier League goals and 325 global caps.

They feature one forward, who netted thirty-seven goals in over 100 appearances for his former club after joining them for nine million pounds from Bundesliga side Freiburg in 2012.

Cisse made his first appearance for the team in their most recent home-field game versus defending title holders Collegiate Old Boys and netted all six scores in a six-two win - featuring a 32-minute first-half triple.

The squad for this season also includes former pros such as England and Liverpool forward Emile Heskey, Hull City and Burnley winger George Boyd, Everton forward Oumar Niasse, Wigan full-back Maynor Figueroa, City pair Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and top-flight championship winners Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

In total, the ex- top-flight footballers have claimed fifteen significant trophies and transferred for total transfer sums of about £123m.

Well-Known Names and International Stars

Stephen Ireland in action
Stephen Ireland won 6 Irish caps, scoring four scores

Stephen Ireland started playing for the team during pre-season this summer through good mate and present team teammate Blake Norton, and the ex- Republic of Ireland player then asked additional ex-pros, who all compete in a midweek nine-a-side game, to join in.

Former Senegalese striker Niasse, who scored twelve goals in 65 top-flight matches for the Toffees and even now goes to their home games, also had his first appearance versus Collegiate OB - who are based in the city and use an Blue training kit as their strip.

Oumar Niasse playing for Everton
He played for Everton between 2016 and 2020

"A friend Stephen Ireland said 'join and have a game, it's good fun'," commented Niasse.

"Then he told me we were playing a team from Liverpool and the shock I had when I saw them wearing Everton kits - I thought this is wrong for me!

"When you still love the game and you know you can still play, wherever you can kick a ball, what are you going to do?

"Those people who turn up and watch are happy and to make a day if they see us playing there and to ask us questions - it's really about the joy of us getting a place we can play, with structure of course."

So great is the strength in depth at Wythenshawe, he had his first game at defender.

"That's a little unusual but then, I love running and just move inside - I'm not defending that much," he added.

"I tell my centre-back 'I'm not hanging back' and that I'm just going to continue attacking.

"The running is what I'm after. It's good fun."

Maynor Figueroa in action
Former Wigan Athletic full-back Maynor Figueroa is playing for Wythenshawe

Unreal Experience

In addition to the forward's six goals on his first game, Ireland has scored eight in three games for Wythenshawe, while George Boyd scored 5 on his debut appearance and Joleon Lescott, a defender by position, notched a hat-trick in one match as a striker.

The team are leading of the Premier Tier with 3 wins from 3 and a GD of +19.

One opponent, 38, who plays on the flank for the opposition, faced ex- Latics full-back Figueroa on the weekend - and had to tell his nine-year-old son who Heskey was.

Figueroa has appeared at 2 World Cups for Honduras, in addition to playing in over 200 Premier League matches.

"The news was spreading like wildfire they had all these ex-Premier League stars," said the player.

"I felt I was a bit starstruck facing Figueroa to be honest.

"Even Emile [Heskey] came on and he's has over 60 English appearances.

"We held our own for a solid twenty minutes but then we had a player sent off and it was hard.

"We literally haven't stopped talking about it - I was phoning my mother and sibling on the way home.

"They were all friendly, shaking our hands after the game - it was like facing a bunch of regular fellas.

"Now we are eager for the return fixture."

We Will Still Take the Title'

Andy Kirby coaches the opposition vets team, who won the Premier Division championship the previous campaign, together with Paul Maguire.

"Our team scored 1-0 ahead and had a

Leslie Carter
Leslie Carter

A seasoned IT consultant with over 15 years of experience in enterprise technology solutions and digital innovation.