Biography
Who is André Schembri?
Early football career
André Schembri began his professional path as a trainee with the Maltese club Hibernians. He made his debut with the first team during the 2002–03 season. On 31 August 2003, he scored his first goal for the club in a match against Balzan Youths. By June 2004, he appeared in his first European competition, the Intertoto Cup, where he scored the winning goal against Slaven Belupo.
In January 2005, he transferred to Marsaxlokk. He quickly became a key player for the team. During the 2006–07 season, Marsaxlokk won their first league title. Schembri proved effective in attack, scoring 11 goals that season. He formed a productive partnership with teammate Daniel Bogdanović, and together the pair scored 42 of the club's 74 league goals.
Time in German football
In the summer of 2007, André moved to Germany to join Eintracht Braunschweig on a season-long loan. He played in the Regionalliga Nord, which was the third tier of the German football league system. He made his debut on 31 July against VfL Wolfsburg II. Later that season, he scored a hat-trick against Energie Cottbus II. He finished that campaign with nine goals in total.
Following his time at Eintracht Braunschweig, he joined Carl Zeiss Jena on another loan in June 2008. His first goal for this team occurred in the DFB-Pokal tournament against 1. FC Kaiserslautern. He also scored during a match against the Bundesliga side Schalke. He concluded the season by scoring two goals in the final matches, which helped ensure the club remained in the 3. Liga.
Success with Ferencváros
In February 2010, André Schembri signed with the Hungarian club Ferencváros. He soon established himself as a regular starter in the attacking line. During the 2010–11 season, his performance improved significantly under manager László Prukner. He scored a hat-trick against Vasas, which made him the first Maltese football player to achieve a hat-trick in a foreign top-tier league.
He continued his goal-scoring form later that year by netting another hat-trick against Lombard Pápa in a 5–0 victory. By the end of the season, he was the club's highest goalscorer and the second-highest scorer in the league with 16 goals. This performance helped Ferencváros finish in third place and return to European competition.
Later club career and international duty
André played for several other teams throughout his career, including Olympiacos Volos, Panionios, and Omonia. While at the Cypriot club Omonia, he was a regular forward and finished his second season there as the league's second-highest scorer with 17 goals. He also spent time with Apollon Limassol starting in 2017. During his time there, he became the first Maltese player to score in the proper rounds of a UEFA competition.
At the international level, André represented Malta at youth levels. He made his senior debut for the national team on 4 June 2006 against Japan. He scored his first international goals during a 2–1 victory over Hungary, which was Malta's first competitive win in 13 years. He retired from international duty in October 2018 with 94 appearances for his country.
Birthday and age
André Schembri was born on May 27, 1986, which makes André 40 years old today. That birthday falls under the Gemini sign. André shares the date with 60 other famous people.
