Introduce the Sunday Division Club With 1,800 Top-Flight Matches

Wythenshawe Vets bench during a match
The substitutes for the team Veterans during a six-two win against Collegiate Old Boys on October 19th (from left to right) - one player, another, a teammate, Blake Norton, Maynor Figueroa, Dean Warburton and Emile Heskey

What can you enhance a excellent experienced side who have won consecutive titles, including a league-cup double boasting thirty victories from thirty-two games?

Recruit a group of former professionals who have competed at the elite level of club football and international football as you aim for further trophies.

A Manchester club boasts an amateur veterans squad with nine former top-flight players in their present lineup.

Two Hundred Twenty-Two Top Division Goals, Three Hundred Twenty-Five International Caps

Wythenshawe Vets Over 35s are based in southern the city and play in the Cheshire Vets League Top Tier.

The squad list this season features 9 former Premier League players, with a combined over 1,800 top-flight appearances.

This star-studded team also contains 222 Premier League scores and 325 international appearances.

The squad feature one forward, who notched thirty-seven goals in 117 appearances for his former club after moving to them for nine million pounds from German league side SC Freiburg in 2012.

He made his debut for the team in their last home match versus defending title holders Collegiate Old Boys and netted every one of the six scores in a 6-2 win - including a 32-minute first-half triple.

Wythenshawe's team for this campaign also includes former professionals such as England and Liverpool striker Emile Heskey, Hull City and Burnley winger George Boyd, Everton striker Oumar Niasse, Wigan Athletic defender Maynor Figueroa, City pair Stephen Ireland and Nedum Onuoha and Premier League championship victors Joleon Lescott and Danny Drinkwater.

Collectively, the former Premier League footballers have won 15 major honors and moved for combined transfer fees of approximately £123 million.

Famous Names and Global Players

Stephen Ireland in action
He earned six Republic of Ireland caps, scoring four scores

Stephen Ireland started turning out for the side in preseason this summer through good friend and present Wythenshawe player Blake Norton, and the ex- Republic of Ireland midfielder then invited additional former professionals, who all compete in a midweek nine-a-side match, to participate.

Ex- Senegal striker Oumar Niasse, who netted 12 goals in sixty-five top-flight games for Everton and still attends their matches at Goodison Park, also made his first appearance versus the opposition - who are based in the city and use an Everton training kit as their uniform.

Oumar Niasse playing for Everton
Oumar Niasse featured for the club between 2016 and 2020

"A mate Stephen said 'come and play, it's enjoyable'," commented Niasse.

"After that he told me we were facing a team from the city and the shock I had when I saw them sporting Blue kits - I say this is wrong for me!

"If you still enjoy the game and you feel you can still do it, wherever you can kick a ball, what are you going to do?

"Those fans who come and watch are pleased and to make a moment if they see us competing there and to ask us queries - it's really about the joy of us getting a place we can enjoy football, with structure of course."

Such is the strength in depth at the club, he made his debut at full-back.

"It's a little different but then, I love sprinting and just go inside - I'm not defending that much," he said.

"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 enjoyable."

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

'Surreal Experience

Along with the forward's 6 goals on his first game, Stephen Ireland has netted eight in 3 games for Wythenshawe, while George Boyd scored five on his first appearance and Joleon Lescott, a defender by position, notched a triple in one match as a striker.

The team are leading of the Premier Division with three wins from 3 and a goal difference of +19.

Paul Barrow, thirty-eight, who plays on the flank for the opposition, faced ex- Latics defender Maynor Figueroa on Sunday - and had to tell his nine-year-old boy who Heskey was.

Figueroa has appeared at two global tournaments for his country, in addition to featuring in more than two hundred Premier League games.

"It was spreading like wildfire they had all these former top-flight stars," said the player.

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

"Even Heskey got on and he's got 60-odd England appearances.

"Our side competed well for a good twenty minutes but then we had a man sent off and it was tough.

"We really haven't ceased talking about it - I was calling my mum and brother on the journey home.

"The opponents were all really nice, shaking our hands after the match - it was like playing a group of normal guys.

"Now we are eager for the second match."

We Will Still Take the Title'

Andy Kirby coaches the Collegiate veterans side, who won the Premier Division title last season, along with Paul Maguire.

"We scored one-nil up and had a

Margaret Garcia
Margaret Garcia

Professional sports analyst with 10 years of experience in betting strategies and data-driven predictions.