Mario Muscat... end of the road.

Veteran goalkeeper Mario Muscat is set to bid farewell to Maltese football tomorrow when he makes his 500th and final Premier League appearance for his club Hibernians in a clash against Qormi (kick-off: 20.30) at the National Stadium.

The 38-year-old, who guarded goal 68 times for the national team, leaves after a glittering career with the Paolites with whom he spent the majority of a 21-year-long career bar for a short stint with Vittoriosa Stars last season.

Since making his first appearance with the club as a 17-year-old lad in 1993, Muscat helped Hibs win all major honours the local game could offer. The captain has four league medals to show and he won the FA Trophy five times.

Muscat’s repertoire also shows two Super Cups and the Euro Cup tournament three times. In 1998, he was also named MFA Player of the Year.

He said he was proud of what he managed to achieve and that he will be leaving after having reached such an impressive benchmark in his club career.

“It’s a huge honour for me to be making my 500th appearance in the Premier League,” Muscat told Times of Malta yesterday.

“It’s not easy to amass such a high number of matches and even more in the Premier League.

“The past two decades were filled with great emotions, more positive than negative... when I look back there is a great sense of pride in my achievements as a goalkeeper for Hibs.

“It will be a touching moment when I take the field of play with my team-mates this weekend... an experience I will never forget for the rest of my days.”

Our advice is for the younger generation of players to look up at Mario and follow in his footsteps

Muscat admitted that he would have liked to extend his career by a few more years but conceded that family commitments forced him to hang up his gloves.

However, he wants to stay involved and wants to become a qualified coach.

“I would love to share my experiences with others and tell the young ones how I succeeded in my career... a goalkeeping coach role would suit me fine,” Muscat, who has his own goalkeepers school, conceded.

“My dream job would be at Hibernians, no doubt. I have spent almost 30 years at this club and now I suppose it’s time to give something back.”

Hibs coach Branko Nisevic also paid tribute to Muscat and confirmed that he will start in goal against Qormi.

“Mario is an exemplary figure and a great personality,” Nisevic said.

“His contribution to the club has been immense and he deserves all the praise he can get.

“Mario will definitely start in goal against Qormi and we expect the fans to be at the stadium and pay tribute to this great player.”

Nisevic is still looking to bring in a defender before the end of the transfer window as cover for Jonathan Pearson who will be out until October with a knee injury.

Josef Mansueto, the Qormi coach, also had words of praise for the Hibs goalkeeper.

“Mario Muscat has been outstanding for club and country,” Mansueto said.

“To play so many matches in the Premier League is indeed remarkable. He has made a huge contribution to Maltese football. Our advice is for the younger generation of players to look up at Mario and follow in his footsteps.”

Qormi enjoyed a positive start to their Premier League trek following a 1-0 victory over Naxxar.

But, Mansueto is aware of the difficult task awaiting his players tomorrow and emphasised the importance to limit the errors in defence which surfaced in their previous match.

“From what we’ve seen Hibernians are one of the best sides in the league this season,” Mansueto said.

“I was pleased with the result against Naxxar but my only concern was that we were not disciplined enough in defence.

“Hibs have quality forwards so we must be more focused at the back or risk heavy punishment. They will also make an extra effort to give Muscat a perfect sending off so we must be fully aware of the situation facing us.”

Mansueto has no selection worries as he can also bank on Ghana midfielder Albert Bruce whose registration was documented this week.