Birkirkara are resigned to losing one of their key players in the coming days after it emerged that Liliu has accepted an offer from a club in Hungary.
Last night, the Brazilian striker confirmed his departure in a message on his Facebook page but stopped short of revealing the name of his new club.
The 25-year-old’s stock rose significantly after his fine match in Birkirkara’s Europa League second qualifying round home match against West Ham last month.
Signed by former Birkirkara coach Paul Zammit last summer, Liliu’s first season in Maltese football was an up-and-down affair.
He caught the eye as a fast and agile winger-cum-forward but was sidelined for four months after suffering a knee cruciate injury in January.
Liliu made his comeback sooner than expected though and his showing in Europe suggest that he is back to this best.
His departure would represent a setback for Birkirkara coach Giovanni Tedesco who regarded Liliu as one of his first-choice strikers ahead of the 2015/16 domestic trek which kicks off tomorrow week when the Stripes take on champions Hibernians in the Super Cup curtain-raiser.
Despite figuring for Birkirkara in the Europa League, it is believed that Liliu had not extended his contract with the club after failing to agree personal terms. It now looks like the Stripes’ last-ditch efforts to persuade Liliu to stay have proved futile.
After the euphoria surrounding their resilient performances against West Ham, who needed penalties to scrape into the third qualifying round of the Europa Lea-gue, Birkirkara have grappled with some difficult issues in the last few days.
Apart from Liliu’s imminent exit, they are anxiously awaiting updates on Zach Muscat’s situation as the Malta defender is in advanced talks to join AC Pisa 1909.
Muscat travelled to Italy on Saturday after receiving an approach from the Lega Pro club. On Sunday, Pisa hammered Sestri Levante 4-0 in the Coppa Italia first round.
Coronado on target
Floriana forward Igor Coronado scored one of the goals in Trapani’s 9-1 win over Torgiano in a pre-season friendly. The Brazilian hit the net four minutes after entering the fray at the start of the second half.
Coronado is now in the third week of his trial with Trapani who are reportedly interested in signing him but have yet to strike a deal with Floriana.