| Giuliano Maiorana | |
| Birth Date: | 18 April 1969 |
| Birth Place: | Cambridge, England |
| Position: | Left winger |
| Years1: | 1987–1988 |
| Clubs1: | Histon |
| Years2: | 1988–1994 |
| Caps2: | 7 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Years3: | 1995 |
| Clubs3: | Ljungskile SK |
| Caps3: | 5 |
| Goals3: | 0 |
Giuliano Maiorana (born 18 April 1969), commonly known as Jules Maiorana, is a former professional footballer who played as a left winger.[1] Born in England to Italian parents, Maiorana was spotted and signed by Manchester United while he was playing for Histon in the semi-professional Eastern Counties Football League.
Maiorana was born in Cambridge, England, to Italian parents.[2] In 1987, he had been playing Sunday League football before signing for Eastern Counties League club Histon, after they spotted him during a local five-a-side that was taking place at their home ground.[3]
After around 30 games for Histon's first team,[4] and having previously been turned down by Cambridge United, Brentford and Norwich City,[5] he was invited for a trial for Manchester United in November 1988. He played the first half of a testimonial match for Ian Handysides of Birmingham City, producing a performance described by Alex Ferguson as "one of the best displays I have ever seen from a trialist",[3] and signed a four-year contract with United for a fee of £30,000, amid interest from other clubs including Chelsea, Watford, and Tottenham Hotspur.[6] The fee saved Histon, who were £23,000 in debt and at risk of bankruptcy.[4]
Maiorana made his debut on 14 January 1989 as a substitute against Millwall in the First Division,[7] and came to prominence with an exciting display on his first start, in a live televised 1–1 draw with Arsenal (who finished the season as league champions) at Old Trafford that April.[8] Maiorana only started one more game, and made his last two substitute appearances in October 1989.[9] Near the end of 1989, he was sent to reserves,[10] where he suffered a serious knee injury in a match against the Aston Villa reserves after being tackled by Dwight Yorke.[11] [12] [13] After his injury, he remained with the reserves, but was unable to leave the club due to the Bosman ruling not being created yet.[14] He was finally able to leave on a free transfer at the end of the 1993–94 season.[4] [15]
After leaving United, Maiorana had a brief spell with Ljungskile SK, where he made five appearances, of which four were as a substitute, in the Swedish second-tier Division 1.[16] He then returned home to work in his family's upholstery business,[4] and played for Newmarket Town in the Eastern Counties League Premier Division.[17]
In 2008 and 2009, Maiorana played for Manchester United's Masters Football team in the North West Masters Cup.[18] [19]
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Manchester United | 1988–89 | First Division | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 1989–90 | First Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | ||
| Ljungskile SK | 1995 | Division 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| Career Total | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | ||