Brazilian strikers Jose Wilkson and Silvio Junior – formerly of Persebaya Surabya – have been enjoying decent outings recently. The two men, still highly-regarded by Persebaya supporters, found the back of the net for Maltese side Gzira United and Japanese outfit Renofa Yamaguchi respectively last week, invoking fond memories of the two scoring for Persebaya in the minds of the Bajul Ijo faithful.
While both Wilkson and Silvio had left the Gelora Bung Tomo in 2022, their contributions for Persebaya as well as their affable personalities had made them cult heroes among the Bajul Ijo support, with plenty of them still commenting on the Brazilians’ social media posts even long after they had left Persebaya.
Following his exit from Surabaya, Wilkson’s career path took him back to his native Brazil, where he played for both Itapipoca and Caucaia, before the 31-year old striker joined Maltese Premier League club Gzira United, where he played a key role in the club’s ongoing European campaign.
Gzira’s 3rd place finish in the previous league season meant that they had earned the right to compete in the 2023/24 UEFA Europa Conference League qualifiers, with Wilkson playing in all four of Gzira’s qualifying matches so far.
Having already scored once in Gzira’s first qualifying round win over Northern Irish side Glentoran, Wilkson found the back of the net again for Gzira in last Wednesday’s second round qualifying match.
With his side trailing 2-0 away at F91 Dudelange of Luxembourg and the qualifying match being tied 2-2 on aggregate, Wilkson popped in a goal in the 87th minute. While the goal acted as consolation in the 2-1 defeat, it effectively sealed Gzira’s progression to the third qualifying round as the Maroons won 3-2 on aggregate, earning Wilkson and his teammates a date over two legs with Czech giants Viktoria Plzen.
Silvio, on the other hand, is a recent addition to the Renofa Yamaguchi lineup, being brought in by new head coach Juan Esnaider. The J.League 2 side is currently struggling in the league, sitting in 18th place with the relegation zone looming close behind them.
Renofa took on Oita Trinita on Sunday at the Yamaguchi Ishin Park Stadium, with the promotion play-off chasing visitors being the favorite to win the match. Sure enough, Renofa found themselves 1-0 down after just 10 minutes courtesy of a Keita Takahata goal.
Tsubasa Umesaki drew things level for Renofa in the 29th minute and with two minutes to go until half-time, it was Silvio’s time to shine as the former Persebaya marksman scored his first Renofa goal from the penalty spot, earning the hosts the lead just before the break.
However, Renofa’s hopes for all three points went up in smokes in the sixth minute of injury time, with Yusuke Matsuo scoring a last-gasp equalizer for Oita.
It remains to be seen on whether Wilkson or Silvio will flourish further at their respective new clubs, but regardless, they’ll forever go down as one of the many cult heroes that Persebaya fans remembered until this day.