Ħamrun Spartans’ title defence aspirations face another significant test when they take on Opening Round winners Floriana in the top fixture of this weekend’s 360 Sports Malta Premier programme at the Tony Bezzina Stadium on Saturday (kick-off: 3pm).
The Reds come into the match in high spirits after managing to win their opening two fixtures from the Closing Round against Marsaxlokk (6-1) and Hibernians (2-1) and will be bidding to make it three wins on the trot and further strengthen their top placing in the standings.
Floriana, on the other hand, are still reeling after suffering an unexpected 2-0 defeat at the hands of Melita last week and will be determined to put their championship charge back on track with victory on the most in-form team present.
Ħamrun Spartans coach Alessandro Zinnari said that he is focused on ensuring his team approaches the match against Floriana with the right mentality and with maximum determination to maintain the high standards set in the opening two games of the Closing Round.
“We have great respect for Floriana. We are in good form and approach this match just like any other,” the Italian coach said.
“It’s still early in the competition; we’ve only played two matches in this Closing Round and there’s no significant difference in points yet. Floriana are a strong side with skilful players, and they’ve shown their quality.
“Getting a result against a strong team like Hibernians has boosted our confidence.
“Floriana showed excellent mental and tactical strength in the Opening Round and played some of the best football.
“They’re solid in every department but we’ll focus on playing our style of football.
“We aim to maintain a high tempo and capitalize on the chances we create during the 90 minutes.”
Ħamrun wingback Ryan Camenzuli says the Spartans’ major strength in the past few weeks has been their team unity and said the new acquisitions made by the club found it easy to gel into the team.
“We are not feeling any pressure, we are just taking it one game at a time, staying focused on what we need to do to fulfil our targets,” Camenzuli said.
“The foreign players that were recently signed by the club have added quality to the squad, and the administration did an excellent job in the January market.
“The new players are professional and have adapted well in the dressing room, blending nicely with the locally based players.
“The team is playing much better now, but we are also more disciplined in terms of defensive organisation, especially after conceding too many goals in the opening round.
“We’ve worked hard over the Christmas break to address those issues and we are confident in our approach moving forward.”
Darren Abdilla, the Floriana coach, said that last week’s defeat against Melita was a bitter pill to swallow after the team’s impressive showing in the Opening Round and took full responsibility for that setback.
However, Abdilla expects a completely different challenge against Ħamrun Spartans and is hopeful the club’s new signings settle down quickly in the team as the Greens aim to finish on top of the Closing Round and win the league title without the need of play-offs.
“In the Opening Round, we were the most positive team, so it’s no surprise that our opponents are now better prepared to face us. I take full responsibility for the defeat against Melita, credit to them for playing one of their best matches yet in this campaign,” Abdilla said.
“Ħamrun are a strong side, and their coach has shown great resilience in believing in his team’s potential so we know that we have a great challenge on our hands and need to be ready.”
Abdilla said that he never expected that the club would make so many changes in the squad, with seven players leaving the club and six coming in.
“We’ve undergone significant changes in our squad, with seven players leaving and six coming in during the January window,” Abdilla said.
“While I didn’t want so many changes, we now have more quality, though the squad remains a bit short. Our priority is to help the new players integrate quickly.
“Part of the defeat against Melita was due to the ongoing transitions within the team, and we must now work to restore harmony in the dressing room.
“Our ultimate goal remains winning the title.
“While the cushion from winning the Opening Round gives us confidence, it won’t deter us from staying fully committed to our objectives also in this Closing Round.”
On his part, midfielder Dunstan Vella said that the main priority for the team is to find their feet quickly in a bid to try and reach their goal of winning the Closing Round.
“Integrating new players isn’t easy, especially for those who may underestimate the strength of the Maltese league,” Vella said.
“Staying competitive with the top teams depends on how quickly the players settle and adapt to our system. Each game is a new opportunity to overcome setbacks and improve.
“We’ve had a good week of preparation and feel confident about achieving the result we want on Saturday.”
