Marsaxlokk sink lacklustre Hibernians

HIBERNIANS                     0

MARSAXLOKK                  1

Aguiar 45

HIBERNIANS

H. Sacco; A. Silas (79 D. Xuereb), K. Shaw, L. Caruana (68 L. Villela), K. Fraga, J. Degabriele, B. Kristensen, F. Falcone, A. Martinis, P. Silva (55 M. Ellul), G. Alves.

MARSAXLOKK

M. Calleja Cremona; K. Micallef, N. Muscat, S. Kukhianidze (60 Dodo), Yuri, J. Arias (82 J. Ghio), M. Adamec, L. Dessypris, A. Aguiar, E. Pena Beltre (42 D. Torres), L. Aguirre.

Referee: Ishmael Barbara.

Yellow cards Carvalho, Micallef, Fraga, Ghio.

A late first-half goal secured a valuable victory for Marsaxlokk over Hibernians at the Tony Bezzina Stadium.

Enzo Potenza’s side looked the sharper team on the pitch, displaying solid tactical organisation and control for most of the match.

Alex Aguiar, who netted the decisive goal, continued his impressive form, registering his fourth goal in three Closing Round appearances.

With this win, Marsaxlokk have climbed to seven points from three matches in the Closing Round, while Hibernians suffered their second defeat in three games, leaving them with just three points so far.

In the first half, Marsaxlokk dominated possession but struggled to break down Hibernians’ defence.

Hibernians had a promising opportunity through Jurgen Degabriele, who produced a brilliant solo effort, but his shot was well saved by goalkeeper Matthew Calleja Cremona.

Just before half-time, Marsaxlokk were forced into an early substitution as Enmy Peña Beltre made way for Duvan Torres.

Moments later, they took the lead when Leandro Aguirre delivered a precise cross, allowing Alex Aguiar to tap in from close range.

At the start of the second half, Dodo made his debut for Marsaxlokk after joining in the winter transfer window.

The former Ħamrun Spartans forward had a chance to mark his maiden appearance with a goal, with a shot from outside the area, but Hugo Sacco blocked his effort.

Trailing by a goal, Hibernians made several substitutions to boost their attack, including the introduction of winter arrival Lucas Villela.

However, they were unable to find a breakthrough as Marsaxlokk held firm to secure the advantage.

Dodo nearly extended Marsaxlokk’s lead with a low strike late on, but the Hibernians defence deflected it out for a corner.