Six teams battling for final four spots
The 360 Sports Malta Premier is set for an exciting weekend as six teams will be battling for the final four spots in the Top Six of the Closing Round in a unique MatchDay that will be played entirely at the Gozo Stadium.
Leaders Birkirkara and second-placed Floriana are the only two teams that are assured of a Top Six spot and in the next four days Hibernians, Marsaxlokk, Mosta, Sliema Wanderers, Żabbar St Patrick, and Ħamrun Spartans will be fighting for a place in the top six positions.
The Gozo Weekender will get under way this evening when Gżira United and Balzan will be eyeing a three-point booster before the start of the Bottom Six that will boost their hopes of retaining their place in the top-flight.
But the real battle will start as from tomorrow afternoon when Floriana take on Hibernians in a match where the Greens will be determined to take all three points to regain top spot in the standings before Birkirkara take on Sliema Wanderers on Sunday.
On the other hand, Hibernians also have no margin of error as they need to pick up three points against the Greens to assure themselves of a Top Six spot.
The second match tomorrow is a direct battle for the Top Six as fifth-placed Mosta, currently on 16 points, will be gunning for victory against seventh-placed Żabbar to assure themselves of a Top Six berth.
Mosta technical director Mario Muscat said that his team are on the verge of reaching the objective of a Top Six berth despite the fact that nobody outside the club believed the Blues had the potential to attain.
However, Muscat said that the players and the technical staff worked in silence and their hard work paid off.
“In the Opening Round, nobody gave us a chance to finish in the Top Six, particularly after losing the first three games of the season, and were tagged as a team to battle for relegation,” Muscat said.
“But we kept working hard and the players provided the correct response and eventually made it into the Top Six. In the Closing Round, the same thing happened as we were never mentioned as potential candidates for Top Six.
“But once more the players continued to work hard on the training pitch and now we find ourselves one win away from a Top Six berth.
“Our match against Żabbar is a crucial game and the only result we are focused on is to win match as bagging the three points we would be assured of a Top Six berth. But more than that, a win over Żabbar would put us in a good position to challenge a top placing in the league.
“It is not going to be easy as Żabbar have become a very competitive side but I firmly believe in our team’s potential and I’m confident that we can reach our goal.”
On his part, Aniello Parisi, the Żabbar SP coach, admitted his disappointment at seeing his team drop crucial points against Melita and Naxxar Lions that left the Saints in seventh place on 14 points, level with Ħamrun Spartans.
Żabbar have no margin of error and need to beat Mosta to stand a chance to sneak into the Top Six.
Parisi made it clear that his team has come a long way and have what it takes to secure what would prove to be a crucial victory against Mosta.
“We dropped some points against Melita and Naxxar recently, and while the results were frustrating, when you analyze our performances, there was plenty to take away,” Parisi said.
“In our last match against Gzira before the international break where we won 3-0, we showed clear improvement both in defence and in the final third.
“The team is working hard to improve physically, but mental well-being is just as important in ensuring we secure three points.
“We need to keep strengthening our mentality because, in this situation, there is only one result that matters, winning.”
Marsaxlokk, Sliema Wanderers and Ħamrun Spartans will be interesting spectators to see whether Mosta can finish the job.
Marsaxlokk will fancy their chances of seeing off lowly Melita and guarantee a place in the Top Six, something they missed by a whisker in the Opening Round.
Sliema Wanderers have a much tougher job as they face leaders Birkirkara.
The Blues were buoyed before the international break by a 1-0 win over Ħamrun Spartans that lifted them to sixth place.
However, Paul Zammit and his players will be aware that they need to beat Birkirkara to stand any chance of a Top Six berth and to achieve that they will have to be at their very best and can’t afford any lapses of concentration.
Ħamrun Spartans will be the last of the Top Six Challengers in action when they face Naxxar Lions on Monday.
The Malta champions face an anxious weekend as they will be hoping that the results of the other matches will keep a window open for a berth in the Top Six.
Ħamrun hope that one of Hibernians, Marsaxlokk, Mosta and Sliema Wanderers fail to take maximum points so that they force their way into the Top Six with victory over Naxxar Lions.
Winston Muscat, the Ħamrun coach, is expecting a strong response from his players after their disappointing performances in recent weeks which saw them suffer three successive defeats at the hands of Gżira United, Mosta, and Sliema Wanderers.
Added to that, they can’t underestimate a Naxxar Lions side who on their day are capable of making life difficult to any side in the Premier League.
