Grima facing long lay-off

A knee injury will force midfielder Massimo Grima to skip this month's International Football Tournament and also some Premier League matches for his club Valletta.

It is reliably understood that Grima has been advised against playing more matches for the time being to cure an injury which the 26-year-old sustained during training.

With the Premier League taking a break next weekend for the FA Trophy second round matches, the national team players are currently preparing for Dusan Fitzel's debut as Malta coach in the four-team tournament which starts on February 25.

Grima has played remarkably well for Valletta in their successful bid to claim a berth in the Championship Pool and was set to figure for the national team in the matches against Moldova (Feb. 25), Georgia (Feb. 27) and Libya (March 1).

An informed source yesterday told The Times that Grima will have more tests on his injured knee this week before a decision will be taken on his recovery date.