Valletta, Stripes eye top-three boost

Birkirkara vs Valletta (today at 5.15 p.m., National Stadium).
The fourth and final league clash between Birkirkara and Valletta looks to have all the prerequisites for a keenly-contested encounter.

The two rivals are chasing third spot in the standings and a place in a European competition with Birkirkara enjoying a slight edge over the Citizens in the shape of a two-point lead.

Furthermore, Birkirkara will be determined to put an end to a three-match losing run to the Citizens as the latter have a perfect record in direct meetings this season.

A top-three finish in the league is also Birkirkara's only route to European football next season after their exit from the FA Trophy at the hands of Sliema.

Coach John Buttigieg is expected to give Lino Galea a berth in his squad after the left-back recovered from a hamstring problem.

Galea is likely to take the place vacated by Jean Pierre Mifsud Triganza who is out with a recurring foot injury.

"Every game is like a cup final in the final stages of the season," Buttigieg said. "Our objective is to hold on to third place. It's a tough challenge but we are taking it game by game."

Valletta are also pushing for third place in the standings and have high hopes of cancelling their two-point gap with Birkirkara.

A place in the FA Trophy semi-finals after their nervy win over Marsaxlokk, has also strengthened Valletta's chances of reaching their European objective through the cup competition but Paul Zammit has been calling on his players to focus on their league commitments.

"I've made it clear to the players that we still need to work very hard to achieve our objectives," Zammit said.

"Reaching the semi-finals of the Trophy has raised spirits in our camp but it's paramount that we concentrate on the task at hand.

"This is a very important game for us. Everything points to a difficult encounter because Birkirkara look to have regained their momentum and will give their all to obtain their first win against us this season."

Left-back Renie Forace is not expected to line up against Bir-kirkara because of a strained muscle but otherwise Zammit has a full complement at his disposal.

Previous results - Valletta vs Birkirkara 1-0, 3-1, 3-0.

St George's vs Pietà Hotspurs (tomorrow at 3 p.m., National Stadium).
A win is a must for St George's if they are to keep their survival hopes alive.

With Marsa virtually doomed to relegation, Pietà Hotspurs and St George's are fighting to avoid becoming the second team to go down.

Pietà have put themselves in a good position to keep hold of their top-flight status as they lead St George's by five points with four games left.

Carmel Busuttil is not expected to tinker with the formation that produced such a bold performance against Msida in the FA Trophy quarter-finals last Sunday before a stoppage-time goal spoiled their good work.

The Pietà mentor can choose his team from a full roster of players but not so for Marco Gerada, the St George's coach whose squad is decimated by suspensions and injuries.

Lee Grima and Edgar Degabriele are ruled out by suspension while Antoine Zahra, Lawrence Mizzi and Benoir Fenech are ranked as doubtful. Long-term injury absentees Anthony Bonello and Kurt Formosa are still on the casualty list.

Previous results - Pietà vs Marsa 1-1, 5-3.

Sliema Wanderers vs Msida St Joseph (tomorrow at 5 p.m., National Stadium).

The morale of Sliema Wanderers is high after they reduced the gap with Marsaxlokk to six points with a 4-1 trimming of the leaders and also moved into the semi-finals of the FA Trophy after a last-gasp 2-1 victory over Birkirkara.

Ray Farrugia's main task is to ensure that his players go into their match with Msida in the right frame of mind as they look to maintain the pressure on Marsaxlokk.

Defender Ian Ciantar and wing-back Alex Muscat are still sidelined by injuries but Italian centre-half Mauro Di Lello is in line to return after recovering from a broken rib.

Fifth in the standings, Msida are likely to view their clash with Sliema as an opportunity to make up lost ground on the leading quartet and to fine-tune their preparations for the FA Trophy semi-finals.

Coach Patrick Curmi is likely to select an all-Maltese formation tomorrow as Burkina Faso forward Ousseni Zongo is out with suspension, Nigerian Ibrahim Babatunde has suffered a recurrence of a knee injury and Daniel Nwoke, also from Nigeria, suffered a knock to his shoulder during Sunday's FA Trophy match.

Previous results - Sliema W. vs Msida SJ 1-1, 3-0, 1-0.

Special Olympics football tournament

This afternoon, between the first and second BOV Premier League matches at the National Stadium, the Birkirkara and Qormi nurseries will contest the final of a football tournament, organised by Special Olympics with the full collaboration of the Malta FA.

These two youth teams will send out 'unified teams' composed of Special Olympics players. The teams will be under the guidance of Darren Micallef. In the semi-finals, Qormi and Birkirkara defeated Valletta and Mosta respectively.

The winners will be presented with a trophy donated by the Malta FA. Helpers of Special Olympics Malta will be at the National Stadium this afternoon to collect donations.