City seal Cadillac sponsorship

Valletta coach Paul Zammit is confident that his team will be up for the challenge when they meet fierce rivals Floriana in their opening Premier League match despite the Citizens' indifferent performances in two of their last pre-season friendlies.

Zammit was addressing a news conference during which FAPI Motors, local importers of Cadillac cars, were officially presented as Valletta's main sponsors for the next two years, in the presence of the club's new signings.

Over the past two months, Valletta, under new president Victor Sciriha, have been very active in the transfer market, signing a host of players, namely Stefan Giglio, Kenneth Scicluna, Bryan Agius, Sebastian Monesterolo, Heiner Backhaus, Andrew Hogg and Josef Mifsud in a bid to strengthen the team's chances of challenging for the league title.

In the last two weeks, Valletta have played a series of friendly matches at the Centenary Stadium. They started off with an emphatic 4-1 win over champions Marsaxlokk but then lost to Birkirkara (0-1) and Hamrun Spartans (1-2).

The defeats to Birkirkara and Hamrun caused some anxiety among the expectant City fans but Zammit yesterday played down concerns about the team's pre-season form.

"I think the situation has been blown out of proportion," Zammit said. "We are at a very delicate stage of the season where we are still fine-tuning our preparations, especially when one considers that we have so many new players in the squad. Therefore, at present, the performance of the team is more important than the result.

"Obviously, the fans want the team to win all the matches but this is not always possible. Besides, my priority is to give ample playing time to all the players in different tactical formations as that is the best way to assess the qualities of each member of the squad.

"Unfortunately, next week nine of our players will be away with the national and U-21 squads for training camps and that is why we played so many matches in such a short period as I wanted to make the most of the time they are with us.

"I am very pleased with the work put in by all the players so far this season. Our physical condition is very good and I have no doubt that come the start of the competitive season, Valletta will be well-prepared to launch their league trek with a strong performance."

Zammit said the club's target this season was very clear - to challenge for all domestic honours and to restore Valletta as one of the elite teams on the islands. However, Zammit called for patience.

"Everyone knows that when you are managing a prestigious team like Valletta, the level of expectancy is very high," Zammit said.

"This club has a great tradition and our target is to return the team to its former glories. To reach that goal we must be very patient and take it one step at a time. I believe that with the continuous support of the committee and the fans, we will produce a strong challenge for the league title."

Transfer activity

Asked whether Valletta's involvement in the transfer market was over, Zammit replied: "As long as the transfer window is open, we will continue to look at various options to strengthen the team.

"At the moment, we have a Mexican striker on trial, Hernan Fernandez, who has been training with us for the past two weeks. His trial will come to an end on Friday and that is when we will make a decision whether to retain his services or look for someone else."

Club president Sciriha said that after taking over the leadership of Valletta FC in June, he immediately began to work on securing the financial support of private companies.

"We are delighted that Fapi Motors have accepted to associate themselves with our prestigious club," he said.

"Our intention is that this agreement will be the start of a long-term and fruitful relationship between the two parties. Valletta are honoured to have the brand name of Cadillac on our shirts for the coming two years."

Fapi Motors are not Valletta's only new sponsors this season. Sciriha yesterday revealed that the Citizens have also secured a one-year sponsorship deal with Heat Bar and Restaurant.

Also present for yesterday's news conference was Marika Zammit, general manager of FAPI Motors.

"We are delighted to become partners of a top club like Valletta," she said. "I think ours is an ideal partnership as both Valletta FC and Cadillac have great tradition and a rich history. We hope that this agreement will reap great dividends, both for Valletta and FAPI Motors."

At the end of the news conference, David Gauci, financial controller at FAPI Motors, presented the sponsorship cheque to Sciriha.

Friendly result: Valletta 2 (Fernandez 73; Agius 79 pen.) Mqabba 0.