Tenacious Mifsud keen to repay City's faith

Valletta were in dire need of a psychological fillip from their first league showdown with Birkirkara, having gathered a mere point from their previous two matches.

After quelling Birkirkara's second-half fightback, feelings of joy and relief gripped the Valletta players, their under-fire coach Paul Zammit and fans at the conclusion of a match that saw the Citizens eke out a 1-0 victory to join a batch of teams on the 12-point mark.

The goal that brightened the mood in the City clan had come not from one of their much-vaunted strikers but from Josef Mifsud whose strong defending and never-say-die attitude typified the team's gallant if unspectacular display on Saturday.

Like the majority of the new players snapped up by Valletta last summer, Mifsud had an edgy start but improved gradually to the point that he's now considered a fixture in defence.

"The game against Birkirkara was very important for us," Mifsud said.

"At the start of the season, great things were expected of Valletta but our results in the early stages were somewhat disappointing.

"That increased the pressure on the team ahead of our first league meeting with Birkirkara.

"The break from league football benefited the team. Although myself and the other members of the Malta squad spent most of the last two months with the national team, I noticed a marked improvement in the atmosphere on rejoining the club side for training last week.

"My impression was that the squad looked more united than before and the mood was upbeat.

"As for Saturday's match, I think Birkirkara had a good performance, especially in the second half, but we dug in and our commitment saw us through.

"I believe that, in the eyes of the Valletta fans, the most pleasing aspect of that performance was our fighting spirit."

The game had just passed the 16-minute mark when Stefan Giglio's left-wing cross sailed past Birkirkara goalkeeper Omar Borg and Mifsud, who had surged upfield after Valletta had been awarded a corner, was in the right spot to head the ball home for his first goal in top-flight football.

"My first goal in the Premier couldn't have come at a better time," Mifsud reminisced.

"Games between Valletta and Birkirkara are among the highlights of the season and I'm glad to have scored in such a prestigious fixture but the most important thing is that we won the three points.

"I was also pleased that we kept a clean sheet. If you count the 4-0 win over St Patrick in the FA Trophy, this was the third successive game in which we conceded no goals.

"As a defender, I get a lot of satisfaction every time we prevent our opponents from scoring but the emotion I felt when I scored that goal was different... I can't really put it into words."

On a personal level, Mifsud will have been doubly delighted with his match-winning contribution on Saturday after experiencing the highs and lows of football in the last two weeks.

Mifsud, formerly of Msida, made his competitive debut for Malta in the 5-0 defeat in Greece this month but a jittery performance in the second half of that tense encounter cost him his place for the 4-1 upset to Norway in Malta's final Euro 2008 qualifier last Wednesday.

His demotion to the subs' bench was seen as a setback for Mifsud but on Saturday, the 23-year-old showed that he's made of sterner stuff than some might have thought.

"Greece away was my first start for Malta in a competition," Mifsud said.

"Before that, I had only played in a couple of friendlies. That match was very difficult for us but the outcome could well have been different had we scored in the first half.

"In the second half, it was all uphill after Greece doubled their lead.

"My performance dipped with that of the team as we made the mistake of opening up in search of a goal after Greece went 2-0 up.

"I was disappointed with the manner of the goals we conceded in the second half but I've learned a lot from that experience.

"The standard of football in international matches is very high but my involvement with the national team has strengthened my motivation to improve as a player.

"I was, obviously, disappointed to be dropped from the team for the Norway qualifier but that omission didn't dampen my spirits because I'm happy to be part of the national squad.

"My performance for Valletta gave me a psychological boost. I'd like to think that I'm now starting to repay the faith Valletta showed in me last summer and I hope to continue on these lines."

Although Valletta have yet to produce the sort of performance to justify their title credentials, Mifsud assured the fans that the players share their desire to restore the club to its former glory.

"With so many new players in the squad, it was hard to predict how long the team would take to settle and show its full potential," Mifsud said.

"As one of the most successful clubs in Malta, Valletta are obsessed with winning. We will do our best to win a top honour this season... that's our main objective.

"Hopefully, the victory over Birkirkara will put our season back on track."

His status as a player of one of the most prominent clubs here and a member of the national squad has not diminished Mifsud's willpower to attain new heights in his career.

"I'm glad about my performances for Valletta so far but I want to do more," Mifsud said.

"As for my international career, I'm grateful to coach Dusan Fitzel for giving me the chance to start against Greece. I want to keep my place in the squad but I'm also determined to get more regular football for the national team."

Tall order

Mifsud faces a tall order to force his way into Fitzel's first-team plans and should he succeed, he will certainly have a harder task staying there, given the challenges awaiting Malta in the 2010 World Cup qualifiers.

On Sunday, Malta was drawn in Group One along with European heavyweights Portugal, Sweden, Denmark, Hungary and Albania.

"Our group is very difficult," Mifsud said. "On paper, all the teams in this group are stronger than us but we will take it game by game.

"The bond among the national team players and the positive work of the coach make me confident in Malta's chances of achieving some positive results in the World Cup preliminary round.

"The mentality has definitely changed in the last few years as nowadays, Malta are no longer a defensive team but we try to push forward and cause our opponents problems in attack."