Stripes braced for Sliema backlash

Birkirkara and Sliema Wanderers are no strangers to winner-takes-all occasions but their fourth and final league meeting this season does not fall in that category.

That is not to say that their clash this afternoon (kick-off: 3 p.m.) will have no effect whatsoever on the race for the Premier League crown, what with Birkirkara only four points behind leaders Valletta, but the misfiring Wanderers have long kissed goodbye to their hopes of returning the pinnacle of Maltese football.

Their exit from the FA Trophy last weekend after a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Floriana has added to Sliema's misery, ending their hopes of avoiding another trophy-less season as well as jeopardising their chances of gaining a place in the UEFA Cup.

Sliema's appalling decline is in marked contrast with Birkirkara's rise to the upper reaches of the standings which, coupled with their sound performance in their 2-1 victory over Marsaxlokk in the FA Trophy quarter-final, makes the Stripes favourites to win and turn up the heat on Valletta this afternoon.

Although Birkirkara have a clear psychological edge over the Blues, coach John Buttigieg is wary of the challenge Sliema may offer today.

"I don't think we could have faced Sliema at a worse time," Buttigieg told The Times.

"It will be a difficult match because Sliema want to salvage some lost pride after a series of negative results.

"Despite their struggles, Sliema still have a very strong squad."

Buttigieg is expected to field an unchanged line-up from Sunday's 2-1 defeat of Marsaxlokk. Left-back Lino Galea is back in contention but Adrian Ciantar is still recovering from injury.

An excellent run of four wins and one draw in their last five Championship Pool matches has sparked talk of a revival of Birkirkara's challenge for the championship but Buttigieg has been at pains to play down his side's title chances.

Faced with a question about Birkirkara's title credentials, Buttigieg replied: "Valletta are in a strong position to win the league as they have a four-point lead at the top. Our main target remains to consolidate second spot and secure qualification for the UEFA Cup."

Buttigieg reckons Birkirkara face a hard task to emulate the positive run of results they had in the first round of the Championship Pool.

"It will be difficult to repeat the results of the first round of the Championship Pool in our remaining five league matches but we will give our maximum to keep that positive run going," Buttigieg said.

If Birkirkara's track record in the Championship Pool is nothing short of remarkable, Sliema's can only be described as abysmal after they won only one and lost four of their five top-six fixtures.

Their wounded pride aside, Sliema seriously risk missing out on qualification to European competitions for the first time in many years after their decision to shun the Intertoto Cup.

Their only route to Europe is the league but they need to summon a winning finale and claim third place.

That may prove a bridge too far for Sliema, given that they trail Marsaxlokk by seven points, but coach Stephen Azzopardi is backing his team to avoid further humiliation.

"As one of the leading clubs, Sliema have a duty to try and win every game, irrespective of whether they have a chance to win the league or not," Azzopardi stressed.

"We also have to keep in mind that the teams who are placed above us in the table will drop points in the coming weeks because they will be involved in direct clashes."

The manner of Sliema's defeat to Floriana in the Trophy has only served to intensify Azzopardi's sense of injustice.

"Sliema were in control in the first hour of the quarter-final but three incidents changed the texture of the game," Azzopardi said.

"We made two mistakes that led to Floriana scoring twice in the space of five minutes and the other incident was the unfair dismissal of Jeffrey Chetcuti. A goal in arrears and down to ten men, the players found no mental strength to hit back."

Chetcuti will serve the first of a four-match suspension today. Roderick Briffa is doubtful with a hamstring problem and Henry Bonello has yet to shake off a knee ligament injury but Ian Ciantar is back in the fray.

The Sliema players have been heavily criticised for their failure to deliver the goods this season but Azzopardi insisted that they are not the only ones to blame for the team's collapse.

"I find it unfair that the players are getting all the blame,"Azzopardi said.

"To a large extent, we're all responsible for what happened. The previous coach committed mistakes, I did as well and so did the club's administration.

"As far as the players are concerned, I can't fault them for commitment but they didn't reach the level of performance expected of them. This could be down to various factors."

Results so far: Sliema vs Birkirkara 0-2, 1-1, 1-3.