Valletta beat Greens as Temile sees red

Floriana 0
Valletta 2
Temile 12, Agius 88

City darling Frank Temile scored the opening goal of the game only to earn himself a red card after a foolish reaction on the stroke of half-time as Valletta edged rivals Floriana 2-0 at the National Stadium yesterday.

The Nigerian's goal seemed enough for Valletta to clinch their first victory since being declared champions of Maltese football before skipper Gilbert Agius stepped up with a gem of a strike from some 40 metres out to double his side's lead. He ensured that the party atmosphere which was somewhat dampened following Temile's sending-off would rekindle.

Celebrating the championship without even kicking a ball courtesy of Birkirkara's victory over Marsaxlokk on Saturday, Valletta took to this encounter in a jubilant mood as methodic coach Paul Zammit fielded a strong formation which included Sebastian Monesterolo. He was given the green light ahead of Ian Zammit.

Darko Krsteski was once again not considered for selection as Floriana took to this encounter without the suspended Christian Cassar and the injured Christian Caruana.

On 11 minutes, Ryan Darmanin tried to surprise keeper Andrew Hogg with a long haul effort from mid-pitch but his effort sailed wide.

A minute later, the new champions drew first blood. Temile was again the protagonist as he drifted in the penalty area to meet an Agius cross. With defenders Eboh and Sevasta trying to block his advance, Temile slipped their marking before looping a perfect ball that dropped behind Micallef and into the net to the delight of the Valletta fans.

Past the half hour, Bezzina was allowed enough space to venture forward as he slipped a low cross towards Monesterolo. The Argentine lofted the ball towards skipper Agius whose shot was blocked by Brincat.

Urged by their fans, Valletta's flowing moves nearly saw them doubling their lead on 34 minutes. Monesterolo delivered a corner from the right. With the action seemingly going nowhere, Mifsud tracked the ball's flight and cut a low cross towards Giglio whose delicate touch forced Micallef to test his reflexes with a point blank save.

The Greens had their bright moments during the first half and did create some anxious moments to the Valletta rearguard in their bid to spoil their rivals' party.

On 37 minutes, Bolasie was left to run unchecked on the right flank with Micallef latching to the resulting cross but directing his header over the woodwork.

Five minutes from half-time, Floriana were once again dangerous as Borg's corner was not cleared and Micallef flashed in with a shot that narrowly missed the target.

Valletta suffered an unexpected setback just before the break as Temile was sent off for retaliation after a foul on the sidelines. The youngster was hooked down by Ciantar's late tackle and the referee rightly ordered a free-kick. The issue spiralled out of control when Temile got to his feet and lashed out at Brincat.

It was difficult for the partying City fans to see their talented youngster leaving the pitch as coach Zammit immediately started shouting instructions to ensure that his team did not lose their grip on the match.

Five minutes after the re-start, Giglio launched a cross forward towards Monesterolo who had the better of the Greens defence before his shot was deviated into a corner.

Midway through the second half, referee Azzopardi dished out three yellow cards inside two minutes as the match official sought to quell flaring tempers.

By now the match lost most of its spark as Valletta sought to protect their slender lead while the Greens, despite playing with a player more, rarely managed to test Hogg.

Inside the last quarter, the Valletta netminder was called to the rescue as Micallef served Darmanin who whipped a shot on the half turn that was repelled by Hogg into a corner.

Inside the last seven minutes, Floriana won a free-kick on the left flank. Substitute Pisani floated a dangerous ball deep inside the penalty area where Eboh and Bolasie towered in the air as Hogg mistimed his sortie. With the loose ball up for grabs, the Floriana players failed to make contact and the keeper came to his side's rescue.

Two minutes from time, however, the Valletta end erupted in joy following a fabulous goal from skipper Agius. The City clubman latched on to a loose ball from 40 metres out and spotted custodian Micallef out of his goal. The quick-thinking Agius placed a shot that flew into the roof of the net past the hapless keeper as the party atmosphere gained momentum on the stands.

After match comments

Danilo Doncic (Floriana): "We gave them a hard time but my players' effort was not enough for us to win any points. We were aware of the fact that they may not be 100 per cent focused given that they were celebrating. However, two silly mistakes on our part cost us the match."

Paul Zammit (Valletta): I was a little concerned that my players would get carried away by the celebrations. I stressed on the need to keep concentrated on this match. This win was the ultimate gift to our loyal fans. I started my career with Valletta with a loss to Floriana and this season we had a low key start as we lost the derby as well.

"Frank Temile's red card showed his inexperience in such crucial matches. I hope he learns from his mistake."

Victor Sciriha (Valletta FC president): "We have a good bunch of players coming up and it would be foolish for us to push for an increase in the quota of foreign players. Our aim is to transform Valletta into a professional club and perhaps make the cut in the Champions League as ultimately this is the only realistic source of revenue for the club.

"I am happy that we won the league as we had to fight hard for the points against every team we played against."

Floriana
J. Micallef-6.5, J. Briffa-6.6, M. Sevasta-6, S. Eboh-6, C. Ciantar-6 ('87 M. Gauci), M. Brincat-6.5, M. Micallef-6.5, Y. Bolasie-6.5, R. Darmanin-7, J. Borg-6.5 ('56 D. Pisani-7), Z. Levniac-6.5.

Valletta
A. Hogg-7, J. Grioli-6.5, J. Mifsud-7, K. Scicluna-6.5, S. Bezzina-6.5, D. Camilleri-7.5, H. Backhaus-7, S. Giglio-6.5 ('63 D. Falzon-6), G. Agius-7.5 ('90 K. Magro), F. Temile-, S. Monesterolo-6.5 ('63 I. Zammit-6).

Referee Adrian Azzopardi.

Yellow cards Temile 12, Agius 88.

Red card Temile 45.

BoV Player of the match Gilbert Agius (Valletta).