Valletta net Mare Blu sponsorship

Valletta FC have their sights firmly set on preserving their status as the top team in Malta as yesterday they unveiled their new sponsors for the next three years and introduced the new signings to the media at the Le Meridien Hotel, St Julian's.

Since Victor Sciriha was elected club president last year, the capital club has come a long way with the acquisition of various top-quality signings that helped the team win their first Premier League title last May after an absence of seven years.

This summer, Valletta continued to invest heavily in their squad when Sciriha brought in no fewer than six players, namely, defender Luke Dimech, midfielders Jamie Pace, Cleaven Frendo, Edmund Agius and strikers Priso Doding and Marcelo Tolomeotti.

"Without doubt, this is the strongest squad Valletta ever had for a long time," Sciriha told reporters yesterday.

"This summer the committee was in constant contact with the coach to see which players would suit us best to improve the team. I think that with the players we have acquired Valletta have a very strong group.

"Winning the league in my first season as Valletta FC president was a huge satisfaction for me but I want to keep the winning trend going. We want our team to win more trophies this season and the next to come."

The past few weeks Valletta concluded negotiations for a new main sponsor after agreeing a three-year deal with Mare Blu Tuna Farm Ltd to replace former shirt sponsors Cadillac whose deal expired last May.

"At Valletta, we take our time before we select new commercial partners," Sciriha said.

"We held several discussions with various firms regarding sponsorship deals but in the end we only consider those who we feel will be of significant help to our club.

"Football clubs in Malta receive no money from the association, so, our only source of income comes from such sponsorship agreements.

"Mare Blu owner Giovanni Cappetta offered us a very good package and we hope this is the start of a long relationship between the two parties."

Sicily connection

Sciriha yesterday revealed that this summer he was approached by officials from debt-ridden Messina on the possibility of forming part of their management team to save the Sicilian club from extinction. Sciriha said that although the offer was tempting, he felt he was not ready to quit his post at Valletta.

"Earlier this summer a group of officials from Messina were in Malta and we held discussions as they were seeking to find new directors to try and save the club from bankruptcy," Sciriha said.

"The offer looked interesting at first but deep down I knew that my first commitment is firmly with Valletta FC... this club is special and it will also be the last one for me as administrator."

Valletta coach Paul Zammit said that last season his team was not ranked among the best in the championship. This time, however, there are little doubts on the potential of the team with the arrival of high-profile players. City's targets are quite clear even though not all that glitters is gold.

"We have the strongest squad in the championship so the responsibility is on us to live up to that billing," Zammit said.

"Everyone expects Valletta to win the league and that is our main objective this season. We did pretty well in the Champions Cup but now the real business starts with the league campaign.

"Having 13 players training for the national team is good but it did not help our preparations as most of them had to undergo a second pre-season this month which is not really ideal. My players' fitness was reflected in the second-half display against Sliema which was poor.

"However, in my opinion we still have time to recover and peak for the Championship Pool when the race for the title hots up.

"I'm very pleased with the way the players have conducted themselves so far and I'm confident that with the quality we have Valletta will be among the protagonists for the major honours."