Bueno comes good for Tarxien

Much of the attention in the build-up to the 2008-09 season focused on the endeavours of the so-called big guns to strengthen their squads.

Amid the hype surrounding the efforts of the likes of Valletta, Marsaxlokk and Sliema Wanderers in the transfer market, newly-promoted Qormi managed to grasp a share of the limelight by signing several experienced players to bolster their chances of keeping their Premier League status.

Tarxien Rainbows, promoted to the top flight as Division One champions last season, were no match for their relegation rivals in terms of media exposure as they opted for a discreet and cautious transfer campaign.

The Rainbows waited until the eve of the 2008-09 Premier League to confirm their new signings and even then, many questioned the wisdom of their decision to engage three foreigners with no previous experience of Maltese football.

Ivan Carapic, a defender from Montenegro, Argentine midfielder Rodrigo Cariaga and Daniel Mariano Bueno, a Brazilian forward, hardly caused a media frenzy when they joined Tarxien but two months into the season, there seems to be a general consensus that the Rainbows have three of the most effective foreigners in the Premier League.

Bueno is the pick of the three after contributing eight of the nine goals the Rainbows have scored so far this season.

Last weekend, the Brazilian enhanced his fledgling reputation as an intelligent and deadly striker with a well-taken hat-trick in Tarxien's 3-1 victory over Marsaxlokk.

Given that Bueno speaks little English or Italian, his performances so far are in keeping with the oft-used adage of footballers letting their feet do the talking.

Interviewing Bueno by phone without the aid of a translator proved a somewhat complicated task yesterday but a combination of simple English, Italian and a few Spanish words I learnt from my wife (who speaks fluent Spanish), enabled me to get some comments from the 24-year-old Brazilian.

"I came to play in Malta because I thought this move was right for my career," Bueno said.

Bueno knows that Tarxien are not the biggest name in Maltese football but he's happy with the Rainbows.

"I'm only thinking about Tarxien Rainbows at present," Bueno replied when asked about his experience in Maltese football so far.

"Tarxien may be a small team but we play from the heart."

Bueno, who was born in Sao Paolo, was something of an unknown proposition when he signed for Tarxien but Malta is not the first European stop in his football odyssey.

Last season, he was on the books of Sigma Olomuc in the Czech Republic. In his native Brazil, Bueno had spells with Atletico Sorocaba, Sao Caetano, Santo André and Noroeste and in 2004, he played for Omiya Ardija in Japan.

Bueno was lured to Malta after his Italian agent spoke with Tarxien Rainbows.

"My agent made the contact with Tarxien for me to come and play here," Bueno said.

Noel Coleiro, the Tarxien coach, told The Times that Bueno was one of several foreign players who had a trial with Tarxien in the close season.

"We had 13 players for trials during the summer and Bueno arrived only two days before the transfer deadline," Coleiro explained.

"His CV was quite good as the season before he played for Sigma Olomuc in the Czech Republic but I still wanted to have a closer look at him before deciding whether to keep him or not.

"Although I didn't have time to try Bueno in a friendly match, it didn't take me long to realise that he had many good qualities."

Bueno himself didn't encounter problems to settle in Malta.

"I'm happy in Malta because the climate here is very similar to Brazil," he said.

The standard of the local league leaves much to be desired, especially when compared to the championships in the top European countries, but it's never easy for a foreign player to adapt to Maltese football.

Bueno is satisfied with his form so far but acknowledges that it's not easy to show one's worth in the Premier League.

"I'm pleased with my performances but playing in the Premier League is not easy," Bueno said.

"Tarxien had a difficult start but we are getting better all the time. I think our first league victory will help us to maintain the improvement we've shown in the last matches. We have good players here and I believe that we can fight to stay in the Premier League."

Bueno pointed at Birkirkara and Sliema as the two toughest opponents Tarxien have encountered so far this season. Asked which Maltese player has impressed him most, Bueno replied: "There are some interesting players in the Premier League. The no.7 of Valletta (Gilbert Agius) is very good."

Like most of the foreigners based in Malta, Bueno, who is a big fan of former Inter and Real Madrid striker Ronaldo, wants to progress in his career but at present, he's only concerned about doing well for Tarxien.

"I'm only thinking about doing well here," Bueno, whose contract with Tarxien is for one season, said.

"As I said, I'm happy in Malta."

Coleiro's praise

Coleiro only had words of praise for his attacking star.

"Bueno is very professional and trains hard," the Tarxien coach said.

"I can't say anything bad about him. Funnily enough, the only thing I can criticise him for is that sometimes he's too altruistic. When we played Valletta, Bueno had an excellent chance to put us 3-1 ahead but he tried to pass the ball instead of shooting (Tarxien drew 2-2 with Valletta). He wants his team-mates to score and boost their confidence."

The Tarxien coach is aware that Bueno has settled nicely in Malta but he also knows that the player misses his wife and daughter who live in Brazil.

"Bueno's wife and daughter are still in Brazil," Coleiro said. "Lately, it looks like teams are having great difficulties to obtain permits for the close relatives of their foreign players to come and stay here."

For much of the past five months, Tarxien had been generally talked of as a sure bet to go down come May but that perception is starting to change after the positive results they obtained in their last outings.

Now in his second year at the helm of Tarxien, Coleiro was never in any doubt about his team's potential to put up a strong fight for Premier League survival.

"Tarxien are not in the Premier League to make up the numbers," Coleiro insisted.

"If I thought the team had no fighting chance of preserving their status, I wouldn't have stayed in the first place. Tarxien are run by a committee and president who want to take the club forward."