Qormi 4
Nwoke 4; Farrugia 42; Bello-Osagie 49, 60;
Mosta 1
Mvondo 73;

Qormi underlined their status as one of the most prolific sides in this season’s BOV Premier League yesterday after trouncing bottom side Mosta 4-1 to move up to third in the table.

It was a sublime attacking display by Qormi who overwhelmed Mosta’s backline with their attacking duo of Abubakar Bello-Osagie, scorer of a brace, and Daniel Nwoke on target along with captain Joseph Farrugia who capped another fine display with a trademark free-kick.

The Yellow-Blacks were in control from the outset and, after Nwoke put them ahead after only four minutes, it was always going to be difficult for Mosta to get back into the match.

The dismissal of defender Federico Tisbi five minutes from half-time all but ended the Blues’ hopes of making a comeback and paved the way for the Qormi forwards to apply the killer touch by adding three further goals to seal their second successive win.

Qormi coach Stephen Azzopardi made no changes to his starting team from the 3-1 defeat of Marsaxlokk last weekend. Brazilian midfielder Giuseppe Vela and Greek defender Christos Karamanolis are still out injured.

Oliver Spiteri, the Mosta coach, also resisted the temptation to alter his team despite the return of Cameroonian defender Yannick Ossok who missed the 3-2 win over Sliema because of suspension. The towering defender had to settle for a place on the bench.

Qormi took just four minutes to break the stalemate. Brazilian striker Jorginho bamboozled his marker before firing a fierce low drive that was not held by Mosta goalkeeper Jonathan Debono. In came Nwoke who fired the ball home from close range.

Mosta’s response arrived on 11 minutes when Brazilian Arilson raced past his marker but his shot was deviated for a corner. The Brazilian threatened again four minutes later but his lob from the distance finished just over.

On 19 minutes, Mosta goalkeeper Debono did well to turn Farrugia’s curler away for a corner after Qormi had been awarded a free-kick in a central position.

Mosta had a glorious chance to draw level on 28 minutes. Maki Mvondo powered his way clear on the left before sending a dangerous cross-shot but striker Ian Zammit failed to connect with the ball in front of a gaping goal.

Thirteen minutes from the break, Qormi almost added a second when, from a Farrugia free-kick, Jorginho was first to the ball but he incredibly fired over from routine distance.

The woodwork denied Mosta an equaliser on 35 minutes. The Blues were awarded a free-kick and Firas Aboulezz’s curling shot smacked against the bar before finishing wide.

Mosta’s chances were dealt a severe blow five minutes from the break when Jeffrey Chetcuti’s long pass released Jorginho who was pulled back by Tisbi.

Referee Andre Arciola awarded Qormi a free-kick and dismissed the Italian defender after Tisbi was deemed to have denied his opponents a clear scoring opportunity.

From the resultant free-kick, Farrugia curled the ball into the top corner of the net, much to the frustration of the Mosta fans.

Tisbi’s sending-off forced Spiteri to take measures to bolster his defence as he withdrew Aboulezz and roped in Ossok.

A minute from the break, Nwoke used his pace to speed clear but his attempt was blocked by the alert Adrian Borg.

The match was all but over four minutes into the second half when Matthew Bartolo’s throughball released Bello-Osagie who fired the ball past Debono and into the far corner.

Qormi were now in total control and on the hour, they made it 4-0. Jorginho’s corner sailed towards Bello-Osagie who headed past Debono.

Four goals to the good, Qormi coach Azzopardi introduced reserve goalkeeper Steve Sultana, a Malta U-21 international, for Matthew Farrugia.

Mosta pulled a goal back on 73 minutes when Mvondo found himself in ample space in the area before chipping the ball over Sultana.

Mvondo almost struck again a minute later but this time the robust forward hit wide after receiving from Zammit.

Qormi
M. Farrugia-6 (65 S. Sultana-5), J. Chetcuti-6, R. Sammut-6.5 (53 S. Wellman-6), M. Bartolo-6.5, J. Farrugia-7 (72 C. Farrugia), K. Scicluna-6, F. Mirarchi-6, J. Bondin-6, Jorginho-7.5, A. Bello-Osagie-7.5, D. Nwoke-6.5.

Mosta
J. Debono-5, A. Borg-6, L. Martinelli-5, F. Tisbi, B. Agius-5 (46 K. Farrugia-5), N. Bogdanovic-5.5, S. Grech-6, Arilson-6 (61 A. Cini-5), F. Aboulezz-6 (43 Y. Ossok-5), I. Zammit-6, M. Mvondo-6.5.

Referee: Andre Arciola.

Yellow cards: Grech; Sammut; Chetcuti; Agius.

Red card: Tisbi (M) 40.

BOV player of the match: Joseph Farrugia (Qormi).

Attendance: 804.

Standings