Valletta coach Mark Miller is flying out to Austria this morning to watch the friendly between Sturm Graz and FK Partizan Belgrade.
After hammering Andorra’s FC Lusitans 8-0 in the first leg of their Champions League first qualifying round match last Tuesday, Valletta have all but sealed their passage to the next round and a meeting with Serbian champions Partizan.
Miller, who succeeded Jesmond Zerafa as Valletta coach in the close season, will be running the rule over Partizan in today’s warm-up before continuing his journey to Andorra tomorrow ahead of Tuesday’s second leg against FC Lusitans.
The Valletta squad, spearheaded by club president Victor Sciriha, will also depart for Andorra tomorrow.
Partizan, who began their pre-season in the second week of June, are currently having a training camp in Slovenia.
The Serbian giants sent assistant coach Aleksandar Rogic to assess the qualities of Valletta and Lusitans in Tuesday’s match at the Hibs Stadium.
Rogic has good knowledge of Maltese football as he was a member of Danilo Doncic’s backroom staff when the latter coached Floriana five years ago.
Under the guidance of Avram Grant, Partizan clinched their fifth straight Serbian title last season with a massive 12-point lead from Belgrade rivals Red Star.
Grant stepped down as Partizan coach at the end of the season, paving the way for the appointment of Vladimir Vermezovic who has signed a three-year contract.
On paper, Partizan are favourites to advance to the third qualifying round but Valletta’s drubbing of FC Lusitans is bound to serve as an eye-opener for the Serbian giants.
Valletta are expected to step up their efforts to further strengthen their squad ahead of their games against Partizan.
Sources have told The Times that the Citizens are looking to re-sign Frank Temile. The Nigerian forward is highly regarded by Valletta after coming to prominence as a precocious forward in season 2007/08, his electric performances helping the Whites to win the Premier League title in Sciriha’s first year as club president.
Temile joined Dynamo Kiev on a four-year deal in 2008 but has found the going tough at the Ukrainian club.
It is believed that Temile, whose older brother Omonigho also had a spell with Valletta in season 2010/11, is keen to rejoin Valletta who are in advanced talks with Dynamo Kiev to sign the Nigerian, who turns 22 on July 15, on a season-long loan.
Valletta are also interested in an experienced Brazilian mid-fielder who played in the top Slovenian league last season.
Meanwhile, young Birkirkara midfielder Rowen Muscat is the subject of interest from a club in Germany.
Muscat left a positive impression during a short trial last week but with Birkirkara still involved in the Europa League, the Malta U-21 captain is not expected to return to Germany for a second trial until after the Stripes’ second leg against Metalurg Skopje.
Muscat, 21, produced a very good performance in the 2-2 draw against Metalurg on Thursday.
Birkirkara defender Joseph Zerafa has been dropped from the national squad for disci-plinary reasons.
The 24-year-old, who figured for the Stripes against Metalurg Skopje, was placed on probation for two years by a court on Saturday after admitting charges of injuring another man and causing mayhem at the Birkirkara police station following a brawl involving several young people.
Rainbows after winger Zongo
Tarxien Rainbows have declared an interest in Ousseni Zongo, sources close to the player told The Times.
Zongo came through a difficult start to establish himself as a first-choice player for Valletta last season but his contract has not been renewed by the champions.
The Burkina Faso winger has responded positively to Tarxien’s approach but the two parties have yet to reach an agreement.
The Rainbows, who have started their pre-season training under new coach Danilo Doncic, are also pursuing other targets.
Tarxien have parted company with Brazilians Everton and Ricardo Costa and Danish forward Jimmy Mayasi.
Brazilian midfielder Luiz Romulo De Castro and striker Daniel Mariano Bueno are still under con-tract but the latter has yet to report for pre-season training as he is considering offers from some overseas clubs.