Maltese football is braced for an absorbing finale as title contenders Birkirkara and Hibs head into the final weekend of the Premier League season level-pegging on 42 points.

Who will win the championship?

The guessing may or may not end in the next 48 hours as there’s a possibility of the two rivals facing off in a decider today week in case of a ‘dead heat’.

For now, the focus will be on the final league commitments as Birkirkara play Tarxien Rainbows and Hibs take on Valletta.

The strength of opposition and sequence of fixtures appear to favour the Stripes as they take on fifth-placed Tarxien this evening, 24 hours before Hibs lock horns with deposed champions Valletta.

Buttressed by their hard-fought victory over the Citizens, Birkirkara are fancied to dismiss the challenge of a Tarxien side who lost their last two matches but coach Paul Zammit warned against the pitfalls of approaching the game with a laissez-faire attitude.

“We have a clear mind about our impending challenge,” he said.

“We’re not trying to impose anything because we know what we have to do and that is to focus only on our game against Tarxien.

“We started the Championship Pool in third place but thanks to our work and the positive results we’ve achieved, the team propelled itself to the top.

“And we have done this by concentrating on every game and we are doing the same ahead of the Tarxien game. After that, anything can happen.

“Tarxien had a very good season, they’ve already proved themselves. They will be keen to finish on a good note. Hibs also have a difficult game against Valletta who wouldn’t want to end the championship with two consecutive defeats.”

The narrow win over Valletta can only have strengthened Birkirkara’s optimism but Zammit stressed that his players had never lost belief despite encountering a few setbacks along the way.

“We’ve long held the belief that we could challenge until the very end,” Zammit said.

“Before the Valletta game, we had two difficult weeks during which we dropped four points. The Valletta game was a test of character for us. The question was... how strong are we?

“We showed that this squad can overcome certain hurdles but all games can be difficult.”

Zammit is expected to keep faith with the 11 players who started the Valletta win. Defender Zach Muscat is available after serving a one-match ban.

Tarxien midfielder Andrew Agius is out, suspended, but all the other players are available for selection.

Valletta’s threat

Valletta may have dropped out of the title race but they are still expected to have a go at Hibs. The Citizens may also be relishing the prospect of ruining their rivals’ title bid and gain a modicum of revenge for the defeat they suffered to Hibs on the final day of last season when Valletta were celebrating their title.

Michael Woods, the Hibs coach, is wary of Valletta’s threat.

“I’m expecting a very difficult game,” he said. “There’s rivalry between the two clubs and on the day, we have to play as well as we did in our last match against Valletta (4-2) to take the three points.”

Woods insisted that for Hibs this will be a normal game despite the perception that they have the tougher task compared to Birkirkara.

“We are preparing as we do for other games,” Woods said.

“The Birkirkara-Tarxien result may have an influence but even if the game ends in a draw, we just have to win our match.

“We’re going out to win because only three points would do for us. It’s a crucial game and the players are aware of its importance. The mood in our squad is upbeat as we’re coming from a series of positive results.

“Luis Edison is improving his fitness and giving us more options in attack. Obiefule is also helping... the signings we made in January have boosted our chances.”

Adrian Pulis is struggling with an Achilles problem but otherwise Woods has a full squad.

At Valletta, Malta forward Daniel Bogdanovic has terminated his contract. Defender Steve Borg is still recuperating from a knee injury but otherwise City coach Mark Miller can rely on a full complement.

In today’s opening match at the National Stadium (3pm), relegated duo Ħamrun Spartans and Melita will be looking to bid farewell to Premier League football with a positive performance and result.

Both coaches are expected to name a host of youngsters in their teams.

Captain Roderick Fenech is suspended for Ħamrun while Melita will be without Serbian defender Ivan Tufegdzic who was also handed a one-match ban in midweek.

Patxi Salinas be in charge of his last match as Melita coach after both parties agreed to go separate ways at the end of the season.

Previous results
Birkirkara vs Tarxien 4-1, 5-0, 1-0. Hibs vs Valletta 0-1, 1-4, 4-2. Ħamrun vs Melita 3-1, 0-1, 2-2.

Greens and Spartans docked points

The MFA announced yesterday that Floriana and Ħamrun have been deducted two points and one point respectively after failing to honour Players and Coaches Complaints Board decisions to settle their dues with former players.

The Greens were sanctioned (one point in each case) for failing to settle outstanding payments to two players, Aman Verma and Jermain Brincat.

A spokesman for Floriana said that the club will appeal the decision concerning Brincat on the grounds that the latter has been banned for life for match-fixing.

For their part, Ħamrun have been hit with a one-point penalty over unpaid money to former goalkeeper Omar Borg.