Valletta coach Paul Zammit heaped praise on his team’s fighting qualities yesterday as the Citizens breathed new life to their championship challenge with a dramatic 1-0 win over Hibernians late Wednesday.
The 1-1 draw against rivals Floriana three days before had left the Premier League champions with a must-win scenario against the pace-setting Paolites who starting the midweek clash enjoing a five-point lead cushion.
Heading into the dying minutes, it looked as though Valletta were set for another frustrating night as their waves of attacks were thwarted time and again by a steady Hibs rearguard led by goalkeeper Andrew Hogg.
But Valletta’s resilience won them the day in the end as in stoppage time the inspirational Steve Borg blasted the ball into the net from a loose ball to send the City fans into a frenzy.
The outcome means an enthralling finale to this season’s title race as only two points are now separating leaders Hibs from second-placed Valletta and Balzan, 3-1 winners over Gżira United, with only five matches left.
“The reasons for being still in contention this season are all down to the players’ character and never-say-die attitude,” Zammit told Times of Malta yesterday.
“This season, we went through several ups and downs but despite the setbacks we experienced the squad never stopped believing and that was mirrored in our performance on Wednesday.
“The players kept chasing the result to the very end.
“Winning a championship requires more than having players of a certain calibre technically. You also need to be strong mentally to prevail in key moments.”
The Valletta coach admitted that victory over Hibernians was a boost but he still believes that the Paolites were in the driving seat.
“Hibs remain in charge of this year’s title race,” Zammit said.
“With five matches to go they have destiny in their own hands as with a two-point advantage they could be crowned champions if they win their remaining matches.
“Obviously, we will maintain our approach of trying to focus all our energies on our next match and take the next three points to remain in the race.
“Gżira will be our next opponents and irrespective of their position in the standings I’m expecting a difficult match.
“Our players were involved in a very tight schedule lately between club and country so I just hope that they can recover in time for Saturday’s (tomorrow’s) match.”
Borg absence
Against Gżira, Zammit is sure to be without Borg who must serve suspension after his late dismissal against Hibernians.
The City coach, however, is optimistic of having defender Ryan Camilleri and midfielder Rowen Muscat available after missing the last two matches due to injury.
“Ryan Camilleri and Rowen Muscat did all they could these past couple of weeks to regain full fitness and the first indications now look positive,” Zammit said.
“But at this final stage we have to be very cautious and make sure that all players available are 100 per cent fit otherwise they could suffer a recurrence and stay out longer.
“We shall look at each player in the squad and see who is available.”