Valletta are expected to go flat-out to win their clash with Tarxien Rainbows and get their title bid back on track this evening (kick-off 6.30 p.m.).
Widely regarded as surefire favourites to capture the BOV Premier League title, Valletta received a reality check in their last outing in the shape of a 1-0 upset to champions Hibs, their first defeat in six matches.
The Citizens have had plenty of time to analyse what went wrong against the Paolites and prepare well for their tricky match with Tarxien Rainbows as they haven't had a match for a month.
Despite their lengthy hiatus from competitive football, Valletta still grabbed their fair share of headlines over their dispute with the Malta FA on the training scheme and their decision to terminate the contract of Dutch forward Geert den Ouden.
The City faithful must be keeping their fingers crossed that today's match against Tarxien at the Tedesco Stadium marks a return to normality for their team, winning-wise and also in terms of the continuity of their fixtures.
Ton Caanen, the Valletta coach, is backing his side to rediscover their winning touch and rejoin Qormi at the top of the Premier League.
"After a defeat, for a club like Valletta to lose two games in a row is almost unthinkable but in football there are no guarantees," Caanen said.
"We had four weeks without a game and everyone is really looking forward to this match. The players are raring to go and I have a very positive feeling about this game."
The Dutchman is under no illusion that today's match will be a stroll in the park.
"Tarxien have a good team," Caanen said. "Their Brazilian players are very effective. I know Ribeiro because he played in Ukraine when I was coaching there. He's a strong player, a typical centre-forward.
"Denni is the creative type, he has good technique and an eye for goal. We're aware that Tarxien have a powerful attack but the other players also work hard."
Caanen has to make at least two changes from the team that lost to Hibs. Apart from Den Ouden, Roderick Briffa is out after twisting his ankle in Malta's 4-1 defeat to Bulgaria in a friendly match last week.
Invited to comment on Den Ouden's exit, Caanen said: "I prefer to look on the bright side of things. The golden rule here is that a foreign player must be better than the locals. If he's not performing better than the Maltese, then there's no point waiting until June to make a decision.
"This is what happened with Geert (den Ouden). Geert scored 108 goals in over 300 matches in the Dutch League. He has an excellent CV and we were convinced that he would be a great signing for Valletta FC.
"In the Europa League matches, Geert showed his worth but in the league, it was different. We had to go our separate ways because in my view, Geert didn't have a plan B. I was expecting him to be more influential in the box but he's more of a passing player."
Noel Coleiro, the Tarxien coach, is relishing the prospect of taking on Valletta as Tarxien look to strengthen their quest for a place in the Championship Pool.
"I really look forward to matches against Valletta," Coleiro said. "When you're preparing to face a big team like Valletta, the players are really motivated.
"Valletta are stronger than us on paper but this will be their first match since they released one of their three foreigners (Den Ouden). This is not to say that Valletta are weaker with only two foreigners because they have an awesome squad, but we have three good foreign players who can boost our chances of taking something from this match.
"We know that we're in for a very tough test but we will play an open game. The players are willing to do well and maybe achieve something special by beating Valletta."
Ryan Grech is out of the equation for Tarxien after aggravating a thigh injury in the 5-0 demolition of Msida St Joseph in the National League 100 Anniversary Cup but otherwise, Coleiro has a full squad at his disposal.