Title fate in our hands says Citys vice president Published on: 10-04-2018
The 2017-18 BOV Premier League has taken a fresh twist last weekend as Valletta seized control of this season’s title race with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Ħamrun Spartans that lifted them two points clear of Balzan.
Balzan’s surprising 3-1 defeat to relegation-threatened Tarxien Rainbows had opened the door for Valletta to go top of the league standings and the Citizens took the opportunity with both hands as two goals from Kyrian Nwoko and another from Santiago Malano secured the points for the Citizens who are now standing just two wins away from their 24th league title in the club’s history.
Alex Fenech, the Valletta vice-president, said that he was really pleased with the players’ performance on Sunday against Ħamrun Spartans and said that the title was theirs to lose.
“I’m really satisfied with our team’s performance against Ħamrun Spartans as they showed all the hunger and determination needed to win a league championship,” Fenech told the Times of Malta.
“We surely have a much tougher title runin than Balzan and Ħamrun represented our first major obstacle on our quest to win the title.
“Actually I was a bit apprehensive for our match against Ħamrun as there is a longstanding rivalry between the two clubs. But everything went well and actually it was easier than we thought.
“Now that we are at the top the title destiny is firmly in our hands. There are two big matches coming up and if we win them both we will be crowned champions.”
Sunday’s win over Ħamrun Spartans draw a festive reception by the hundreds of City fans at the National Stadium who are dreaming of another title success. But Fenech warned that there is still a long way to go and everything could easily change next weekend when Valletta face neighbours Floriana while Balzan take a Senglea side who are already assured of Premier League survival.
“We have only won a football match but the title race is far from over,” Fenech said.
“Next up we have two very difficult games against Floriana and Gżira United and everything can change again next week if we fail to win our match so we need to remain on our toes. “There is no doubt that Floriana will make it difficult for us as they always do but we must be ready surely there is no space to show any complacency.
“Now it’s the time to show that we deserve to be champions.”
The Valletta vice-president said that one positive factor in his club’s favour during this season’s title race was they have the experience to cope with such situations. “As Valletta FC were are a whole organisation that is very experienced in such scenarios,” Fenech said.
“We have many players who have won league championships but also our club committee has already five title wins on our CV so we know what it has to be done to win silverware. “The most important thing for now at this moment is to remain calm and approach our next match fully focused on the job ahead.
“There is great team spirit among the players and everyone is united for one cause. We have always believed that we can win the title this year even if we were not leading the standings.
“Obviously we are in a better position than last week and that make us confident that we can finish the job.
“But at the same time we have to remain wary of the fact that in football anything can happen.”
Source - Times of Malta
