First Division side St. Patrick presented their new signings during a press conference which was held at the 5th Avenue Cafeteria in Zabbar.
The Saints, who earlier this summer appointed Alfred Attard as their new coach and Ludwig Bartolo as assistant coach and coach of the Under-19 team, secured the services of goalkeeper James Mercieca from Floriana, defenders Ryan Mifsud from Birkirkara and David Gauci from Hibernians, midfielders Bronwen Bugeja from Hibs and Yanis Tonna from Sliema together with Serbian striker Daniel Milovanovic.
Twenty-one year old Milovanovic arrived in Malta this summer and had short trials with Sliema Wanderers and Floriana. He started his career at the Hertha Berlin academy and then played for SV Wehen Wiesbaden in Germany before moving to Serbia where he played for FK Bezanija and FC Javor Ivanjica. Milovanovic, who holds dual-citizenship, played for the German Under-16 and Under-18 teams and then for the Serbian Under-19 team. He is now aiming to play for the Serbian Under-21 side.
Meanwhile Gordon Failla, Steven Dimech and Arnold Buttigieg returned with the club after being on loan with other teams.
Addressing the media, St. Patrick president Charles Caruana said that the season started on a negative note when former coach Winston Muscat left the club all of a sudden despite the two parties had already started preparing for the coming season. However Alfred Attard, who had started the season as assistant coach of Sliema Wanderers, accepted the Saints’ offer to join the club.
Caruana said that the club is looking forward to continue developing its facilities following the installation of artificial turf last year. He thanked the Malta Football Association for providing funds amounting to €160,000 together with the Kunsill Malti ghall-Isport and the Good Causes Fund who also contributed for the project. The St. Patrick president revealed that the next project is the building of new dressing rooms and a stand for supporters. He said that with such facilities, the club will be able to continue attracting more young players to the club.
Charles Caruana said that hopefully a solution is found for the current situation of the local game so that the club could start the season as scheduled.
New coach Alfred Attard thanked the committee for having faith in him and said that he had accepted their offer as it was a challenge for him. Attard said that a number of players who were due to join the club moved elsewhere and therefore the club had to work hard to find suitable replacements. He said that he has now a very competitive side at his disposal.
Attard insisted that young players had a future at the club. He praised the club’s nursery for being well-organised and said that the senior team will reap fruits from the work done by the nursery.
The St. Patrick coach said that the club’s objective will not be only that of retaining the First Division status but to move a step further and admitted that if necessary, the squad will be strengthened further in January.
Speaking on behalf of the club’s nursery, president Manuel Schembri said the nursery had developed from a small nursery to one of the leading nurseries in the southern part of the island and holds an A License. He said that the St. Patrick Youth Nursery makes sure that its coaches are of the highest standard and as from this season, Saviour Darmanin will be holding sessions for goalkeepers.
Schembri said that some of the nursery’s products managed to establish themselves in the highest level of the game in Malta by playing in the Premier League and the national team.
He invited parents to enrol their children in the St. Patrick Youth Nursery and said that this season, the nursery will be making a particular drive to attract more girls to the nursery.
The club’s sponsors for the coming season are The Wholesaler and Eurosport.