The BOV Premier League resumes this weekend after the two-week break due to the national team’s commitments in Georgia and Azerbaijan.
After being held in a draw by Naxxar in their last outing, Hibernians will aim at returning to winning ways as they face Mosta, second-placed Birkirkara take on bottom-placed Tarxien Rainbows, Floriana face Zebbug Rangers and Qormi meet Sliema Wanderers.
Tarxien Rainbows vs Birkirkara, kick-off 16:00 at Hibernians Stadium
Birkirkara hope to keep the pace with leaders Hibernians as they take on a Tarxien Rainbows side coming from six consecutive defeats. The Stripes registered four wins out of the last five matches to extend their unbeaten run to fifteen matches with a 2-1 win over Pietà Hotspurs in their last league outing.
Tarxien, on the other hand, are currently anchored at the bottom of the table, two behind Qormi and one behind Pietà and Zebbug. They lost 2-3 to Balzan in their last game.
The Rainbows could not count on the suspended Mouhamed Soly and Manu Bonaque while Carlos Menendez Hevia is recovering from an injury. Birkirkara, on the other hand, should be in full strength.
Tarxien defeated Birkirkara 3-1 in the first round but the second round clash ended in a 2-1 win for the Stripes.
Qormi vs Sliema Wanderers, kick-off 18:00 at Hibernians Stadium
Qormi hope to collect precious points from the clash with Sliema as they aim to steer away from the danger zone. They held Floriana in a goalless draw in their last match but have only won one of the last eighteen matches.
Sliema, on the other hand, are currently sixth on 21 points and a win over Qormi would enable them to close in on Floriana and Balzan who are chasing a place in Europe. The Wanderers defeated Zebbug 2-1 in their last outing.
Duncan Pisani and Edafe Uzeh return for Qormi after serving a one-match ban. Sliema welcome back Michael Mifsud and Trevor Cilia but Mark Scerri and Pedrinho are suspended while Stefano Bianciardi is still recovering from an injury.
Qormi and Sliema shared the spoils in a goalless draw in the first round with the second round clash ending in a 3-1 win for Sliema.
Zebbug Rangers vs Floriana, kick-off 16:00 at National Stadium
Floriana will be all out to bounce back and return to winning ways after dropping two points in a draw with Qormi. A second consecutive goalless draw after the draw with Birkirkara. The Greens lie one point behind fourth-placed Balzan.
Zebbug, on the other hand, lie second from bottom together with Pietà, one point ahead of Tarxien. They lost five out of the last six matches, losing 1-2 to Sliema in their last outing.
Yessous Camilleri, Thomas Paris and Mathias Muchardi are all ruled out through suspension. No Floriana players are suspended but Andre Scicluna and Steve Bonnici are still recovering from injuries.
The first-round clash between Floriana and Zebbug ended in a 3-3 draw but Floriana won 4-1 in the second round.
Mosta vs Hibernians, kick-off 18:00 at National Stadium
Hibernians chase the twenty-fourth win in twenty-eight matches as they take on a Mosta side which held them in a 1-1 draw in the second round despite an emphatic 5-0 win for the Paolites in the first round. Lying eight points ahead of Birkirkara, Hibs aim to move another important step closer to securing the eleventh title.
Mosta lost three out of the last four matches but hope to get something from this game to move further away from the danger zone. THey lost 1-3 to Valletta in their last outing.
No players are suspended but Mosta’s Jonas Rodriguez Ekani is ruled out injured.