Hibernians will be all out to revenge their shock elimination from the FA Trophy as they take on Pembroke Athleta in one of the four BOV Premier League matches in programme on Saturday at the Hibernains Stadium and Victor Tedesco Stadium respectively.
Balzan seek another three points as they take on Sliema Wanderers. St. Andrews face Tarxien Rainbows while Qormi meet Floriana.
Pembroke Athleta vs Hibernians, kick-off 14:00 at Hibernians Stadium
Hibs and Pembroke met three times this season with the first round clash ending in a 1-1 draw, Hibs won 2-1 in the second round but Pembroke eliminated the Paolites from the FA Trophy beating them 2-1. Lying four points behind leaders Valletta, Hibernians cannot afford any result other than a win against Pembroke which would enable them to revenge their elimination from the FA Trophy. They are coming from an unbeaten run of eleven matches, defeating Naxxar 8-0 and Mosta 3-0 in their last two matches.
Pembroke, on the other hand, won just one of the last seven matches, suffering defeats to St. Andrews and Valletta in their last two games.
Pembroke coach Winston Muscat hopes to have the full squad at his disposal. On the other hand, for Hibernians, apart from the injured Rui da Gracia Gomes and Jorge Santos Silva, Jackson Lima is suspended.
Sliema Wanderers vs Balzan, kick-off 16:00 at Hibernians Stadium
Third-placed Balzan hope to extend their positive run with a win over Sliema Wanderers as they aim at keeping the pace with Valletta and Hibernians. Balzan, who have already defeated Sliema 1-0 and 2-0 this season, are coming from an impressive unbeaten run of twelve matches.
The Wanderers, on the other hand, are currently eighth and won just one of the last ten matches. They suffered defeats to Valletta and Birkirkara in their last two outings.
For Balzan, Samir Arab is still serving a suspension but Dylan Grima will be back. Ryan Fenech is still ruled out injured. Sliema, on the other hand, could not count on the suspended Marko Potezica.
St. Andrews vs Tarxien Rainbows, kick-off 14:00 at Victor Tedesco Stadium
Tarxien hope to continue where they had left in a 6-1 win over Qormi last week with a win against St. Andrews in order to keep the pace with fifth-placed Floriana. However this will be no easy task as St. Andrews will be aiming for a positive result in their bid to climb out of the relegation zone. The Saints lost narrowly to Tarxien in the first round but the second round clash ended in a 1-1 draw.
Alex da Paixao Alves and Sergio Fernandez Prendes are ruled out through suspension.
Qormi vs Floriana, kick-off 16:15 at Victor Tedesco Stadium
Floriana will be all out to register a fourth win in six matches as they take on bottom-placed Qormi who lost the last twelve matches. The Greens are currently three points behind Birkirkara in the battle for fourth place.
Steve Pisani, Matteo Picciolo and Emerson Marcelina are ruled out through suspension for Floriana.
In the previous rounds, Floriana defeated Qormi 3-0 and 1-0.