Champions Valletta FC Futsal face University of Malta Students Futsal Team, the winners of last season’s Knock-Out, in the Super Cup clash on Friday (kick-off 20:15), the first official match of the 2018-19 futsal season.
Friday’s curtain-raiser, at the Corradino Pavilion, will also be the first official match since the Malta Football Association took over the organisation of the domestic futsal competitions.
Valletta, who beat Luxol in last season’s final play-off, are on a high after their successful participation in the preliminary round of the UEFA Futsal Champions League.
Photos: Copyright © Joe Borg
Coach Xavier Saliba said the Citizens’ qualification to the Main Round rewarded the team’s intense and serious preparations over the past months.
The Malta futsal champions beat Estonia’s FC Cosmos (4-2), Ireland’s Futsamba Naas (5-0) and Macedonian hosts Veles (8-5) to secure top spot in Group E and a berth in the Main Round where they will meet Araz Naxcivan (Azerbaijan), hosts Lucenec (Slovakia) and FK Vytis Futsal (Lithuania).
Saliba will now be hoping that his players build on their performances in the Futsal Champions League as they look to land another honour and further boost their preparations for their commitments in the Main Round of Europe’s flagship futsal competition.
For their part, the University of Malta Students Futsal Team are now under the guidance of former player Đorđe Maksimovic.
They are aware that a Super Cup final against Valletta is quite a significant challenge but they will surely be doing their utmost to hold their own and pull off a surprise like they did in the final of the Knock-Out where they upset Luxol 5-2.
After experiencing some changes in the administration and players, the University of Malta Students Futsal Team will be seeking to maintain their steady progress and further raise their profile this season.