Tedesco faces his former team as Valletta cross swords with Gzira

Valletta will be all out to bounce back on Friday as they take on Gzira United in one of the three BOV Premier League matches in programme.

Floriana start as firm favourites to claim the three points from the clash with bottom-placed Tarxien Rainbows while Sirens hope to keep the pressure on the leaders with a win over Sliema Wanderers.

Tarxien Rainbows vs Floriana, 19:00 Hibernians Stadium

After losing three out of the last five matches, joint-leaders Floriana will be all out to claim the three points. They earned just one point from the last three matches after suffering a defeat to Valletta, a draw with Gzira and a defeat to Gudja. Tarxien, on the other hand, remain anchored at the bottom of the table with four points, losing to Santa Lucia and Sliema in their last two outings.

The Rainbows could not count on the suspended Matthew Tabone.

In the first round, Floriana defeated Tarxien 2-1.

Sirens vs Sliema Wanderers, 18:00 National Stadium

Sharing third place with Hibernians, one point behind the two joint-leaders, Sirens target the three points in order to keep the pressure on the leaders. They won two out of the last three matches as they bounced back from the shock defeat to Hamrun with a fine win over Santa Lucia. Sliema, on the other hand, returned to winning ways as they beat Tarxien Rainbows with a stoppage-time goal. However, they are desperate for points as they lie joint-third from bottom.

For Sirens, Emmanuel Okoye is ruled out through suspension.

In the first round, Sirens defeated Sliema 1-0.

Gzira United vs Valletta, 20:00 National Stadium

A heavy 1-4 defeat to Birkirkara brought a fine run of eleven positive results to an end, costing coach Darren Abdilla the job. Giovanni Tedesco takes over from Abdilla and will make his debut against the team he was leading just a month ago. The Maroons registered their first win in over a month as they beat Balzan 3-1 to close in on the top four and now lie just three points behind Valletta and Floriana.

In the first round, Gzira defeated Valletta 3-1