Valletta earned a point in a goalless draw with eternal rivals Floriana at the National Stadium on Sunday despite ending the game in nine men.
The Citizens held the initiative and although they had a player sent off after just half an hour, they still managed to keep their opponents under control to take home a precious point which leaves them three points behind the Greens. However, Valletta have a game in hand.
For Floriana, this was the second successive game they failed to win despite the fact that their opponents had a player sent off.
Valletta could have taken the lead on 18 minutes with an Andrea Zammit effort from outside the area when served by Federico Falcone but three minutes later, Mattia Veselji served Kemar Reid whose effort was neutralised by goalkeeper Alessandro Guarnone who was in excellent form for the Citizens.
Rowen Muscat was sent off for Valletta on 32 minutes for kicking Ulises Arias.
In the second half, the Valletta custodian performed good saves on Arias, Matias Garcia and Jan Busuttil but the Citizens hit back with a powerful drive by William Jebor which was parried by Kitanov.
Three minutes in added time, Enmy Pena Beltre was sent off for Valletta after receiving a second yellow card after handling the ball.