Champions Hamrun Spartans will begin their title-defence as they face newly-promoted Zabbar St. Patrick in their opening match from the 360Sports Malta Premier on Sunday. Marsaxlokk cross swords with Gzira United in the other match.
After winning their second successive title, the Spartans went through a number of changes. Coach Luciano Zauri was replaced by Alessandro Zinnari. Goalkeepers Federico Marchetti and Tom, Joseph Zerafa, Christian Rutjens, Ognjen Bjelicic, Yuliyan Nenov, Nemanja Krstic, Uros Djuranovic, Jonny and Seth Paintsil are no longer with the club. On the other hand, new arrivals include Brazilians Celio, Mayron, Wendel Barros, Talison, Vitao and Raphael Lopes along with Under-21 internationals Matthias Ellul and Daniel Letherby.
The team’s performance this summer was far from impressive. They lost 0-1 at home to Lincoln Red Imps and although they won the second leg 1-0 in Gibraltar, were eliminated on penalties. They held Ballkani in a goalless draw away from home, losing 0-2 at the Tony Bezzina Stadium. In the Summer Cup, they beat Marsaxlokk on penalties, losing 1-2 to Sliema Wanderers in the final.
The championship will be once again the main objective for the Spartans but definitely, they need to improve.
Newly-promoted Zabbar St. Patrick will be eager to impress in their first outing by upsetting their opponents.
After securing promotion from the Challenge League, Joao Janeiro was appointed as the new coach. They signed goalkeepers Erick Vital and Luca Camilleri, Stefan Ilic, Djordje Jovicic, Marcelo Santos and Martim Ferreira, Strahinja Jovancic, Diogo Tavares, Bonilha, João Pedro, Vinícius de Paiva, Zachary Grech, Jake Micallef, Sean Gatt, Issac Davey and Samuel Davey. Players like Rodolfo Soares, Isah Aliyu, Ezequiel Ruiz, Hubert Vella, Andreas Vella, Samuel Buhagiar, Brendan Scerri, Owen Magro, Owen Sciberras, Matthew Ellul, Rowad Benhamed, Yoan Kirov and Liam Lagana, among others, were released or left the club.
Retaining the Premier League status will be the main objective of Zabbar St. Patrick.
Meanwhile Marsaxlokk will be aiming for a repeat of last season’s fine campaign which enabled them to secure a spot in the UEFA Conference League.
Led by Winston Muscat, the Southseasiders placed fourth and earlier this summer, they did quite well in the UEFA Conference League, holding Partizani Tirana in a 1-1 draw away from home, losing 1-2 at home in a rather controversial way in the second leg.
The squad has been strengthened with the signing of Enmy Pena, Ulises Arias, Lucas Lopez, Jefferson, Guttiner, Alex Tanque and Patrick Nonato. On the other hand, Sami El Anabi, Armah Vaikanah, Fabricio Brener, Diego Pires Dall’Oca, Samuel Boakye, Fernandinho, Anthony Obonogwu and Sunday Akinbule were not retained or moved elsewhere.
Their opponents on Sunday, Gzira United, will be aiming to challenge for a spot in the UEFA club competitions.
Coach Andrew Cohen’s squad has been strengthened with the arrival of experienced players like goalkeeper Justin Haber, Enrico Pepe, Jurgen Pisani, Joseph Minala, Lecao and Kevin Tulimieri and interesting young prospects like Douglas and Christian Ebisindor Saint. On the other hand, Carlos Chaba, Tom Tom, Tomislav Knezevic, Kyle Spence, Adama Sane, Dacosta Boadu and Macula are no longer with the club.
| Sun 18-Aug-2024 | Hamrun Spartans FC vs Zabbar St. Patrick FC | 18:00 | Tony Bezzina Stadium |
| Sun 18-Aug-2024 | Marsaxlokk FC vs Gzira United FC | 20:15 | Tony Bezzina Stadium |
Hamrun S. v Zabbar SP
Referee – Trustin Farrugia Cann
Ass Refs – Luke Portelli, David Castillo
Fourth official – Glenn Tonna
Marsaxlokk v Gzira U.
Referee – Alex Johnson
Ass Refs – James Muscat, Mark Ciantar
Fourth official – Philip Farrugia