by Mtarfa are expected to welcome Birkirkara at Dingli Ground at 16:30 as the two come from different ends of the table with the aim to conclude their commitments in the first phase of the Assikura Women’s League. Mtarfa are in transition once more, following the reversion to Simon Spiteri & Christian Curmi’s leadership. Birkirkara’s Vince Galea gave his take on his first few months in charge, transfer expectations and the nuances of team selections in such encounters.
Two Halves Of A Season
Mtarfa head into the calendar year with a confirmation of a change in leadership. Gaetano Papaleo was confirmed to have moved on, while the team returns to the leadership of former coaches Simon Spiteri and Christian Curmi.
Spiteri has been synonymous with Mtarfa for several years, having vacated the post mid-way through last season, at which point Christian Curmi and Brandon Spiteri took charge of the team until the end of last season.
Gaetano Papaleo was trusted to lead the senior side at the beginning of this season, but parted ways during the Christmas break. Meanwhile, Christian Curmi will have double duties, having until now been in charge of the U19 team only. Noting that both, Simon Spiteri & Christian Curmi have given this a go before with a struggle for points, it will be interesting to see how that experience shapes this stint.
On the other hand, Vince Galea becomes the only coach to have taken over a side over the summer, with two coaches, Julian Camilleri and Jethron Azzopardi having led their side through all of last season as well, while all other coaches took over their teams in some form or other mid-way through last season.
This match will be the final one against a bottom four team, before the league split is enacted resulting in nine direct confrontations to determine the league winner. The Birkirkara coach was questioned on the utility of the first phase in building his fundamentals, as he aims to steer the team toward defending their league title in the upcoming months.
Galea applauded the league structure, “The league as it is makes sense for obvious reasons. The first phase gives teams some time to experiment while preparing for the next phase which can be important for all teams. I like this setup and I believe that my team and myself learned a lot during this phase.”
Mid-Season Transfers
Gaetano Papaleo’s arrival to Mtarfa was combined with a few new signings. Christian Curmi’s involvement means that the balance between the Assikura Women’s Youth League & Assikura Women’s League should be easier since he is a common coach. However, the question remains on whether there will be further changes in players.
Meanwhile, Birkirkara announced the arrival of Colombian midfielder Viverly Nanez from Turkish side, Antalya Sport. Vince Galea confirmed that she replaces the departing Yuna Hazekawa. “We will have a change in one of our foreigners. Viverly is an experienced player that I have known for many years and I believe her qualities, on and off the pitch, will be a big help to our team. She will be replacing Yuna that left the club by mutual consent to return to her country.”
The Birkirkara coach suggested that the Stripes may not be done with their business just yet, “There is still some time in January and we will look into possibilities to strengthen the squad, should the opportunity for the right profiles arises.”
On Dealing With Such Confrontations
The match tosses up another team from the top of the table against a team who has struggled to make headway, with a third change in leadership in just twelve months. Gaetano Papaleo’s short tenure was epitomised by a team that had sporadic, but still more attacking moments. It will be interesting whether Curmi & Spiteri revert to the more defensive approach, although the strength of Birkirkara makes this match a poor determinator of their philosophy for the rest of the season.
Meanwhile, Vince Galea was asked on his take on the criticism dealt to top four coaches in fielding established first elevens as opposed to giving more chance to youth players in matches against the bottom sides.
The Birkirkara coach replied, “Every club, team and coach works differently during the season and in such games I can only speak about myself. One needs to understand that although some matches might look as one-sided ones and give you the opportunity to rotate players, there is also the game rhythm that as a coach you need to achieve with your players.”
Eyeing this afternoon’s match, he continued, “This match comes as the first game after a short break and as it was during the past days we will seek to continue developing the game rhythm and all other aspects such as physical, technical and tactical.”
The Sporting Fan reached out for similar comments from Mtarfa’s Simon Spiteri & Christian Curmi, but none were received at the time of writing.
The two teams are expected to take to the pitch at Dingli Ground at 16:30, following the direct clash between Valletta & San Gwann that starts at 14:00.
Lead Image: Lara Schembri
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