Birkirkara Set Sights On Building Gap As Mgarr Look To Reel Them In

Mgarr United and Birkirkara will battle it out for the first time this season this evening at Dingli Ground, starting at 17:00. Coaches Vince Galea and Ryan Vella weighed in on their previous encounters, the potential impact of the trio of players who swapped shirts between the two, while eyeing the importance of the first battle.

Swinging Momentums

Birkirkara and Mgarr United will head into their first competitive meet this season, promising an entertaining evening at Dingli Ground. Birkirkara come into the match with an unbeaten streak in the league, and on the back of a 4-1 victory over Swieqi United.

Probed about whether he believes the strength of their midfield was crucial in earning the victory against the Owls, Birkirkara’s coach Vince Galea underscored the importance of the work done in training, “⁠We are working tirelessly with the intention to improve our game and become as efficient as possible.”

He continued, “The introduction of Luana (Vitoria Cabral) and Yuna (Hazekawa) in our midfield, together with the experienced Gabriella (Zahra), got us the chance to develop certain aspects of the game that we hope to keep as our stronghold. However, I consider all departments important for such a performance, since we were very well aligned and compact in the majority of situations.”

On the other hand, Vince Galea rejected that the big margin in the victory was a necessary step to dispel any doubts on the back of a slender 1-0 victory against Lija Athletic and also considering that the team goes directly into another big clash. He said, “Not necessarily. Although goals and strong performances help to increase confidence, I look further and consider the training sessions and our preparation as much as important.”

Mgarr United’s hopes of a victory against Valletta where thwarted by a compact defensive display, with Ryan Vella citing the need for his team to learn from the outcome. He said, “I believe that Valletta did their jobs to perfection. They had a game plan and it came to fruition for them. We need to learn from this game and move on to the next games where we can find these type of tactics against us again.”

Probed about the potential impacts of a drastically different squad characteristic in attack, in struggling to open up the Valletta defence, Ryan Vella weighed in, “Yes we weren’t patient enough. Although we had multiple clear chances, we could have created more. We’re still a work in process, but we’ll keep working to improve week after week.”

The coach acknowledged elements were compounded by the confines of Dingli Ground, “This season we stopped playing at home because of the same matter (pitch size). We know it affects a lot. There’s much less space than the Centenary or Hamrun ground. So, obviously it’s very different and you need to adapt to the different circumstances.”

Battles Within The War

The summer also stirred things as Mgarr United unveiled the capture of Ann-Marie Said and Veronique Mifsud, while Luana Vitoria Cabral switched to the Stripes. The trio will face their former clubs and teammates for the first time this evening.

The two coaches were probed about how much they expect these swaps between clubs to change the face of the match that will play out this evening, besides the numerous signings made in complement.

Birkirkara’s Vince Galea replied, “⁠I do not see them as “swaps” since we targeted Luana (Vitoria Cabral) for her qualities rather than as a replacement for one of the players that left the club. As a fact, she signed with Birkirkara much earlier than when Veronique (Mifsud) and Ann-Marie (Said) signed for Mgarr. Both teams have made changes to their setup, not only players, so I consider this as a new challenge and cannot be compared to last seasons’ encounters.”

His counterpart, Ryan Vella, weighed in with a focus on his new recruits, “I am sure that for all three players it will be a bit strange playing against their ex team-mates. However, for us the most important thing is how Ann-Marie (Said) and Veronique (Mifsud) integrated with the team. Having their type of characters and winning mindsets definitely helps all players.”

Contrasting Words Ahead Of The Match

Three points for Birkirkara will see them take their tally to twelve points out of twelve available. However, a victory for Mgarr United would see them take their own tally to eight, just one below the Stripes, to continue building on the exciting start to the season. Eyeing their results will be several teams, including Hibernians who meet Valletta later in the evening, who could most capitalise on the two teams blunting each other’s approaches.

The two clubs have already met once in pre-season, with Mgarr United grabbing the victory on the day. The two were questioned about their thoughts on the potential impacts of the friendly match between the two sides, Mgarr’s struggles to find the net against Hibernians and Valletta at Dingli Ground, and the fact that Birkirkara will come into it on the back of a strong victory against Swieqi United.

Birkirkara’s Vince Galea was reluctant to look to the past, and appears to be heading into the fixture with an intention to focus on the present task at hand. He said, “There is no reason for us to think about the friendly result, nor for the Mgarr latest results, even if the friendly test was important as part of the early process and the improvement needed. We are tackling every game on its own merit and we prepare to our best to get the three points in each one of them, one by one.”

However, the Birkirkara coach lifted pressure of his team in seeing this as a must-win match in search of consolidating an early lead at the top of the table, “I do not see the games as a must-win thing, but hopefully we will be good enough on the day to get over the line.”

Mgarr United’s Ryan Vella contrasted in his reply on the importance of the match itself, “For us all games are a must-win. Although there are a lot of games still to be played, we know that this game will have a big impact mentally, whichever way the result goes. Beating them in a friendly felt like we were heading in the right direction. However, now it’s about performing in the same way, when it matters most.”

The clash will begin at 17:00, kick-starting the double-header at Dingli Ground, which will culminate with Hibernians against Valletta (19:30).

Lead Image: Lara Schembri

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