by Mtarfa and Lija Athletic will launch the final stint of the Assikura Women’s League this evening at the Centenary Stadium, at 20:15. The Blues’ coaches Christian Curmi and Brandon Spiteri will be hunting their first points, while Jethron Azzopardi‘s team seek a return to winning ways.
A Return From International Break
The international break provided some respite for clubs from the incessant calendar, but they will be raring to go for the final four matches of the league. Mtarfa and Lija Athletic will restart the action this evening at the Centenary Stadium, KO 20:15.
Mtarfa went into the break on the back of a tough loss against the bottom four group-leaders Valletta. Coaches Christian Curmi and Brandon Spiteri reflected on the match, “We knew from the beginning that the match against Valletta would be a difficult one, bearing in mind they have dominated in the bottom four section. From our end, it wasn’t the best performance. We could have been prepared better mentally, but this is football. Ultimately, a team has to win. Some positives were that we had some great attacking chances which proved that improvement is happening. However, we must take things step by step.”
On the other hand, Lija Athletic suffered a narrow but piercing defeat to nearest rivals San Gwann who regained comfort at second place in the group. Asked about processing the defeat, Jethron Azzopardi gave credit to the opposition, “It’s always a close call against San Gwann and this time around they were the better team. We have gone through our mistakes to learn from them and improve our game.”
Meanwhile, the two teams utilised the international break to focus on their ailments. Asked about the break Mtarfa’s coaches replied, “With regards to injuries the situation is still not that better. Players are still recovering. Yet, we had time to focus more on our upcoming encounter against Lija Athletic.”
On the other hand, Jethron Azzopardi’s team welcomed the international period for some detachment, “The break served to literally give a small rest to the players from the hectic fixtures, as against San Gwann our team suffered from the physical aspect mostly. We worked on that and regained our energies.”
Match Expectations
Lija Athletic head into the match with the upper hand having won all previous three encounters. Despite this, Mtarfa have been seeking their first point throughout the season and will take to the pitch with a mind set on capturing what has been eluding them, “Our aim for the upcoming match against Lija Athletic is to try and get a positive result. It won’t be easy but our players are focused and preparing in their best way to perform well on the pitch.”
Jethron Azzopardi’s side will hope to continue shutting out the opposition, but Lija Athletic’s coach is not underestimating the improvement from the Blues, “Mtarfa have shown a radical improvement from the last results. I expect a good solid performance from our side to show consistency.”
The two teams initiate the final stint in the Assikura Women’s League, for this season, tonight at the Centenary Stadium, 20:15.
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