by Swieqi United and Lija Athletic will kick-off the final Assikura Women’s League weekend of Round 2, at the Victor Tedesco Stadium tonight (20:30). Coming into it from different ends of the table, Saviour Darmanin and Jethron Azzopardi spoke about their expectations ahead of the final league fixture between the two this season.
On The Back Of Convincing Victories
Both sides come into the match high on morale after having started 2024 on the best possible note by winning their respective direct confrontations last week. Swieqi United delivered a near-perfect first-half performance against Mgarr United, to go into the break 5-0 up and ultimately finished the match with a 5-1 victory.
Asked about taking that performance against a side whom they will be facing three more times upon the league split, Saviour Darmanin summed up the performance, “I think we had one of our best performances as a team in the first half, which in a direct confrontation against Mgarr United is something to be proud of. Tactically we were well prepared and the players deserve every praise for their work on the pitch in delivering such a conclusive performance in the first half. In the second half, we made several changes and brought on young players who also showed positives. Against such a strong opposition we could also see areas where we need to work more to develop these young talents.”
Salamatu Abdulai earned herself a hat-trick in the match, which continues to tally up with her performances in the senior and the Assikura Women’s Youth League. Her scintillating form has earned her a spot in the U20 Ghana international squad, who are preparing for their World Cup qualifiers against Senegal over these two weeks.
Asked about the young forward, Saviour Darmanin heaped praise on her development, “Salamatu continues to deliver on the potential that I believed she had since joining us last year and she did so even when asked to play in different positions. I am happy that she has been rewarded by a national team call-up which I know means a lot.”
Darmanin also voiced his encouragement for other players to continue delivering, “As a team we have other players who must also show that they want to be here. I’ve not shied away from putting young talents on the pitch, not even in big games. It is up to the players to step up and deliver, to show that they merit those spots in the team and for us to keep going in this positive trajectory as we head into the final phase.”
Meanwhile, Lija Athletic also excelled against Mtarfa, a fixture they won by 3-0 and which they controlled. Jethron Azzopardi is looking forward for his team to continue growing as they head into the final stage of the league, “The team played well, dominating in possession and showed the will to win the game.”
Asked about the bright introduction of youngster Hailey Micallef who also bagged the final goal of the night, Azzopardi said, “Putting trust in youngsters such as Hailey is one of the reasons us coaches coach, to see them develop and improve their level. We look forward to the next phase of the season.”
Match Expectations
Swieqi United won the first round match against Lija Athletic rather convincingly by 6-0. Looking at the match, Saviour Darmanin said, “This will be the final time we will be meeting Lija Athletic in the league this season. They have their own ambitions, while we want to continue our own momentum and go into the final phase of the league as confident as possible. There’s no debate that we must seek the three points.”
Lija Athletic will likely present a different kind of opposition to that which Swieqi United will be facing upon the league split. Asked about whether the team is ready against a side who will work hard to frustrate them, Darmanin said, “We must be patient against a team who will be ready to give their all to take at least a point from this match, especially when considering the difference between the two in the league table. However, no game is easy. It is up to us to keep things simple and deliver on the night.”
On their part Lija Athletic displayed a rather defensive stance in the first encounter which invited increasing pressure and they could not stop Swieqi United from converting. Probed about whether he thinks this was a matter of execution or if the team is ready to approach the match in a different way, Azzopardi hinted at the latter, “This time round we will approach the game differently and play with a different mentality. Swieqi has been proven to be one of the best teams so far, but we will try and improve the end result.”
On the other hand, Azzopardi appears to be unfazed about playing a top-four side before the league split, as opposed to Valletta and San Gwann who will be immediately immersing themselves into a direct confrontation. He said, “For us it will be a game to try new tactics and learn from it.”
The match begins at 20:30 and will be played at the Victor Tedesco Stadium.
Lead Images: Jonathan Sajeba (Swieqi United FC) / Josmar Muscat (Lija Athletic Women FC)
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