City coach Jesmond Zerafa, right, is relieved that his side has clinched the title with three more matches to go.

He said: “I consider it a big feat. We are still unbeaten and our success grows in stature when taking everything into consideration, especially the fact that we maintained our domination over all other rivals even after the points were halved at the start of the Second Phase.”

Zerafa is now aiming to have a go at the FA Trophy. “We cannot say no to the second major honour. It will not be easy and remaining unbeaten till the very end will certainly be difficult as those teams facing us in the league or trophy – will be motivated to beat the new champions,” he added.

Zerafa said the professional scheme had certainly helped the side on its way to such a successful season. “We only had a few days rest before the start of the season. But we were lucky as we had only a few injuries. This more or less helped all my players to maintain the level of the national team players,” he said.

Zerafa also paid tribute to his former club Qormi. “I thank them wholeheartedly for the three years I was at that club. It was a great satisfaction for me to see that team achieve the targets reached last season. They enabled me to gain popularity – my stay at Qormi helped me to get to Valletta where I am proud to have become the first coach from Valletta to have won the title for the club,” he added.

Asked about the forthcoming participation in the Champions League, Zerafa said: “We have to keep our feet to the ground. There is a big difference between the Maltese league and the Champions League. What we have to do in my opinion is to get through the first hurdle and then see what happens. But if we are to go forward, we might have to make some changes in our foreigners’ line-up. As yet, we cannot say what will happen. Only when we get to know our opponents will we have to work to strengthen the team for Champions League purposes,” he said.