Fourth place Floriana will be aiming to move temporarily to third place this evening when they face Balzan Youths in the second of two matches being played at the Victor Tedesco Stadium in Hamrun.

In the first match on the programme, Mqabba will be meeting bottom placed Marsaxlokk in a Relegation Pool match.

The Greens will have Joe Brincat on the bench for his first commitment with the club as coach. Their former international midfielder has accepted to take over the reins of the side after the departure of Michael Woods last week.

Brincat now has the job to bring back morale among its ranks after a disappointing run of matches which culminated in two consecutive defeats following which they lost third place to Birkirkara.

Against Balzan, it does not seem to be impossible for the Greens to return to winning form, but the Youths, after their debacle against Valletta, were back in form as they almost squeezed a victory against Sliema on Monday evening, losing two points from a 3-3 draw as Sliema scored an injury time equaliser.

Balzan will certainly be no push overs and the Greens will have to work hard to gain the three points at stake.

This evening, Brincat is expected to have Micallef, Woods and Akoto back in the squad. They missed last weekend’s defeat against Hibernians through suspension.

On their part, Balzan are expected to be at full strength and after the draw against Sliema, they will now be looking forward to write another golden page in the club’s history by winning their first ever Championship Pool match.

In the other match which kicks off the programme at 6pm, Mqabba should be considered favourites to beat the southern seasiders whose hopes of avoiding relegation were dealt a big blow last weekend following a 6-1 defeat at the hands of Hamrun Spartans.

Unless Marsaxlokk can return to winning form this evening and move closer to the teams above them in the standings, it will become even more difficult for them to avoid the Drop.

Last weekend’s defeat against the Spartans came as a surprise to many, especially as it came immediately after their most satisfactory performance against Relegation Pool leaders Qormi, whom they beat 1-0.

As for Mqabba, it is a great opportunity to grab another three points following their win against Tarxien the past weekend.

Another three points will move them to a temporary safe place in the standings, but above all, it will also give them much needed confidence in the battle against relegation.