Valletta and Balzan earned a point each in a goalless draw at the Centenary Stadium.
This result suited neither side as Balzan missed the opportunity to join Gzira United in second place and are temporarily in third place together with Birkirkara, who however have a game in hand. On the other hand Valletta remained in seventh place.
Balzan continued to improve and have now extended their unbeaten run to ten matches.
It was the Balzan who had the better chances but could not penetrate the Valletta defence which is proving to be the bedrock as they managed their second clean sheet in three matches.
For this game, Balzan had to do without their suspended top-scorer Angel Yesid Torres Quinones but they responded by dominating possession in the first half with his substitute Bogdan Mladenovic. On the other end, Valletta, made only one change from the team that saw off Gzira United last week They replaced Jean Marie Ulrich Nnomo Ngong with Eslit Sala.
In the 14th minute, Brandon Paiber was denied by a superb reaction save from Balzan goalkeeper Jonathan Debono.
Yet, Balzan looked the more likely to score when a minute later, Bogdan Mladenovic cut inside on his right foot and unleashed a low drive that slammed against the post. From the rebound Paul Fenech shot just over the crossbar.
In the 28th minute, Brandon Paiber threatened again, when his freekick took a deflection off the wall on its way out.
As the second half started Balzan took the initiative and they did everything but score as Valletta were defended well.
In the 53rd minute, Matheus de Souza raced clear on the right flank but his final effort was blocked by goalkeeper Cain Formosa.
In the 64th minute, Cain Formosa saved without difficulty a direct freekick taken by Marcus Grima.
In the 75th minute, Marcus Grima tried to surprise Cain Formosa, who was out of position, as he mustered a strong drive from a distance that the back-tracking goalkeeper flicked with difficulty into a corner.
At the other end, a minute later, substitute William Jebor gave the illusion of goal when Enmy Bena Peltre squared the ball to him and he flashed a shot against the side-netting.
Both teams failed to penetrate their opponent’s defences until the end. The final result remained at a stale mate with both teams going home with a point each.
Valletta: Cain Formosa, Enzo Ruiz, Andrea Zammit (Nilton Soares Rodrigues 56’), Shaun Dimech, Enmy Manuel Pena Beltre, Federico Falcone (William Jebor 76’), Bradley Steed Kamden Fewo, Brandon Paiber (Triston Caruana 79’), Rowen Muscat, Eslit Sala, Kilian Bevis (Jean Marie Nnomo Ngong 79’).
Balzan: Jonathan Debono, Ivan Bozovic, Samir Arab, Marcus Grima, Bogdan Mladenovic (Delvin Chanel Ndinga 71’), Paul Fenech, Nikola Zerjal, Momsilo Raso, Matheus Nogureira Albulguerque de Souza, Aleksa Andrejic (Benjamin Hili 83’), Bojan Kaljevic (Alexander Satariano 57’).
Referee: Fyodor Zammit.
BOV Plejer of the game : Paul Fenech (Balzan).