# 2022–23 Maltese Premier League

The 2022–23 Maltese Premier League was the 108th season of top-flight league football in Malta. The season began on 19 August 2022 and ended on 1 May 2023. Hibernians were the defending champions, having won their 13th title in the previous season.

## Teams

Fourteen teams will compete in the league – the top ten teams from the previous season and the four teams promoted from the Maltese Challenge League. The promoted teams are Żebbuġ Rangers, Marsaxlokk, and Pietà Hotspurs, who will return after an absence of five, seven, ten and eight years from the top flight respectively. They will replace Sliema Wanderers (relegated after thirty-seven years in the top flight).
| Team | In league since | City |
| Balzan | 2011 | Balzan |
| Birkirkara | 1990 | Birkirkara |
| Floriana | 1986 | Floriana |
| Gudja United | 2019 | Gudja |
| Gżira United | 2016 | Gżira |
| Ħamrun Spartans | 2016 | Ħamrun |
| Hibernians | 1945 | Paola |
| Marsaxlokk | 2022 | Marsaxlokk |
| Mosta | 2011 | Mosta |
| Pietà Hotspurs | 2022 | Pietà, Malta |
| St. Lucia | 2019 | Santa Luċija |
| Sirens | 2019 | St. Paul's Bay |
| Valletta | 1944 | Valletta |
| Żebbuġ Rangers | 2022 | Żebbuġ |

### Stadiums

On 17 April 2023. The Malta Football Association introduce another stadium at Gozo Stadium in Xewkija due to the final fixture of the season to be played four matches at the same time.
| Ta' QaliTony Bezzina StadiumGozo Stadium | Ta' Qali | Ta' Qali | Paola | Xewkija |
| Ta' QaliTony Bezzina StadiumGozo Stadium | Ta' Qali National Stadium | Centenary Stadium | Tony Bezzina Stadium | Gozo Stadium |
| Ta' QaliTony Bezzina StadiumGozo Stadium | Capacity: 16,997 | Capacity: 3,000 | Capacity: 2,968 | Capacity: 1,644 |

### Personnel and kits

| Team | Manager | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor (front) | Shirt sponsor (back) | Shirt sponsor (sleeve) |
| Balzan | Oliver Spiteri | Joma | | | |
| Birkirkara | Giovanni Tedesco | Nike | McDonald's | Inter Sport (Top), Visit Malta (Bottom) | |
| Floriana | Gianluca Atzori | Joma | Harmont & Blaine, Greens Supermarket | | Go & Fun (Right) |
| Gudja United | Ludvic Bartolo (Caretaker) | Macron | Handy Man, SixSevenEight | Apex Group (Top) | Thomas Smith Insurance Broker (Left) |
| Gżira United | Darren Abdilla | Joma | Gree | Visit Malta (Bottom) | |
| Ħamrun Spartans | Branko Nišević | Puma | J. Portelli Projects | Midea (Top), Meridianbet (Bottom), Visit Malta (Bottom) | Ta' Fonzu (Right), Tescoma (Left) |
| Hibernians | Silvio Vella | Joma | Bezzina | | |
| Marsaxlokk | Pablo Doffo | Joma | 1padel | | |
| Mosta | Joseph Grech | Macron | Simple Clean, PG Group | Teamsport (Bottom) | |
| Pietà Hotspurs | Rodney Bugeja | Jartazi | Famalco.net, A1 Supplies, Xuereb Installation | Farstone Construction (Top) | |
| Santa Lucia | Enzo Potenza | Capelli Sport | Multivend, avanza | Elmo (Top), Konica Minolta (Bottom) | Yellow Army (Left), Levissima (Right) |
| Sirens | Winston Muscat | Macron | Café del Mar Malta, Welbee's | Arringo (Top), Malta National Aquarium (Bottom) | |
| Valletta | Thane Micallef | Nike | Iniala | Inter Sport (Top) | |
| Żebbuġ Rangers | Brian Spiteri | Joma | The Convenience Shop, Coop Italia | | |
* Additionally, referee kits are made by Macron

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
| Santa Lucia | Giovanni Tedesco | End of contract | 18 May 2022 | Pre-season | Pablo Cortés Sánchez | 6 July 2022 |
| Birkirkara | Jonathan Holland | End of caretaker spell | 18 May 2022 | Pre-season | Giovanni Tedesco | 18 May 2022 |
| Valletta | Danilo Dončić | End of contract | 24 May 2022 | Pre-season | Thane Micallef | 29 May 2022 |
| Balzan | Alejandro Pantoja | End of caretaker spell | 29 May 2022 | Pre-season | Oliver Spiteri | 5 June 2022 |
| Gudja United | Thane Micallef | Signed by Valletta | 29 May 2022 | Pre-season | Andrea Agostinelli | 8 June 2022 |
| Hibernians | Stefano Sanderra | Signed by Lazio Primavera | 8 July 2022 | Pre-season | Andrea Pisanu | 8 July 2022 |
| Santa Lucia | Pablo Cortés Sánchez | Sacked | 3 November 2022 | 12th | Enzo Potenza | 3 November 2022 |
| Hibernians | Andrea Pisanu | Sacked | 6 February 2023 | 5th | Silvio Vella | 7 February 2023 |
| Gudja United | Andrea Agostinelli | Signed by Benevento | 11 April 2023 | 10th | Ludvic Bartolo (Caretaker) | 12 April 2023 |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Ħamrun Spartans (C) | 26 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 45 | 10 | +35 | 69 | Qualification for the Champions League first qualifying round |
| 2 | Birkirkara | 26 | 14 | 8 | 4 | 50 | 20 | +30 | 50 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League first qualifying round |
| 3 | Gżira United | 26 | 14 | 6 | 6 | 46 | 19 | +27 | 48 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League first qualifying round |
| 4 | Balzan | 26 | 14 | 4 | 8 | 37 | 32 | +5 | 46 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League first qualifying round |
| 5 | Hibernians | 26 | 14 | 4 | 8 | 45 | 37 | +8 | 46 | |
| 6 | Mosta | 26 | 14 | 4 | 8 | 47 | 33 | +14 | 46 | |
| 7 | Floriana | 26 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 30 | 26 | +4 | 37 | |
| 8 | Valletta | 26 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 37 | 23 | +14 | 37 | |
| 9 | Sirens | 26 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 25 | 32 | −7 | 33 | |
| 10 | Gudja United | 26 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 28 | 39 | −11 | 29 | |
| 11 | Marsaxlokk | 26 | 5 | 10 | 11 | 28 | 38 | −10 | 25 | |
| 12 | Santa Lucia (O) | 26 | 4 | 3 | 19 | 20 | 49 | −29 | 15 | Qualification for the relegation play-offs |
| 13 | Żebbuġ Rangers (R) | 26 | 4 | 2 | 20 | 21 | 58 | −37 | 14 | Relegation to the Maltese Challenge League |
| 14 | Pietà Hotspurs (R) | 26 | 3 | 3 | 20 | 22 | 65 | −43 | 12 | Relegation to the Maltese Challenge League |
* ↑ The winners of the 2022–23 Maltese FA Trophy, Birkirkara, qualified for the 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League. As they finished second, the fourth-placed team in the league also qualified for the Europa Conference League.
* 1 2 Hibernians and Balzan finished equal on points, A play-off decider determines the fourth place and Qualification for the UEFA Europa Conference League

## Results

| Home \ Away | BAL | BIR | FLO | GUD | GŻI | ĦAM | HIB | MAR | MOS | PIE | SLC | SIR | VAL | ŻEB |
| Balzan | — | 2–1 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–4 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 1–3 | 3–1 |
| Birkirkara | 2–1 | — | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 5–0 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 5–0 |
| Floriana | 0–0 | 1–2 | — | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–5 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| Gudja United | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–3 | — | 3–3 | 0–1 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 |
| Gżira United | 0–1 | 1–3 | 1–0 | 1–1 | — | 1–2 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 4–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 4–0 |
| Ħamrun Spartans | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | — | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 4–0 |
| Hibernians | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–4 | — | 1–3 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 0–4 | 1–0 |
| Marsaxlokk | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–5 | 1–1 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 1–1 | — | 1–4 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–1 |
| Mosta | 2–3 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–5 | 2–1 | — | 4–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2–0 |
| Pietà Hotspurs | 2–3 | 1–5 | 1–3 | 3–1 | 0–6 | 1–2 | 1–4 | 1–1 | 1–4 | — | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–6 | 0–2 |
| Santa Lucia | 0–2 | 0–4 | 0–2 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–3 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | — | 0–0 | 0–2 | 2–1 |
| Sirens | 1–3 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 0–3 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 2–1 | — | 3–3 | 3–3 |
| Valletta | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | — | 3–0 |
| Żebbuġ Rangers | 2–3 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 4–2 | 0–2 | 0–3 | 0–5 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–5 | — |

## Fourth Place tie-breaker

Because Hibernians, Balzan, and Mosta were tied on points after all matches played, their head-to-head results in Play-Out were decisive. Mosta had the fewest points in those matches and immediately finished 6th Place. The best two teams Hibernians and Balzan will play a deciding game to determine the Fourth Place and qualification for UEFA Europa Conference League.

## Promotion or Relegation play-offs

A play-offs match shall be played between the twelfth-placed team in the Premier League, Santa Lucia, and the third-placed team in the Maltese Challenge League, Żejtun Corinthians. The winner will play in the 2023-24 Maltese Premier League.

## Season statistics
### Scoring
#### Top scorers

    As of 22 April 2023
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Jefferson Assis | Gżira United | 20 |
| 2 | Elvis Mashike Sukisa | Ħamrun Spartans | 18 |
| 3 | Ángel Torres | Balzan | 14 |
| 3 | Jurgen Degabriele | Hibernians | 14 |
| 5 | Enzo Daniel Cabrera | Birkirkara | 13 |
| 5 | Jake Grech | Hibernians | 13 |
| 7 | Maxuell Maia | Gżira United | 11 |
| 7 | Charles Lokolingoy | Żebbuġ Rangers | 11 |
| 9 | Christ Evo Ememe | Mosta | 10 |
| 9 | Zachary Brincat | Mosta | 10 |

#### Hat-tricks

| Player | For | Against | Result | Stadium | Date |
| Ángel Torres | Balzan | Zebbug Rangers | 3–1 (H) | Centenary Stadium, Ta' Qali | 19 August 2022 |
| Evo Christ Ememe | Mosta | Marsaxlokk | 4–1 (A) | Centenary Stadium, Ta' Qali | 27 August 2022 |
| Jurgen Degabriele | Hibernians | Mosta | 5–0 (A) | Tony Bezzina Stadium, Paola | 5 September 2022 |
| Charles Lokolingoy | Zebbug Rangers | Sirens | 3–3 (A) | Ta' Qali National Stadium, Ta' Qali | 21 October 2022 |
| Jefferson Assis | Gżira United | Pietà Hotspurs | 6–0 (A) | Tony Bezzina Stadium, Paola | 4 February 2023 |
| Zachary Brincat | Mosta | Zebbug Rangers | 5–0 (A) | Tony Bezzina Stadium, Paola | 15 April 2023 |
| Jefferson Assis | Gżira United | Zebbug Rangers | 4–0 (H) | Centenary Stadium, Ta' Qali | 21 April 2023 |

### Clean sheets

| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
| 1 | Henry Bonello | Ħamrun Spartans | 15 |
| 2 | Darijan Zarkov | Gzira United | 12 |
| 3 | Georgi Kitanov | Floriana | 8 |
| 4 | Alessandro Guarnone | Valletta | 7 |
| 4 | Giacomo Nava | Birkirkara | 7 |
| 6 | Jonathan Debono | Balzan | 5 |
| 6 | Justin Haber | Hibernians | 5 |
| 6 | Ini Etim Akpan | Mosta | 5 |
| 6 | Andrea Cassar | Sirens | 5 |
| 10 | Glenn Zammit | Gudja United | 4 |
| 10 | Marko Drobnjak | Marsaxlokk | 4 |
| 10 | Matthew Grech | Sirens | 4 |

### Discipline
#### Player

* Most yellow cards: 10
** Luis Riascos (Gżira United)
** Neil Anthony Micallef (Gudja United)
* Most red cards: 2
** Luis Riascos (Gżira United)
** Neil Anthony Micallef (Gudja United)
** Juan Cruz Aguilar (Marsaxlokk)
** Eslit Sala (Valletta)

#### Club

* Most yellow cards: 77
** Marsaxlokk
* Most red cards: 8
** Marsaxlokk

## Awards
### Monthly awards

| Month | Manager of the Month | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | Player of the Month |
| Month | Manager | Club | Player | Club |
| August | Giovanni Tedesco | Birkirkara | Jefferson Assis | Gzira United |
| September | Giovanni Tedesco | Birkirkara | Jefferson Assis | Gzira United |
| October | Branko Nišević | Hamrun Spartans | Matthew Guillaumier | Hamrun Spartans |
| November | Andrea Pisanu | Hibernians | Jurgen Degabriele | Hibernians |
| December | Branko Nišević | Hamrun Spartans | Matthew Guillaumier | Hamrun Spartans |
| January | Giovanni Tedesco | Birkirkara | Jefferson Assis | Gzira United |
| February | Branko Nišević | Hamrun Spartans | Ángel Torres Elvis Mashike Sukisa | Balzan Hamrun Spartans |
| March | Giovanni Tedesco | Birkirkara | Yannick Yankam | Birkirkara |
| April | Giovanni Tedesco | Birkirkara | | |