Żabbar St Patrick pulled off one of the biggest surprises of the YoHealth Malta Premier season so far, defeating previously unbeaten Valletta FC 2–0 at the Tony Bezzina Stadium on Sunday.

Second-half goals from Vinicius Pavia and Brian Gambarte earned Żabbar a vital three points, lifting them to eighth place on ten points and easing the pressure on coach Aniello Parisi after a difficult run of results.

For Valletta, it was a day to forget. The Citizens struggled to find rhythm throughout, creating few clear-cut chances and looking short of their usual attacking sharpness. The defeat leaves them second in the standings on 22 points, level with Ħamrun Spartans and one behind leaders Floriana.

Cautious First Half

The opening 45 minutes offered little goalmouth action. Valletta looked more composed early on, coming close in the 24th minute when Yuri Messias and Jefferson combined to set up Yannick Yankam, whose effort was cleared off the line by Pavia.

Żabbar gradually grew into the game and created a few half-chances of their own. Brian Gambarte’s cross-shot narrowly missed connection from Mario Fontanella, while Abu Dumbuya and Pedro Cejas both fired over before the interval.

Żabbar Take Control

After the break, Valletta were expected to raise their tempo but instead continued to look flat in attack. Their only real opportunity came on 71 minutes when substitute Andrea Zammit forced a double save from Jonathan Grech.

Żabbar capitalised just three minutes later. Gambarte threaded a fine ball through for Vinicius Pavia, who exchanged passes with Dumbuya before slotting past Adilson Maringa to put the Saints ahead.

Valletta failed to respond, and Żabbar sealed the victory three minutes from time. A poor clearance by Mendoza fell to Gambarte, who fired a low strike past Maringa to make it 2–0 and spark celebrations among the Żabbar supporters.

The result marks a turning point for Żabbar, whose disciplined and energetic display will give them renewed confidence heading into the next round of fixtures. Valletta, meanwhile, will be eager to bounce back quickly as the title race tightens at the top of the table.