Valletta F.C. have responded to comments made by Marcel Bonnici, CEO of Ħamrun Spartans F.C., regarding several incidents from the recent FA Trophy match between the two clubs.
In a statement published on the club’s social media, Valletta said it is normal for disappointment to follow a defeat in an important match, but insisted that criticism should be fair and not selective.
The club questioned why Bonnici did not speak publicly about a previous incident involving Ryan Camenzuli and Valletta player Thaylor Aldama. According to Valletta, Camenzuli made a dangerous tackle with the clear intention of injuring their player, yet no criticism was directed at the referee for not sending the player off. Valletta added that there was also no public comment about the behaviour of the player after the incident.
Valletta said this shows what they described as a “selective argument” when analysing refereeing decisions.
The club also rejected any suggestion that they benefited from refereeing decisions during the match. In fact, they stated that the video clips shared by Bonnici himself clearly show that the decision taken through the FVS system to cancel Ħamrun’s goal was the correct one.
Finally, Valletta clarified how the FVS system works. They explained that the system is automatically used to review every goal scored and is not activated following a request from players or members of the opposing team’s technical staff.
Valletta concluded by stressing that while everyone is free to express their opinion, the facts surrounding the incidents remain clear.
