TARXIEN, Malta (Interstat) — Tarxien came from behind to beat Victoria Hotspurs 2-1 on Friday in a global football match, using a second-half goal from Bruno Da Cruz to secure the result after Karl Micallef had given the visitors an early lead. The home side improved its standing with the win, while Victoria Hotspurs remained without a victory in the competition. Tarxien scored two goals total, and Victoria Hotspurs scored one goal total. The match was played with Tarxien as the home team and Victoria Hotspurs as the visiting team. The result moved Tarxien to a perfect competition record and kept Victoria Hotspurs winless.

Micallef opened the scoring in the 28th minute for Victoria Hotspurs, converting the chance that put the visiting side ahead. Tarxien responded quickly, and Michael Oliveira equalized in the 31st minute. The first half ended level after those two goals. The match stayed level until the 57th minute, when Da Cruz scored what proved to be the decisive goal for Tarxien. The goal order reflected the key attacking contributions. Micallef had 90 minutes and one goal, Oliveira had 90 minutes and one goal, and Da Cruz had 90 minutes and one goal. Those key performances were listed in descending order of importance, with Micallef first, Oliveira second and Da Cruz third.

Victoria Hotspurs’s season record in this competition is now no wins and four losses. Tarxien’s season record in this competition is now four wins and no losses. Across all competitions, Victoria Hotspurs is no wins and four losses, while Tarxien is six wins and no losses. The outcome continued divergent runs for the two sides and left Tarxien unbeaten in all competitions. Tarxien has won each of its four competition matches and each of its six matches across all competitions.

Victoria Hotspurs entered the match after losses to Swieqi United FC, Naxxar and Fgura. It had fallen to Swieqi United FC 2-1, lost 1-0 at Naxxar and dropped a 3-0 decision to Fgura. Those results left Victoria Hotspurs searching for its first win of the season in the competition and across all competitions. Victoria Hotspurs scored once across those three previous matches and conceded six goals in the same stretch. The visiting side has yet to win in the competition this season.

Tarxien’s recent form included a scoreless draw with Victoria HS, a 2-1 win at Sirens, a 2-1 win over Zebbug, a 3-1 win at Pieta Hotspurs FC, a 3-1 win over Attard and a 3-1 win at Mgarr. Those results helped Tarxien carry a perfect record in all competitions into the match. Tarxien had won each of its previous five matches before the draw with Victoria HS and had scored at least two goals in each of those five victories. The draw with Victoria HS was the only blemish in the recent run listed for Tarxien.

Tarxien’s next match is scheduled at Santa Lucia FC. Tarxien then is set to host Gudja United before traveling to Fgura United, hosting Naxxar and traveling to Swieqi United FC. The team’s schedule remains in the Gozo First Division. Victoria Hotspurs will look to end its winless start in its next competition match. Tarxien will seek to extend its unbeaten run across all competitions in the next set of fixtures. The upcoming matches continue Tarxien’s Gozo First Division campaign.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Tarxien 3, Victoria Hotspurs 1. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Tarxien with an 81.4 percent probability to win. Tarxien had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus 0.5. The total score of 3 went under the over/under line of 2.5.