Franklin Sasere claims his uninspiring Lugano sojourn served to motivate him as he scored his first career hat-trick when Hamrun Spartans defeated Valletta 3-0 in a Malta elite division outing on Wednesday.
Manager Mark Buttigieg is investing plenty of faith in the 22-year-old Nigerian and was rewarded with a notable treble to help his team remain at the summit of the Maltese Premier League.
Sasere, who was loaned to Tas-sikkina from the Swiss top-flight at the beginning of the 2020-21 campaign, was well aware of criticism of his performances at Lugano but says it only fuelled him to improve.