Newcomers seek to shine in Seville to stay in squad
Injuries foil coaches' plan to try fringe players
A mixture of untried players and veterans is likely to make up Malta XI taking on a selection of the Spanish region of Andalusia in a friendly in Seville tonight.
A spate of withdrawals caused by injuries has prompted national coach Horst Heese and Carmel Busuttil, his assistant, to hand call-ups to six new players over the last two weeks.
Five of the newcomers, namely, Valletta defender Massimo Grima, Jamie Pace of Marsaxlokk, Pietà's Cleaven Frendo, Kenneth Spiteri, the 18-year-old Hibs defender, and Trevor Cilia, the Floriana winger, have made the trip to Seville, the Andalusian capital, on Monday but Andrè Schembri was omitted from the squad at the eleventh hour.
Schembri has been overlooked for this friendly after Heese took into consideration the existing differences between the player and his club.
Malta U-21 midfielder Schembri was absent from the Hibs squad for last week's Super Five Cup semi-final defeat to Sliema amid reports that he is unsettled at the Premier League club.
Tonight's match echoes that of two years ago when a Maltese selection travelled to Mallorca and beat the Balearic Islands 2-0 with goals from Adrian Mifsud and Noel Turner.
The Andalusian selection is likely to be composed of players from Seville, Almeira, Cadiz, Cordoba, Huelva and Malaga, all provinces of the region in the south of Spain.
Heese and Busuttil were hoping to use this match to give a run-out to those squad members on the fringes of the first team but their plans have been disrupted by injuries.
"Our build-up to this match has been anything but ideal with injuries forcing various players to pull out," Busuttil said.
"This match is a good opportunity to have a look at players who have not figured regularly for the national team the last few months but some of them are not available.
"Adrian Pulis is one of the players we wanted to try out in this match but he has had to drop out after the injury he suffered in the Super Five Cup."
Malta's injury list for this match includes Stefan Giglio, Claude Mattocks, Antoine Zahra, Roderick Briffa and Ian Ciantar while Luke Dimech has not been called upon due to his commitments with English League Two club Mansfield Town.
Saviour Darmanin, the Pietà Hotspurs goalkeeper, was struck off the travelling party in the weekend after missing one training session while Birkirkara striker Michael Galea opted to stay in Malta because of work pressure.
Of the five newcomers included in Heese's selection, Grima and Pace are the oldest as the other three are members of the Malta U-21 squad.
Ideal chance
Busuttil said that the promotion of Frendo, Cilia and Spiteri to the senior squad for today's match will enhance their learning curve but for the likes of Grima and Pace, this friendly gives them a chance to press their claims for a regular place in the national squad.
"For the untried but older players, like Grima and Pace, this game will offer clear indications whether they are prepared to play at international level or not," Busuttil said.
The experienced Jeffrey Chetcuti is also expected to play for the Malta XI after work commitments led to his exclusion from the national team's last three qualifiers.
With Malta's next World Cup 2006 qualifier, an away match against Croatia, more than three months away, the established players may find it hard to find the right motivation and show their best in this 'Christmas' friendly but a few changes in personnel should sharpen the team's competitive edge.
Cast in the midst of a packed fixtures schedule, the timing of this friendly has not gone down well with the players and coaches, particularly in view of Sunday's four-match Premier League marathon.
However, despite their exertions of late, the players are still expected to try their best to boost their chances ahead of the next friendly against Norway in February and the away qualifier to Croatia.
Probable Formation:
J. Haber, S. Wellman, A. Muscat, B. Said, J. Chetcuti, P. Pullicino, G. Agius, J. Pace, I. Woods, G. Mallia, A. Cohen.
Malta's Squad In Seville
Goalkeepers: R. Gauci (Floriana); J. Haber (Birkirkara).
Defenders: I. Azzopardi, S. Wellman (both Floriana); J. Chetcuti, A. Muscat, B. Said (all Sliema); K. Spiteri (Hibs).
Midfielders: G. Agius, M. Grima (both Valletta); C. Frendo, I. Woods (both Pietà); G. Mallia (Birkirkara); P. Pullicino (Hibs).
Forwards: E. Barbara, J. Pace (both Marsaxlokk); T. Cilia (Floriana); A. Cohen (Hibernians).
Kick-off time: 9.15 p.m.
Venue: Estadio Sanchez Pizjuan, Seville.