Malta coach hints at exit if results fail to improve

Dusan Fitzel may call time on his tenure as Malta coach if the national team's poor start to their 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign continues in today's away tie in Denmark and, more importantly, at home to Hungary on Wednesday.

Back-to-back defeats vs Portugal (0-4) and Albania (0-4) in our opening two qualifiers have irked Fitzel to the extent he openly confessed to The Times that he will review his position after the next two qualifiers.

"I intend to make a thorough assessment of the situation after these two matches," Fitzel said at the Phoenix Hotel in Copenhagen.

Faced with the question if two other disappointing results between today and next Wednesday would prompt him to consider his position, Fitzel replied:

"Yes, if the results are not satisfactory, I will."

Despite his positive impact on the national team after taking over from Horse Heese in January 2006, Fitzel looks to have become increasingly disillusioned with the limitations of our football and four defeats in Malta's last four matches - friendlies vs Austria (1-5) and Estonia (1-2) and the World Cup qualifiers vs Portugal (0-4) and Albania (0-3) - have added to his discomfort.

The Czech has been vocal in his criticism of the level of the domestic league but his declaration at a news conference last Monday that he'd be satisfied if Malta were to lose by fewer than four goals in Copenhagen provided the clearest indication so far of his inner turmoil.

Fitzel's statement inevitably triggered a barrage of criticism amid growing calls from the media for him to quit if he's not happy in his job. His scepticism this week has been widely perceived as a further psychological setback for his under-pressure players.

When it was put to Fitzel that his remarks had sparked a negative and angry reaction from the sporting public in general, Fitzel said:

"I always try to prepare myself as best as I can before international games. I collect a lot of information about our opponents and the circumstances of this qualifier in Denmark are very difficult for us.

"Denmark have obtained four points from their first two away qualifiers and they are playing Malta in their first home match. They will do their best to extend their good start in this qualifying group and that means that Denmark will be going all out to kill us.

"They will try to score as many goals as possible. You only have to look at their performances to realise what a difficult task our team will face on Saturday (today).

"I've said these things in front of my players and I hope that my comments will serve to wake them up."

Fitzel's warning about Denmark's threat to Maltese pride also stems from the several years he spent observing their progress on the international scene while working for the Czech FA.

"I know Denmark better than all the other teams in our group," Fitzel said.

"I had the chance to monitor their football progress closely in the last six years. Their playing style hasn't changed and their coach has been involved with the national team for several years. Also, Malta always seem to struggle against Scandinavian teams."

With the match-fixing scandal linked to the Marsaxlokk-Slaven Belupo game very much on everybody's lips, the topic is also likely to have been discussed by the members of the national squad when they reported for international duty. But, Fitzel has claimed that the subject has not been mentioned during training.

"We haven't spoken about it because it doesn't concern us," Fitzel said. I can't tell if the players have talked about it in private but in training I've heard nothing to this end.

"Personally, if I hear that someone even thinks of doing something like that in a match, I will quit straightaway."