Buttigieg opts for caution

Amid optimistic talk of a renaissance for Maltese football following the election of Norman Darmanin Demajo as president of the Malta FA, the national team will be striving to revive their fortunes when they launch their Euro 2012 qualifying trek with a clash against Israel in Tel Aviv, this evening.

After a torrid World Cup campaign that yielded a solitary point and not a single goal scored, our players are eager to give a better account of themselves in the Euro qualifiers, starting with tonight’s match, but their task will be anything but straightforward.

Indeed, Malta are expected to have their work cut out by an Israeli side driven by a desire to end a long wait to make the finals of a major tournament.

This fixture is not only Malta’s first competitive match under the presidency of Darmanin Demajo, it also marks the start of the first full qualifying campaign for coach John Buttigieg who took over from Dusan Fitzel last year.

A repeat of the bright second-half display that earned Malta a creditable draw in last month’s friendly against Macedonia would go some way towards improving the team’s chances of leaving the Holy Land with something to show for their efforts but Buttigieg is aware that competitive outings are more demanding than warm-up games.

“The performance is always important but we must also start to think about the result,” Buttigieg told The Times.

“We know this qualifier will be a different game compared to the Macedonia friendly. Our showing against Macedonia was positive, especially in the second half, but Israel is a competitive game and we have to start afresh.”

The MFA Council’s decision to begin the 2010/11 Premier League after the opening Group F qualifiers against Israel and Latvia next Tuesday, was intended to abet Malta’s preparations but Buttigieg lamented that the clubs’ pre-season friendlies last week had a ­disruptive effect on the team’s build-up.

“This has never happened before,” Buttigieg complained.

“It’s the first time that we’ve had this problem of clubs using their national team players in friendlies before two international matches.”

Valletta midfielder Kevin Sammut and Massimo Grima, of Ħamrun Spartans, picked up injuries in a friendly last Friday but only the former has been ruled out of today’s qualifier.

The other notable absentee is wing-back Alex Muscat who is recovering from a cruciate operation.

Buttigieg concurs with the general view that Croatia and Greece are the strongest teams in Group F but warned that Israel will be no pushovers.

“Israel are not considered to be as strong as Croatia and Greece but they have improved by leaps and bounds,” Buttigieg said.

“Although they failed to qualify for the World Cup, Israel didn’t finish far behind Switzerland and Greece in the group.”

Mindful of Israel’s resolve to begin their quest to reach the finals with an emphatic win, Buttigieg is set for a cautious approach.

“Every game is difficult for us, especially away from home,” Buttigieg remarked.

“Tactics-wise, we have to be prudent as Israel will be going all out to win this game.”

With Muscat out, Buttigieg has a dilemma over the right-back position. Roderick Briffa is no stranger to playing at right-back but the presence of Manny Muscat in the squad suggests that the coach is thinking of deploying the Maltese-Australian in that position.

Typically, Buttigieg wouldn’t be drawn into commenting on his first-team selection but he had positive words about Muscat.

“We try to follow the progress of all the foreign-based players but in Manny’s case, it’s more difficult because he’s playing in Australia,” Buttigieg said.

“But we speak to him quite regularly and he’s always been committed to playing for the national team. I felt that we might need Manny for this game.”

Buttigieg, however, is not expected to tinker with his formation.

Goalkeeper Andrew Hogg is expected to retain the no.1 jersey with Andrei Agius and Jonathan Caruana poised to resume their partnership in the heart of defence.

Carlo Mamo is in line to take up the left-back position with Clayton Failla the other contender.

If Muscat gets Buttigieg’s nod to man the right flank, Briffa will most probably play in front of him.

On the back of his solid display against Macedonia, Gareth Sciberras is a candidate for one of the two central midfield positions along with Jamie Pace and Ryan Fenech.

There is also the possibility of Fenech being deployed on the left of midfield but Shaun Bajada is likely to get Buttigieg’s nod to man the left wing.

Daniel Bogdanovic, who has not seen much of first-team football since his move to Sheffield United, is expected to play behind lone striker Michael Mifsud whose motivation to do well against Israel will have been further strengthened by reports that Hapoel Tel Aviv and Maccabi Haifa will have him watched tonight.

With Malta due to face Latvia at home next week, a sprightly showing and a satisfactory result today would enhance their confidence ahead of their second qualifier.

“No doubt, a positive result here would boost the players’ confidence but in football, you have to prove yourself in every game. Past results count for nothing and the priority is always the next match,” Buttigieg said.