Malta 0
Italy 1
Pelle 23;

When Michael Mifsud was given his marching orders after only 27 minutes, fears of a humiliating defeat engulfed the packed National Stadium last night.

Malta were trailing to Graziano Pelle’s debut goal when Mifsud was harshly shown a straight red card for a challenge on Alessandro Florenzi and Italy, under some pressure from the media to up their game after an unconvincing win over Azerbaijan, were expected to turn the screw.

They had a plethora of top players on the pitch, from goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, to midfielder Claudio Marchisio and striker Ciro Immobile but the Malta players, who had attracted attention in the Italian media in the build-up not for their technical capabilities but being part-timers, just refused to give in.

Roared on by the home fans, Malta rolled up their sleeves, stuck in and prevented the Italians from adding to their lead.

There were a few scares along the way as Italy, who had hit the crossbar twice in the early exchanges, were also denied by the woodwork on two other occasions after the break but Malta deserved this late dose of good luck.

Unlike Friday’s encounter with Norway when Malta’s inclination to attack left them vulnerable at the back, this time Pietro Ghedin’s men were almost impregnable at the back.

The crowd’s patriotism was rewarded with an indefatigable performance from all the players. Andrei Agius made some vital interventions at the back, Zach Muscat and Ryan Camilleri were both solid and John Mintoff, whose inclusion was met with a few raised eyebrows, also vindicated Ghedin’s faith with a relentless performance.

Clayton Failla put in an immense shift on the left, his non-stop running epitomising the home team’s gutsy performance.

The midfielders also did their bit with Rowen Muscat and the ever-improving Paul Fenech covering acres of ground and Roderick Briffa combining graft with craft.

Until his exit, Mifsud was brimming with energy while Andre Schembri was a committed leader of the line, his astute run in the second half contributing to Leonardo Bonucci’s sending-off.

A defeat always tastes sour but such was the effort put in by the Maltese that they were applauded off the pitch while Ghedin looked a relieved man as he showed his appreciation to the fans.

Cynics might say that Malta’s task was helped by Italy’s casual approach but, while the Azzurri hardly pressed on the accelerator, they hardly looked content with the narrow margin of their victory despite extending their perfect start in Group H to three games.

Malta’s struggles to cope with Norway’s incursions on the right prompted Ghedin to bring in wing-back Mintoff as Briffa, who had replaced the suspended Steve Borg at right-back on Friday, was moved into midfield.

Ryan Fenech was the one making way for Mintoff as Ghedin retained a 3-5-2 formation with Schembri and Mifsud in attack and Rowen Muscat shielding the back four.

Conte pledged changes from the 2-1 win over Azerbaijan and he made good on his promise. Paris St Germain midfielder Marco Verratti, Lazio’s Antonio Candreva, Manuel Pasqual, of Fiorentina, and Pelle, the South-ampton striker who was making his senior debut, were handed starting roles.

Midfield maestro Andrea Pirlo, Andrea Ranocchia, Mattia De Sciglio and Simone Zaza were all on the bench.

The tactical strategy was 3-5-2 with Pasqual and Candreva running the wings, Verratti sitting in front of defence and Pelle partnering Ciro Immobile up front.

The fans may have been lured by the prospect of watching Italy but the raucous roar that followed the national anthem allayed any fears that the majority in the sell-out crowd were going to side with Italy.

Inside the opening minute, Candreva picked out Immobile but drove his shot just wide.

The first 10 minutes passed with Malta having hardly been tested by Italy and the enthusiastic fans having fun doing the Mexican wave.

Hogg easily dealt with Candreva’s cross but, on 15 minutes, it was Malta who almost seized a surprise lead.

From Briffa’s throw-in, the ball landed in the box where Mifsud was anticipated by a defender but the half-clearance rolled into the path of left-back Failla whose angled grounder was deflected away for a corner.

Italy stirred. They were unlucky not to open the scoring when Marchisio squared to Florenzi who played in Pasqual. The latter’s cross was met by Pelle but his glancing header ricocheted off the crossbar before Malta cleared for a corner.

From the set-piece, Pasqual’s cross sailed towards the far post where Giorgio Chiellini appeared to get the final touch but his header flashed against the post.

A sigh of relief swept through the stadium. Italy established control of possession, Marchisio let fly from the distance but Hogg was alert.

There was nothing Hogg could do to stop Italy taking the lead as, having pulled off a point-blank save from Bonucci’s header, who was first to Pasqual’s corner, the Malta goalkeeper was beaten by Pelle’s close-range flick from the ensuing melee.

Malta were dealt a hammer blow four minutes later when Mifsud was shown a straight red card after Romanian referee Ovidiu Hategan deemed that the striker had made a reckless challenge on Florenzi as he tried to pounce on a loose ball.

The decision looked very harsh as Mifsud had his eyes on the ball.

Despite their numerical handicap, the red-shirted players refused to yield an inch.

Failla went close with a rasping free-kick that whistled past the far post.

‘Malta, Malta’ was the defiant shout from the fans. Mifsud’s expulsion meant that Schembri now had to plough a lone furrow up front.

With 10 men, Malta were actually playing better as demonstrated by a triangle of passes between Muscat, Briffa and Mintoff who won a free-kick after being fouled. Failla tried to surprise Buffon by hitting a direct shot but his effort was wide.

Chiellini was high with a long-range shot just before the end of the first half.

The second period had only just started when Candreva’s cross-shot caressed the crossbar while Immobile miscued his volley after being teed up by Pelle.

Italy should have put the game to bed when Verratti’s inviting cross from the right soared towards the unmarked Immobile but his header was stopped by Hogg.

A period of uneventful football ensued with the Maltese players, oozing confidence, fighting for every ball while Italy never really upped the ante despite their slim lead.

There was an anxious moment for the hosts when Pelle created space for a shot inside the box but Agius, a towering figure at the heart of defence after his somewhat low-key match against Norway, hurled his body in the way of the former Feyenoord striker’s shot.

Conte, who like Ghedin took up residence in the technical area, moved to infuse flair into his team’s attack by throwing on Sebastian Giovinco for Immobile.

The Juventus playmaker soon made his presence felt as he darted into the box but his attempt was warded off by Zach Muscat.

Agius was prominent with another blocking act on Giovinco followed by an acrobatic clearance.

Italy were jolted out of the comfort zone 16 minutes from time when, in a swift breakaway, Schembri outmuscled Bonucci who reacted by bringing down the FSV Frankfurt forward.

The baying crowd showed its indignation before their protests turned into cheers as referee Hategan brandished the red card to dismiss the Juventus defender.

Failla again opted for power but his free-kick was stopped by alert Italy goalkeeper Buffon.

On came Angelo Ogbonna for Pelle while Ghedin had earlier introduced Clifford Gatt Baldacchino for Mintoff.

In stoppage time, Italy almost added a second as Giovinco, fastening on to a through-pass from midfield, held off his marker but the diagonal strike came off the base of the far post.

Malta
1-Andrew Hogg, 2-Zach Muscat, 4-Paul Fenech, 5-Andrei Agius, 7-Clayton Failla (90 3-Steve Bezzina), 8-Roderick Briffa, 9-Michael Mifsud, 11-Rowen Muscat, 13-Andre Schembri (86 10-Andrew Cohen), 15-John Mintoff (72 21-Clifford Gatt Baldacchino) 17-Ryan Camilleri.

Italy
1-Gianluigi Buffon, 3-Giorgio Chiellini, 5-Marco Verratti, 6-Antonio Candreva, 8-Claudio Marchisio, 9-Ciro Immobile (65 10-Sebastian Giovinco), 15-Alessandro Florenzi (59 14-Alberto Aquilani), 17-Graziano Pelle (75 4-Angelo Ogbonna), 19-Leonardo Bonucci, 20-Matteo Darmian, 23-Manuel Pasqual.

Referee: Ovidiu Hategan (Romania).

Yellow cards: Briffa; Darmian.

Red cards: Mifsud 27; Bonucci 74.

Attendance: 16,942.

Malta players’ ratings
Hogg-7, Z. Muscat-7, P. Fenech-7.5, Agius-7.5, Failla-8, Briffa-7, Mifsud, R. Muscat-7, Schembri-7, Mintoff-7, Camilleri-7. Sub: Gatt Baldacchino-6.