Malta 0
Bulgaria 1
Popov 55

Malta heeded coach Pietro Ghedin’s impassioned plea to battle like gladiators but their brave efforts failed to reap the desired rewards last night.

A coruscating run by man-of-the-moment Alfred Effiong after just three minutes had further fomented the upbeat mood at the National Stadium after the 2-0 victory over Lithuania in Monday’s friendly but Maltese hopes of adding to their solitary point in Euro 2016 Group H were dashed by Ivelin Popov’s strike early in the second half.

Popov’s goal celebration underlined Bulgaria’s relief at breaking down the resolute home defence which, until then, had coped well with everything their opponents threw at them.

With five players manning the backline, Malta’s foremost priority was to keep things tight in defence but Ghedin’s men did much more than just defend.

Bulgaria may have enjoyed the upperhand in the possession stakes but Malta played some neat stuff going forward with Effiong’s direct running and willingness to harry defenders causing Bulgaria problems, particularly in the first half.

But this was no kick-and-rush approach from Malta who produced some cohesive moves, usually started by the outstanding Rowen Muscat who was at the heart of his team’s best moments.

When Ilian Micanski squandered a penalty on the verge of half-time, the feeling that this might be Malta’s day intensified but a half-clearance and Popov’s finish ultimately scuppered home hopes of ending a positive week on a high.

Cynics will argue that the bottom line is that Malta have lost and remain bottom of Group H.

Their performance in the second half was not as vibrant as in the first as tiredness crept in but the Maltese kept going until the end and Ghedin kept believing that his team could salvage a draw as he made three attacking changes in the last 30 minutes.

Surely, the game didn’t reflect the gulf between the two teams in the FIFA rankings as Bulgaria prevailed by a single goal and tiny Malta also had a string of chances to score.

‘Effiong is one of us!!’ read the message on a banner hanging in front of the section occupied by the SouthEnd Core. It amounted to a show of support for the Nigeria-born striker who, amid all the praise coming his way after his stupendous goal in the friendly win over Lithuania, was also subjected to some racist comments on social media.

The Qormi forward’s electric display was rewarded with a place in the starting XI, flanking captain Michael Mifsud in attack as Andrew Cohen had to make do with a place on the bench.

Effiong’s inclusion was the only change from the Lithuania win with Alex Muscat retaining his place on the right of Malta’s five-man defence.

Bulgaria coach Ivaylo Petev handed a vote of confidence to the 11 players who began the 4-0 friendly loss to Turkey on Monday in a 4-2-3-1 module with Popov, who has just secured a move to Spartak Moscow, operating behind Karlsruhe striker Micanski.

Hardly 90 seconds from the start had elapsed when Malta won a free-kick in a dangerous position following a foul on Effiong. Clayton Failla’s set-piece cross, from the right, was stopped by Bozhidar Mitrev, the Bulgaria goalkeeper.

Chants of ‘Malta, Malta’ resonated around the stadium. The optimism of the home crowd rose further on three minutes when Effiong, latching on to a long pass from Ryan Camilleri, embarked on one of his trademark runs.

Reviving memories of his speedy incursion that preceded his stunning strike on Monday, Effiong accelerated past Svetoslav Dyakov and Aleksandar Aleksandrov as he raced into the box but drove high.

Bulgaria rallied, Stanoslav Manolev hitting wide from outside the box.

Andrei Agius became the first player to go into Macedonian referee Aleksandar Stavrev’s book for a late challenge on the advancing Micanski in midfield after Mifsud, who endured a disappointing outing, had surrendered possession deep into Bulgaria’s half.

There was little between the two teams. The confidence sweeping through the Maltese team was evident when Paul Fenech, Rowen Muscat and Failla indulged in exchange of passes despite being tightly marked but the move was ended by a foul on the Hibs left-back.

Haber did well to push away a dangerous Popov free-kick on 18 minutes. Stationed in front of defence, Rowen Muscat was keeping a close eye on Popov who often dropped back to be more involved in Bulgaria’s build-up play.

An outswinging cross by Vladimir Gadzhev, from a right-wing free-kick, whizzed across the Malta penalty area, eluding a clutch of players in the process.

As the minutes ticked away, Bulgaria established control of possession but the red-shirted players refused to yield an inch.

A delightful Malta move had Bulgaria chasing shadows a minute past the half-hour.

Rowen Muscat’s crossfield pass from a central position was flicked on by Alex Muscat in the direction of the surging Roderick Briffa. The Valletta talisman veered into the box, lofting the ball over his marker before rifling a shot that was parried away by Mitrev.

There was a scare for Malta on 40 minutes when Micanski, capitalising on a fortuitous deflection off Agius, charged into the box but his effort drew a fine save from Haber.

Rowen Muscat was running midfield as if it was his personal fiefdom, chasing every ball, breaking Bulgarian attacks and initiating moves for his team.

A minute from half-time, Gadzhev’s reverse pass released Yordan Minev but his angled effort was wide. Moments later, Malta looked to have suffered a setback.

They conceded a penalty after Camilleri was adjudged to have barged into Gadzhev in the box.

As a torrent of boos rained down on the pitch, Micanski sent his effort wide of the post with Haber diving the right way as the frustration of the home fans turned into delight.

Early in the second half, Mihail Alexandrov broke clear on the right before sending in a low cross that rolled past Popov who slid into Haber, resulting in a free-kick for the home team.

Popov gave Bulgaria the lead on 55 minutes. His initial cross, from a right-wing free-kick, was cleared by the Malta defenders but when the ball was headed back into the box by Nikolay Bodurov, Popov was in the right spot to hammer past Haber to send the numerous Bulgaria fans into raptures.

Haber prevented Bulgaria from doubling the lead with a reflex save to keep out Micanski’s stooping header after Agius had miscued his clearance.

Ghedin made his first change, throwing on Edward Herrera for Alex Muscat, a move intended to give Malta greater speed and penetration on the right.

With 20 minutes remaining, Briffa dragged in a teasing cross from a free-kick but the ball just bypassed the leaping Zach Muscat at the far post.

Five minutes later, Ghedin made another attacking change, bringing on Andrè Schembri for Briffa and switching to four at the back.

A promising Maltese attack went abegging when Effiong, fastening on to a long ball, cut inside from the left but his pass towards Herrera took a deflection and Mitrev rushed out to subdue the danger.

Ghedin played his last card, introducing Cohen for Mifsud. The Hibs captain soon began to make his presence felt with his intelligent movement.

Two minutes from the end, Failla drifted infield from the left but his swinging effort was off target. Failla then had a free-kick saved by Mitrev.

In stoppage time, Manolev went close to adding to Bulgaria’s lead but his curling drive cannoned off the crossbar.

Malta: J. Haber, A. Muscat (63 E. Herrera), A. Agius, P. Fenech, C. Failla, R. Briffa (75 A. Schembri), M. Mifsud (84 A. Cohen), R. Muscat, R. Camilleri, A. Effiong, Z. Muscat.

Bulgaria: B. Mitrev, I. Bandalovski, N. Bodurov, Y. Minev, M. Alexandrov (75 G. Milanov), I. Popov (81 I. Chochev), S. Manolev, V. Gadzhev, I. Micanski (89 R., Vasilev), S, Dyakov, A. Aleksandrov.

Referee: Aleksandr Stavrev (Macedonia).

Yellow cards: Agius; Camilleri, Z. Muscat, Fenech, Aleksandrov, Dyakov.

Missed penalty: Micanski 45.

Malta players’ ratings
Haber-7, A. Muscat-6.5, Agius-7, Fenech-6.5, Failla-6.5, Briffa-6.5, Mifsud-6, R. Muscat-8.5, Camilleri-6, Effiong-7, Z. Muscat-6.5.

Subs: Herrera-6.

Aftermatch comments...

Pietro Ghedin: “We lost but did not deserve it. Bulgaria played well but Malta displayed a lot of confidence and we conceded a bad goal after a mistake which we will learn from for next time. We played two games in eight days and the league only finished a month ago. After 45 to 60 minutes fatigue crept in. We played well, however we have tough games coming up where we will again try our best.”

Rowen Muscat: “Personally I played well as did the whole team. I feel disappointed because it was a balanced game and we neutralised our opponents. It is a good spell for the national team and no doubt if we approach our next match with more self-belief we will surely play better.”