Birkirkara’s gutsy showings in the Europa League have given Maltese football a much-needed boost but their efforts will count for nothing if local clubs fail to maintain the momentum

The exhausted Birkirkara players were waiting for the team bus outside the National Stadium on Thursday night when a West Ham United fan ap-proached coach Giovanni Tedesco.

“You should be proud of your players,” the English supporter told Tedesco, patting him on the shoulder while team manager Michael Valenzia took up translation duties.

“Really, you were brilliant tonight.”

An enterprising and uncompromising midfielder during his successful career with a host of Serie A clubs, Tedesco is rapidly forging a reputation as a bright coach with a great tactical nous.

His innate passion for the game and meticulous approach were there for all to see on Thursday as Tedesco spent the entire game – 90 minutes plus extra-time – pacing the technical area, constantly delivering instructions to his players.

In a very short time, Tedesco has managed to stamp his mark on his players as Birkirkara’s vibrant showing on Thursday was very much in keeping with the Italian’s philosophy.

On the pitch, his players exuded determination and confidence, pressing West Ham from the off and keeping their tactical discipline to eke out a famous 1-0 victory courtesy of Fabrizio Miccoli’s early goal.

Birkirkara’s redoubtable effort may have fallen short as they came unstuck in the penalty shoot-out but the frustration at missing out on qualification to the third qualifying round of the Europa League didn’t dampen the feelgood factor engendered by their tenacious performance.

That was evident in the final stages of extra-time when, with penalties looming, a Mexican wave swept through the terraces as, notwithstanding the high level of tension, the fans were having a great time.

And it was not only the Birkirkara faithful who left the stadium brimming with pride and optimism on Thursday as their superb effort had given Maltese football a much-needed tonic.

Their endeavours went some way towards restoring faith and belief in local football amid suggestions that, at long last, our clubs are really making progress.

What Birkirkara have shown is that, with the right approach, local teams have the potential to improve and aim for higher objectives in European competitions.

Birkirkara are pointing the way forward for Maltese clubs by investing money not only to lure a star player like Miccoli but, more significantly, they have a proper technical set-up.

They have embraced Tedesco’s vision, employing two assistant coaches plus a full-time physical trainer and goalkeepers’ coach. They sent their squad for a pre-season training camp in Italy and organised chartered flights for their away Europa League games against Armenia’s Ulisses FC and West Ham United.

These initiatives cost an awful lot of money but investing in professionalism pays off in the end. Birkirkara, under new president Adrian Delia, have been bold and brave and their efforts are paying the desired dividends.

Clearly, the appointment of Tedesco was an inspired move. These are still early days but the signs are very encouraging.

Maltese football needs more people like Tedesco and committee officials who, like those of Birkirkara, are prepared to back their coach’s pursuit of a professional approach across the board.

The way Tedesco prepared his team, tactically and psychologically, for their clashes with West Ham, says all about his attributes but it’s his esteem for the Maltese players that has impressed me most.

Even when he was coach of Floriana, Tedesco stressed time and again that Maltese players have got a lot of talent, contrary to the perception that they were inferior to their foreign peers, but they lack the self-belief to express their qualities to the full.

At Floriana, Tedesco relied a lot on the homegrown talents, the likes of Steve Pisani, Conor Borg, Clyde Borg and Emanuel Briffa, and he is doing the same at Birkirkara.

Maltese talent

It was refreshing to note that six players in Birkirkara’s starting line-up against West Ham on Thursday were senior and U-21 Malta internationals.

Captain Paul Fenech, Rowen Muscat, Zach Muscat, Joseph Zerafa and goalkeeper Justin Haber were joined by the up-and-coming Ryan Camenzuli while Edmond Agius and Kurt Zammit came on as substitutes.

Tedesco has inherited a strong squad from Paul Zammit but he deserves credit for keeping faith with the Maltese players who also form the backbone of the national squad.

This also bodes well for the national team as Birkirkara’s positive experience can only have galvanised the confidence of the local players.

The omens are positive indeed as, all in all, this has been a fruitful summer for Maltese clubs in Europe.

Apart from Birkirkara’s wins over Ulisses (3-1) in Yerevan and the home victory over West Ham United, Hibernians also exceeded expectations by beating Maccabi Tel Aviv at home in the Champions League. They also had their bright moments in the away leg before going down 5-1.

Balzan, making their bow in European competitions, gave a good account of themselves despite losing 3-0 on aggregate to FK Zeljeznicar.

Perhaps, the biggest disappointment was Valletta’s shock elimination at the hands of Welsh minnows Newtown AFC in the first qualifying round of the Europa League.

Nobody saw it coming as Valletta were widely seen as favourites to progress but, in fairness, the Citizens have revamped their squad after losing some key Maltese players, including former captain Ryan Fenech and Steve Borg, and brought in a host of new foreigners.

Their lack of teamwork was palpable in their games against Newtown AFC but City will surely improve under an experienced and dedicated coach like Paul Zammit.

As the attention now turns to the 2015/16 BOV Premier League, kicking off on August 21, the Maltese clubs’ showings in Europe raise the prospect of an enthralling fight for the domestic honours.

The Premier League is the bread and butter for local teams but the challenge facing Maltese football, particularly the top clubs, is to make sure that the im-provement seen in this year’s European competitions is sustained, otherwise this will be remembered as a one-off experience... a flash in the pan.

There is no doubt that Birkirkara have raised the bar, both on and off the field. They are pointing the way forward and the other Maltese clubs, especially the so-called big guns, should follow suit.

kevin.azzopardi@timesofmalta.com

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.