Iceland stalwart Gylfi Sigurdsson is keen to finish what has been an amazing year for his team on a winning note but warned that Malta will be no easy opponents.

“We’ve seen the last results, Malta are not a bad team,” Sigurdsson, who plays for English Premier League club Swansea City, told Times of Malta ahead of tomorrow’s friendly match at the National Stadium (kick-off 7pm).

“They lost 2-0 against England and I think the other night they lost 1-0 to Slovenia. They (Malta) are improving, they are tough to beat and defensively they are very organised.

“They’ve got an Italian coach (Pietro Ghedin) and they love to defend really well, so it’s going to be a tough game. For us, we want to finish the year well.”

It is a measure of Iceland’s incredible progress in the last decade that they are now seen as contenders for qualification for the major tournaments despite having a smaller population compared to Malta.

Their exploits at Euro 2016 have further enhanced their status as Iceland shook the traditional order of European football by beating England 2-1 in the Last 16 to advance to the quarter-finals where they lost 5-2 to France who eventually lost to Portugal in the final.

Iceland’s run at the Euros has raised their fans’ expectations about their chances of qualifying for the 2018 World Cup finals in Russia but they face a tough task after being drawn in a very difficult group along with Croatia, who beat them 2-0 last weekend, Ukraine, Turkey, Finland and newcomers Kosovo.

Sigurdsson admitted that the pressure has intensified on Iceland but he believes this is a good thing for the team who are third in Group I with seven points from four qualifiers.

“No, we knew before this group started that we were in a really tough group,” Sigurdsson replied when asked if Iceland are finding it hard to cope with the heightened expectations.

“Four teams were in the Euro as there is Croatia, Ukraine and Turkey as well. It’s a very tough group but this team is thriving on the pressure that has become a lot more than what it used to be before the Euros.

“Everyone back home expects us to win every game, it is different but it’s good for the team.”

Meanwhile, Malta, still without a point after four World Cup qualifiers, will be looking to end a difficult year on a heartening note.

The Maltese side produced a creditable performance in the Slovenia qualifier last Friday but still finished empty-handed after losing 1-0.

Malta coach Pietro Ghedin is not expected to make a lot of changes from the Slovenia defeat but he intends to make use of all six substitutions during tomorrow’s friendly.

Captain Michael Mifsud is widely expected to set a new milestone by winning a record 123rd cap for Malta after equalling David Carabott’s mark in the Slovenia qualifier.

Tarxien Rainbows defender Daniel Zerafa could make his debut as he has replaced Zach Muscat in the 20-man squad.

Muscat, who started the Slovenia defeat, was given permission to return to his Italian cub Arezzo.

 

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