Coach Silvio Vella starts his rebuilding process this afternoon when his new-look  Malta U-21 team take on Cyprus in an international friendly at the Tedesco Stadium (kick-off 2.30pm).

After leading the team to an unprecedented haul of 11 points in the last Euro Championship qualifying campaign, Vella has gone back to the drawing board as he must build a new team for the next competition which starts in 2017.

With only five players from the previous squad available for today’s  match ­– Kurt Zammit, Jake Grech, Joseph Mbong, James Brincat and Jurgen Degabriele – Vella will certainly use the warm-up to try out new players.

“This is a process we go through at the end of every qualifying competition,” Vella told Times of Malta. “My job is to prepare a strong team for the next UEFA Championship qualifiers which start next year.

“The match against Cyprus will be a good barometer to gauge the potential of the newcomers in the squad.

“The friendly is important for me as it could well be our last test before the start of the new European campaign in March.

“All the players in our squad will get the chance to impress in this match.”

Vella has been heartened by the enthusiasm shown by his players during training over the past five days.

“I was pleased to see that all the players are raring to go and hungry to represent the country in the upcoming Euro qualifiers,” Vella said.

“I hope they maintain this enthusiasm and continue working hard in the coming months to step up their game.

“One of the secrets of our success in the previous campaign was the fact that the players had regular first-team football with their respective clubs as that helped to enhance their confidence and playing experience.

“I hope the players in the new squad will follow their example.”

Vella expects Cyprus to bank on several players from the previous qualifying competition which saw them finish bottom of their group with four points.

“Cyprus will be tough opponents for us,” Vella remarked.

“They are coming here with several players who have already represented their country at this level. Cyprus had beaten Turkey in the qualifiers and held Greece to a draw in a friendly a few days ago. I’m sure they will provide our players with a good test.”

The squad

Goalkeepers: Jake Galea (St Andrews), Philip Schranz (Tarxien).

Defenders: Karl Micallef (Pietà Hotspurs), Christian Degabriele (Pietà), Kurt Zammit (Tarxien), Dunstan Vella (Hibs), Daniel Buckle (Hibs), Sean Cipriott (Balzan).

Midfielders: Zachary Scerri (Gżira), Juan Corbalan (Gżira), Jake Grech (Ħamrun Spartans), Neil Pace Cocks (Pietà), James Brincat (Birkirkara), Dexter Xuereb (Mosta).

Forwards: Jurgen Suda (Valletta), Jurgen Degabriele (Hibernians), Joseph Mbong (Hibernians), Kyrian Nwoko (St Andrews).