This was always going to be a sterner test for the Maltese youngsters.

Having kicked off their Roma Caput Mundi commitments with an easy 5-3 win over the English colleges team on Tuesday, Malta U-17 were up against a selection of U-18 players drawn from the lower divisions of Italian football (Lega Nazionale Dilettanti) yesterday.

In their opening-day victory, Malta had relied on their superior technical level and tactical organisation to make light of the physical challenge posed by the English students but the Italians were a different proposition.

These youngsters may not be the country’s brightest prospects but they certainly know how to play.

With all but one of the players in the Italy squad born in 1996, Roberto Polverelli’s team enjoyed a clear advantage over the Maltese, the majority of whom were born a year or two after, while one player, Manchester City’s Myles Beerman, will turn 15 next month.

The Italians made their age advantage count as they struck three goals in the first half to beat Malta U-17 3-0 and seal their second group win which puts them on the brink of qualification for the final on Saturday.

Early goals from captain Federico Baschirotto and Lorenzo Reggiani, both from set-play situations, gave Italy a headstart at the ground of VIS Artena where the poor condition of the pitch caused apprehension among the Maltese delegation.

Kick-off was delayed as those in charge of the Maltese squad, technical director Robert Gatt, coach Sergio Soldano and Jesmond Abela, the team manager, were reluctant to play on that surface before finally giving the go-ahead for the match to start after a further inspection of the pitch.

Italy’s two-goal flourish hardly helped to lift the spirits of the Maltese who tried to fight back.

They went close on the stroke of half-time when Joseph Mbong released Conor Borg but the Chievo midfielder lifted his shot over the bar with only the keeper to beat.

Malta were made to pay for that miss as, in their next attack, Italy increased their lead courtesy of Cristiano Drago.

The second half was a more balanced affair with the Maltese side, for whom Beerman impressed with his clever movement on the left wing, giving a better account of themselves but failing to get the goal that would have revived their hopes.

A host of scouts were present for this game. Aidan Friggieri caught the eye of a Padova observer during the win over the English colleges selection and yesterday, scouts from Cesena and Siena were also at Artena to monitor the Sliema forward and other potential talents.

Assessing Malta’s performance after the game, Gatt said the Italians had made their age and height difference count.

“They were two years older than our boys,” Gatt told Times of Malta.

“The Italian squad is made up of players from clubs in the Eccellenza category.

“This was also our second game in two days. In the first 20 minutes, our performance was not good while the Italians exploited their height advantage, scoring twice from set-pieces.

“We had a great chance to score but instead of pulling one back we found ourselves 3-0 down.

“In the second half we pressed higher up the pitch and played a lot better, also creating some scoring chances.”

Polverelli was happy about his team’s performance.

“The first half was very good, very intense for us,” he said.

“We managed to conclude our chances.

“Malta are preparing for the UEFA U-17 final tournament. Victory for the Italian selection demonstrates that football at this level is real and has a lot of qualities because we played a good game.”

Polverelli had words of encouragement for the Maltese team.

“The signs are positive,” he said.

“I follow Maltese football and the fact that you have players at Manchester City and Chievo shows there are promising youngsters in your country. This is a good squad, Malta were well-deployed during the game.”

Malta take on San Marino, who lost 1-0 to the English colleges team yesterday, in their final group match yesterday.

The game is likely to be switched to Lariano following pressure from Malta FA officials who harbour concerns about the state of the pitch in Zagaralo, the designated venue for today’s fixture.

Malta U-17 starting formation
J. Azzopardi, D. Buckle, J. Grech, N. Ghio, C. Borg, C. Degabriele, A. Friggieri, J. Corbolan, J. Mbong, M. Beerman, C. Grech.