Coming only three days after the much-hyped game against England at Wembley, today’s 2018 World Cup qualifier against Lithuania in Vilnius may seem like an anti-climax but Malta defender Andrei Agius insisted that the players’ motivation before international games is always high, regardless of the opposition.

“The motivation is the same because every game carries three points,” the experienced Hibernians defender said.

“When we go out on the pitch, we always try to get a good result and we always do our best.”

Malta will be chasing their first points in Group F tonight after back-to-back defeats to Scotland and England but Agius reckons that Lithuania will be a hard nut to crack.

“It’s a difficult game for us but we are determined to give it our best shot,” the 30-year-old added.

“We will certainly be fighting to get points from this game.”

Agius is all set to make his 63rd appearance for Malta today after producing a reassuring performance at the heart of defence in the England qualifier.

After the thrill of playing in front of an 81,000-plus crowd at Wembley Stadium, tonight’s game will be staged in more mundane surroundings as the LFF Stadium is a compact arena with a capacity of over 5,000.

Asked if tonight’s venue may suit the Maltese players more, Agius replied: “Wembley was a great experience but during the game we are only focusing on what’s happening on the pitch.

“We don’t look at the stands. We try to get a result and do our country proud, irrespective of the surroundings.”

Pietro Ghedin expressed concern about the synthetic surface of the LFF Stadium as the national team are not accustomed to playing international games on artificial pitches.

Agius said the pitch is “very fast” but is confident that he and his Malta team-mates will adjust to the conditions.