As several members of the national squad have been involved in pre-season friendlies for their clubs over the past few days, and the likes of Daniel Bogdanovic and Andrei Agius are expected to turn out for Sheffield United and AS Melfi respectively this weekend, Malta coach John Buttigieg will await an update on the players’ physical condition before finalising his 18-man list for the trip to Israel.
“I have to choose 18 but it’s impossible to trim the squad now because several players are taking part in friendlies for their clubs while the foreign-based ones are due to play in competitive matches this weekend,” Buttigieg told a news conference at the Centenary Hall yesterday.
“I will wait until the last minute before naming the final squad.”
Buttigieg will have to omit five players from the provisional 23-man squad before the contingent’s departure to Tel Aviv on Monday afternoon. Sliema Wanderers wing-back Alex Muscat and Ferencvaros goalkeeper Justin Haber are already out of the equation due to injuries.
Manny Muscat, the Maltese-Australian flank defender who plays for A-League club Wellington Phoenix, is on the provisional list but John Hutchinson, who plies his trade for Central Coast Mariners, is conspicuous by his absence.
According to Buttigieg, Hutchinson is not available for Malta’s Group F qualifiers against Israel on Thursday and Latvia (September 7).
Shaun Bajada and Paul Fenech, the Birkirkara duo who on Tuesday were arraigned in court in connection with the skirmish that occurred in the VIP zone of the National Stadium after Saturday’s Super Cup final, are both expected to keep their place in the national squad for the upcoming qualifiers.
Asked if the charges filed against Fenech and Bajada may jeopardise their status as national team players, Buttigieg replied: “I learned about it (court case) through the media. Those incidents were certainly not a positive thing for all those involved and for Maltese football.
“Given that there are no MFA suspensions in place, we will continue with our work as usual.”
Looking at the broader picture, the Malta coach said: “Our first two games of the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign will surely be difficult.
“Past results against Israel and Latvia count for nothing. In the last few matches, our players have given their all and I expect more of the same in these two qualifiers.
“It’s important that we keep our concentration throughout the match and avoid giving away possession easily as these two shortcomings can prove costly in international football.
“All the players in our squad are in good shape physically and I have to say that I’m happy with their commitment in training. I hope that we produce a good performance in our next matches.”
For the first time in recent years, Malta’s opening qualifiers (Euro or World Cup) will precede the start of the domestic league which is due to kick off on September 11.
“It’s not just Malta who are playing international matches before the start of the domestic season,” Buttigieg said. “Some major leagues get under way this week while others only began a few weeks ago.
“I don’t think a game or two make a big difference at this stage of the season. We could have started our season earlier but the association and the clubs deemed otherwise.”
Malta’s first competitive tests in the Euro 2012 qualifying round come hot on the heels of the election of Norman Darmanin Demajo as MFA president and the appointment of Bjorn Vassallo as CEO.
MFA incentive
Although Darmanin Demajo and Vassallo are still finding their feet, they’ve wasted no time in implementing a few innovations aimed at attracting more fans to the National Stadium for Malta’s qualifier against Latvia.
Vassallo yesterday announced that admission to the South Stand for the Latvia game will be free of charge, a praiseworthy move that should go some way towards boosting the efforts of the South End Core group to encourage more people to support the national team on September 7.
“We are making a bold effort to lure more people to the stadium for games involving the national team,” Vassallo said.
“As our first home qualifier (vs Latvia) is scheduled for September 7, the South End Core were having difficulties to whip up support for this game because the University and the schools are closed.
“The MFA has agreed to offer an incentive to the fans for the Latvia game by giving them free tickets to the South Stand which can accommodate up to 4,000 people. Furthermore, we’ve made arrangements to provide match tickets to the nurseries and we will also give free tickets to children taking part in sports programmes organised by the Kunsill Malti għall-Isport.”
The Malta FA CEO presented a national team’s shirt to Louis Agius, the head of the South End Core, as a gesture of appreciation for the fans’ group efforts to improve support for the national team.