Malta coach Pietro Ghedin is banking on the home support as Malta look to upset England in Friday night’s World Cup qualifier at the National Stadium.

Ghedin admitted that England were a very strong side and he is hoping that sell-out crowd at the National Stadium will help the players to lift up their game and offer a stern challenge to the Group F leaders.

 “England are a fantastic team,” Ghedin told reporters yesterday.

“If you look at the list of players you see quality in all departments and for me they are one of the best sides in Europe.

“The players will surely have to give everything they to be able to stay close with them.

“We will be playing in-front of a full house of over 20,000 thousands and I hope that the Maltese fans will give that extra push to the players to gain a respectable result.”

On his part, skipper Andre Schembri is urging his team-mates to take the field with a positive approach and try to play their game if they are to secure a positive result.

“It’s true that we are playing against a very strong team but it’s important that we remove our colonial mentality and take the pitch with a positive frame of mind,” Schembri said.

“We have to believe in ourselves if we are to get a positive result.”

Pietro Ghedin during yesterday's training session at the Ta' Qali training grounds. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli