Malta coach Pietro Chedin said today that he was looking for the Malta team to produce a robust performance in its friendly against Northern Ireland tomorrow. (Ta' Qali 7.30)

The match is part of Malta's preparations for next month's World Cup qualifiers against Bulgaria away and at home against Italy.

"We are always looking to grow and improve, and I hope we show this in our friendly against N.Ireland. We are always seeking new solutions to help our players become better athletes. I have been here for nine months and we have all been striving to understand the level of Maltese football in order to improve it," Ghedin said.

He said he was delighted with the cooperation he had from technical director Robert Gatt, but, he said, there was a lot of work to do.

The coach said he expects a strong challenge from Northern Ireland, who have drawn their last three qualifiers.

"I watched their games against Portugal and Azerbaijan, which ended 1-1. They were great encounters and I am sure that N.Ireland will produce a stern challenge. We have to be very careful. Most of their players play in England's Premier League and the Championship and that shows they are a very valid team."

Missing from the Malta team will be midfielder Roderick Briffa and defender Jonathan Caruana, both  injured. That means the coach has to make at least two changes from the team which started in the 1-0 win over Lichtenstein in November.

With Valletta's Ryan Fenech omitted from  the squad for technical reasons, Birkirkara's Paul Fenech is likely to replace Briffa.

Also tomorrow, the Malta Under-21 team will play a friendly match at the Hibs Stadium (2.30)