All the talk here is on Portugal's make-or-break World Cup home qualifiers against Hungary tonight and Malta on Wednesday.
Amidst the clamour surrounding Portugal's efforts to salvage a disappointing qualifying campaign by claiming second place in Group One and a berth in the play-offs, Malta will be striving to lift their spirits ahead of next week's arduous test with a solid performance in a friendly against Angola.
"This friendly is important for our qualifier against Portugal," John Buttigieg, the Malta coach, told The Times yesterday.
"We will also use this match to give a chance to those who have been out of the first team in our last few games. It's an opportunity for them to enhance their international experience.
"We can change up to six players and I plan to use all the available substitutions."
Malta's objective for tonight's warm-up is at best mundane, compared to Portugal's quest to keep their World Cup hopes alive but that is not to say that the task awaiting our national team is a plainsailing one.
As hosts of the 2010 Africa Cup, Angola qualified automatically for the finals and thus, friendly matches are central to their preparations for next year's tournament.
The Maltese players should also know by now that African nations are not to be discarded, what with the unpleasant memories in last month's 2-0 upset to Cape Verde still fresh in mind.
Buttigieg is adamant that his players will not take Angola lightly in Vila Real de San Antonio, a city in the Algarve region.
"When your opponents are not a big-name team, you might think that the match will be easier but that's not the case," Buttigieg said, alluding to the defeat to Cape Verde.
"Portugal and Sweden are among the top footballing nations in Europe and that's why they elicit more interest and attention. However, this doesn't mean that we will take it easy against Angola."
After meeting Malta, Angola will face Cameroon in another friendly on Wednesday.
Malta jetted into Portugal late on Thursday after a somewhat strenuous journey that featured a lengthy stop in London before the flight to Faro.
The squad had a light training session near the Ria Park Hotel, the base of the Maltese contingent in Vale do Lobo, yesterday morning. Later in the evening, Malta had another training session.
All players in the squad are fit but, with the qualifier against Portugal coming up, Buttigieg is unlikely to start with what he regards as his strongest formation tonight.
The Malta coach is pinning his hopes on his tried and trusted personnel for this double header in Portugal with Australia-based John Hutchinson being the only player who has yet to figure for the team since Buttigieg took over from Dusan Fitzel in July.
The Central Coast Mariners midfielder, who gave a good account of himself in the 4-0 defeat to Sweden in June, faces a tall order to break the central midfield tandem of captain Gilbert Agius and Jamie Pace but Hutchinson may get the chance to stake his claim today.
Buttigieg's decision to overlook the likes of Andrè Schembri, Daniel Bogdanovic, Justin Haber and Andrei Agius was met with surprise in many quarters.
The Malta coach refused to elaborate on the reasons behind his decision.
"There are internal issues which I'm not prepared to discuss in public," Buttigieg said.
"But I have faith in the players I've chosen because they have shown that they really want to play for the national team."
For Buttigieg, a lively showing and a positive result today would provide a timely morale-booster ahead of Wednesday's qualifier in Guimaraes.
"A satisfactory result would certainly give the players and all the staff a massive lift before Wednesday. The qualifier against Portugal will be tough," Buttigieg said.
Malta (probable): A. Hogg, M. Muscat, I. Azzopardi, B. Said, R. Briffa, G. Agius, M. Mifsud, A. Cohen, C. Failla, K. Scicluna, J. Hutchinson.
Kick-off: 9.30 p.m. (Malta time).