Much of the attention in the build-up to Wednesday's World Cup qualifier was on Zlatan Ibrahimovic and the mammoth task Malta faced to prevent the Barcelona livewire leading a Swedish goal rush at the National Stadium.
Five years ago, Ibrahimovic hit a poker as Sweden crushed Malta 7-0 in a 2006 World Cup qualifier and fears of another drubbing loomed over Wednesday's encounter in light of our national team's dismal record against Scandinavian teams.
Sweden left Ta' Qali with the three points and their qualification hopes intact but the mood in their camp was one of relief after an unlucky own goal nine minutes from time was all that separated the winners from the losers.
Little Malta produced a gutsy fight to keep Sweden at bay for long stretches, also thanks to some fine interventions from goalkeeper Andrew Hogg. Although Sweden dominated large swathes of possession and created the better chances, the decisive goal came at a time when Malta were causing their more-quoted opponents problems on the counter.
Although cynics will argue that Malta were too defensive and that they failed to open their scoring account after nine qualifiers, there can be no qualms about the commitment and attitude of the players whose valiant efforts were in stark contrast with their insipid showing in the 2-0 friendly defeat to Cape Verde five days earlier.
Malta coach John Buttigieg, who was taking charge of his first competitive match since replacing Dusan Fitzel in July, was pleased with his team's performance but rued the manner and timing of Sweden's goal.
"The players applied themselves vigorously against a strong team like Sweden," Buttigieg said.
"We had our chances in attack. Sweden also created a string of scoring opportunities but they were rarely dangerous in the first half. We were unlucky to concede an own goal in the late stages of the game but we can't complain because such things happen in football.
"The match is behind us now and I'm already looking ahead to next month's games against Angola (friendly) and Portugal (qualifier)."
When it was put to Buttigieg that Sweden coach Lars Lagerback had earlier alluded to the difficulties his team encountered to break down opponents who had nine players behind the ball, the Malta boss retorted: "We had nine men behind the ball and they had eight, so Malta only had one player more than Sweden behind the ball. In modern football, teams defend as a unit."
In the pre-match news conference, Buttigieg opined that Malta's display against Cape Verde was not as bad as the 2-0 scoreline might indicate but that didn't stop him from reshuffling his team.
The Malta coach made no fewer than four alterations to his starting XI with captain Gilbert Agius, Alex Muscat, Ian Azzopardi and Shaun Bajada coming in for Ryan Fenech, Roderick Briffa, Clayton Failla and André Schembri.
The changes had the desired effect but Buttigieg refrained from singling out individuals for special praise.
"We have a group of 26 players," Buttigieg said when asked to comment on his choice of personnel for the Sweden qualifier.
"My team selection is dictated by a number of factors, not least the players' physical condition and their form and attitude during training.
"I also take into consideration the qualities of the opponents before assigning positions to players. Overall, I'm happy with all the members of the current squad. The players will now go back to their clubs as we will resume our preparations for next month's commitments the week after next."
Schembri's exclusion
Schembri played no part in the narrow defeat to Sweden after the SK Kaernten midfielder-cum-forward failed to shine in the friendly matches against Georgia and Cape Verde.
His omission will not have lifted his confidence which, according to Buttigieg, may be behind Schembri's loss of form, but the coach insisted that team matters come first.
"We can't afford to stick with players who are off form and low on morale," Buttigieg said.
"Our task is to choose the best players for the next game, we don't select the team to suit the needs of individuals."
Although it has often been argued that the foreign-based players bring a different dimension to the national team, Buttigieg claimed that he treats all the players the same.
"I don't distinguish between foreign-based players and those who play in Malta," Buttigieg said.
Captain Gilbert Agius and Brian Said, aged 35 and 36 respectively, made a mockery of whispers that they are too old to play at international level with another influential performance.
Invited to offer his views on the contribution of the two veterans, Buttigieg said: "We were not surprised by the performances of Gilbert Agius and Brian Said. They are still valid , they can do a job for the team and offer guidance to the younger members in the squad."