Malta had just slumped to a 4-0 defeat at the Ullevi Stadium and Dusan Fitzel was understandably disappointed with the outcome but I found his attempt to put a brave face on this latest defeat surprising and worrying at the same time.
Now allow me to make one thing clear from the outset.
I have the utmost respect for Fitzel and I still rate him as the brightest coach to have ever taken charge of our national team in the last two decades. However, I will never allow my appreciation of a person's expertise to distort my perception of his work and approach.
Fitzel knew that he faced a tall order to take Malta to the heights reached during the qualifying campaign for Euro 2008, what with the likes of Portugal, Denmark and Sweden drawn in the same group as our national team.
Nevertheless, Fitzel's decision in the summer of 2007 to extend his contract with the Malta FA was met with universal approval in light of the team's progress under the Czech.
The hope at the time was that the national team would maintain the upward trajectory in terms of performances and, possibly, results.
Fitzel was determined to take his team forward but his optimism ebbed after Malta opened their World Cup campaign with a 4-0 home defeat to Portugal and a 3-0 loss away to Albania.
It was at this juncture that the first signs of Fitzel's growing disillusionment about the level of his team and his inability to raise standards came to the fore.
Having courted controversy in October with his declaration that he'd be "satisfied if Malta conceded fewer than four goals in the qualifier against Denmark", Fitzel later revealed that he would review his position after the home qualifier against Hungary.
Some construed Fitzel's stance at the time as an attempt to motivate his players but I beg to differ.
When a skipper indicates to his crew that he's thinking about jumping ship, that's more of a distress signal than a positive message.
Fitzel eventually decided to stay on but he has hardly looked comfortable since then, in the process exuding mixed signals about his future.
The team's results in these World Cup qualifiers didn't help to lift his spirits as, bar a goalless draw at home to Albania, Malta have lost their other seven qualifiers, conceding 21 goals and scoring none in the process.
Fitzel acknowledges that coaches are judged on results and is particularly irritated by Malta's failure to score a single goal so far.
Malta's performance on Wednesday triggered mixed emotions for Fitzel as he was very pleased with the team's showing in the first half but their collapse after the changeover only served to re-awaken the negative thoughts that have obsessed him for most of the past year.
"The players lost belief after Sweden scored their second goal," he said.
"For 20 minutes, we were lost and Sweden took advantage by scoring three goals.
"We lack leaders in this team. You expect senior players to encourage their team-mates when things are not going well but I didn't see that today."
Fitzel's initial comments didn't come as surprise but he baulked when I asked him to describe the mood in the dressing room after "this disappointment".
"What disappointment?" he retorted.
"The disappointment of losing 4-0, no," I replied.
"You are disappointed but what do you expect? The players have seen the goals on television and they're upset because they committed mistakes, especially in the second half," Fitzel said.
"They played well in the first half but failed to last the pace because the tempo of international games is much higher than that of the domestic league."
Fitzel was pleased with the contribution of Andrei Agius and Roderick Briffa who were asked to fill in at right-back and left-midfield respectively.
"Roderick did ok," Fitzel said.
"There's no big difference between playing on the right of midfield or the left. He didn't press much but his performance was normal.
"Andrei did well in the second half of the Czech Republic and I didn't want to leave him out of this game, especially because of his height."
Briffa was preferred to Andrew Cohen whose exclusion from the first team was met with a few raised eyebrows.
The Hibs livewire had been one of Malta's better performers in the qualifiers against Denmark and Hungary but Fitzel was so dissatisfied with his display in the first half of the Czech friendly that he dropped him from his team on Wednesday.
Fitzel has no regrets about that decision.
"Against the Czech Republic, Andrew just wanted to play for himself, dribble five players and score," the coach said.
"Cohen can do that in the league but World Cup football is a different matter. He spent a month with Hibs and came back to the national squad on a high after his team won the league.
"I hope he will return to the level of performance he showed against Denmark and Hungary because if not, he's on his way out of the national team."
August friendly
Malta have only two World Cup qualifiers left, at home to Sweden on September 9 and away to Portugal on October 14. On August 12, Malta are expected to host Georgia in a friendly at the National Stadium.
Fitzel has no plans to hold a summer training camp, however.
"We will not have an overseas training camp this year," he said.
"It will just be games, that's my plan if I'm still the coach of Malta by then. At the moment, I'm only thinking about having a holiday because I need a break."
Given that Malta will have a long hiatus from competitive football after the trip to Portugal, the MFA is in no hurry to make a decision on who will be in charge after this qualifying trek.
The powers-that-be appear to have no intention of parting with Fitzel before his contract expires in December but they can do a lot worse than sit down and discuss the state of affairs with the Czech.
If Fitzel really intends to honour his contract, then he must step up his efforts to make the most of his last few months rather than throw in the towel.
On the other hand, if he thinks he has had enough, he should make his decision public so that the MFA will have ample time to evaluate the credentials of prospective candidates before choosing Fitzel's successor.