Thursday’s friendly at Ta’ Qali: Malta v Luxembourg (kick-off 6pm) 

Malta will be meeting Luxembourg in a friendly match on Thursday evening with new national coach Tom Saintfiet eager to see his side showing an improvement after the 0-3 defeat against Estonia at Ta’ Qali back in November of last year.

Saintfiet last week announced a squad with a mix of experience and youth as it comprises players who have featured regularly for the national team in recent years, but there are also some new faces.

Among these is young Valletta FC defender Jean Borg while Myles Beerman, currently playing on loan with Scottish Championship side Queen of the South, has also been promoted to the senior squad.

Experienced midfielder Roderick Briffa, now playing for Gzira United, has earned a recall to the national squad after a long absence.

Hibernians midfield duo Bjorn Kristensen and Johann Bezzina, and Balzan’s Ryan Fenech have not been included in the squad as they are both recovering from injuries. These are key losses to the Malta side, considering that there is also a second friendly next Monday in Turkey, against Finland.

Mitchell Mallia, who plays for Australian club Blacktown City, is also included in the squad and is raring to go for Malta, even if his first appearance has had to be delayed because his clearance certificate from FIFA has not arrived. It is the world body to issue its approval for Mallia to play for Malta as he has already played for the Australian Under 17 and Under 23 sides.

The promising Mallia, 25, is one of six uncapped players in Saintfiet’s list, the others being Ħamrun Spartans goalkeeper Steve Sultana, Valletta’s Jean Borg, Balzan defender Michael Johnson, Triston Caruana, the Ħamrun Spartans midfielder, and Siraj Arab, the Balzan winger.

Addressing the press on Wednesday, Saintfiet said he was confident that his players will rise to the occasion.

“After the 0-3 defeat against Estonia, we have worked hard and we are now looking forward towards obtaining a win. Luxembourg did well in the World Cup qualifiers even achieving a goalless draw away to such a top nation as France. They are 83rd in the FIFA rankings and Malta is ranked 185th. All this shows that it will not be an easy match for us.

“But despite all, I am sure my players are well prepared and enthusiastic not only to perform well, but also to hopefully achieve a first win together,” he said.

The Belgian mentor said his squad is still ‘under construction’ and complained that he has less than 50 Premier League players to choose from considering that every club can play seven foreigners, apart from other factors. “I have seen 118 matches since my appointment and that includes all the clubs from the Premier to the Third Division. I know there are some other players who can be considered in the near future, but at present, I was very limited to make my selection,” headed.

Saintfiet also made a reference to the Estonia friendly. “It is important not to concede early goals as we did in that match. We will certainly be playing offensive football, but we will not commit suicide. We will be flexible. We can play in a 4-4-2 or 4-4-3 formation any time, but that depends on what happens on the pitch during the game,” he added.

Andre Schembri also addressed the news conference saying that they had worked hard together with the coach in preparing for this match and next Monday’s friendly against Finland in Turkey. “I am sure I can help the youngsters in the squad through my experience. I can be an inspiration to all those who have a dream of becoming national team players one day.

“We also need more players to go and play abroad. In Cyprus, I am very happy with my club Apollon Limassol. Now that we are on top three points ahead of AEK, with seven matches to go, we will be doing our best to win the League title and qualify for next season’s UEFA Champions League,” he said.

For all that matters, as Saintfiet said, it will not be an easy match, despite Luxembourg being considered as one of the minnows, like Malta.

In fact, today’s opponents for Malta have won two of their last six matches (2-1 against Hungary and 1-0 against Belarus). They drew two matches (1-1 against Bulgaria and 0-0 against France) while losing the other two heavily (0-8 against Sweden and 0-5 against The Netherlands).

But Malta has a worse record for its last six matches, in which there were no wins, but only one draw and five defeats, scoring just one goal and suffering 13.

6th match between the two countries

Thursday’s match will be the sixth between the two countries.

The first match, at the old Gzira Stadium on 4 January 1970, had ended in a 1-1 draw.

Then two European Championship qualifiers followed. The first, at Ta’ Qali on 22 February 1995, had finished in a 1-0 win for Luxembourg and the same result was repeated in the away match on 6 September 1995.

The last two matches were friendlies, both played away from home. On 19 August 2003, the result was 1-1, but on 2 June 2012, Malta registered its first win against Luxembourg – a 2-0 victory.