Malta                 0
Luxembourg       1

Malta: A. Hogg, S. Borg, A. Agius, S. Pisani, P. Fenech (M. Beerman), A. Schembri (JP Farrugia), R. Muscat (J. Zerafa), Z. Muscat (R. Camilleri), J. Borg, L. Gambin (M. Mifsud), C. Attard

Luxembourg: R. Schon, E. Mahmutovic (K. Malget), C. Phillipps, L. Gerson, C. Martins, V. Thill, G. Rodrigues (D. Da Mota), D. Carlson (M. Janisch), L. Barreiro (D. Sinani) L. Jans, D. Turpel (M. Deville)

Referee: E. Barushi, R. Avdo

4th official: C. Pisani

Yellow cards: J. Borg, JP Farrugia, K. Malget, C. Phillips

Scorer: D. Da Mota

Attendance: 2,000

Malta started its 2018 programme on a negative note yesterday as a 92nd minute strike by substitute De Mota gave visiting Luxembourg a narrow 1-0 win.

It was Luxembourg’s third win in six matches against Malta. The others had ended in two draws and one win for Malta.

Despite the late goal, it was a deserved win for Luxembourg who dictated play for most of the time, although they were frustrated by a strong performance of the Maltese defence.

It is only fair to say that the local boys fought hard all the way, but they found it hard to move upfield against superior opponents.

The end result proved to be a huge disappointment for Sainfiet and his boys!

The Belgian mentor opted for a 4-1-4-1 formation giving Andrei Agius a new role in front of the defence and with Andre Schembri being helped by Steve Pisani up front. It was a surprise that he left top strikers Michael Mifsud, Jean Paul Farrugia and Alfred Effiong on the substitutes’ bench at the start.

Making his debut was Valletta youngster Jean Borg on the left flank. Both he and Cain Attard, on the right side, found it difficult to contain the fast Luxembourg flankers.

Other established players who did not start were Joseph Zerafa, Roderick Briffa, though a veteran now, and Ryan Camilleri.

The first half saw the visitors taking control of midfield, but apart from one or two occasions, they rarely troubled the Malta defence as most of their conclusions were rather poor.

Malta showed some improvement at the back from the Estonia match despite the changes made by Saintfiet. But, of course, there is still a lot of room for improvement in this sector.

It was only early in the match that Luxembourg had their best chance when Andrew Hogg saved the Malta fort with an excellent save, thus avoiding a repeat of the Estonia match start.

Malta never played the offensive football promised by the coach, but in their counter-attacks, Gambin and Schembri provided some exciting moments which, however, were not exploited well.

In the second half, Luxembourg dictated play as they took almost complete control of midfield, but once again they only created half chances until Hogg was called into action after 25 minutes.

And Malta’s first attack in this half came following another defensive lapse by a Luxembourg defender, but Farrugia and Fenech failed to take advantage.

Once again, the defence seemed to be well organised though, at times, we even had nine men close to our area. It was a pity they only managed to resist till the 92nd minute.

Luxembourg had the best start when in the second minute, a shot by David Turpel had goalie Andrew Hogg diving sideways to save the Malta fort.

A defensive lapse in the Luxembourg defence offered a great chance for Malta to take the lead. After a bad back pass to the goalie, Gambin got hold of a loose ball and passed to Andre Schembri. The latter had all the time at his disposal with the goalie out of position, but when he finally shot, the ball hit Christopher Martins and finished in a corner.

On 17 minutes, Gerson Rodrigues tested Hogg with a low shot, but the goalie was equal to the task.

Till the end of the first half, Luxembourg enjoyed more possession, but never really created any scoring chances, as did Malta.

At the start of the second half it was all Luxembourg as they penned Malta in their own half for most of the time. In the 70th minutes, it was Zach Muscat who blocked to corner a dangerous looking cross from substitute Da Mota.

And three minutes later, as Luxembourg increased their pressure, it was Hogg who again saved the Malta fort with another excellent save off a fine effort from Laurent Jans.

Malta had a good chance to take the lead on 74 minutes when substitute Farrugia won a good ball on the right and advanced into the area, but his pass to Paul Fenech in front of an open goal was intercepted and cleared by a Luxembourg defender.

In the 82nd minute, Luxembourg’s Kevin Malget also missed a clear chance for his side, hitting wide from an ideal position.

Malta succumbed to defeat in the 92nd minute when substitute Daniel de Mota scored the winner for Luxembourg, solving a melee in front of the Malta goal following a cornerkick action.

Saintfiet disappointed with defeat

National coach Tom Saintfiet of Belgium was a very disappointed man yesterday evening after his side conceded a 92nd minute goal to lose narrowly against Luxembourg. Addressing the post-match press conference, Saintfiet said he could not criticise any of his players. “They all fought hard against a good Luxembourg side which showed superiority,” he said.

The Belgian analysed the match saying that in the first half Luxembourg had been limited to just a few shots at goal as his side played in a well organised manner. “The same happened in the second half, perhaps with Luxembourg pushing more forward, although my boys still defended well.

“Of course, Luxembourg deserved to win, but it is pertinent to say that we had the best two scoring chances throughout the match. I think both Andre Schembri, in the first half, and Paul Fenech, in the second, should have scored,” he said. Sainfiet went on to say that despite the defeat, he still intends to keep seeking promising youngsters that could fit into his plans for the national team. “That is what Luxembourg did in the last few years to develop their football, and that is what I believe we have to do here to improve our situation,” he stated.