National coach Dusan Fitzel yesterday announced a 22-strong squad – it will be reduced to 20 today – for the forthcoming two Euro 2008 qualifying matches against Moldova and Greece.
Malta meets Moldova in Chisinau next Saturday and will then play against defending champions Greece at Ta’ Qali next Wednesday.
Included in the squad after a long absence is Marsaxlokk striker Daniel Bogdanovic who is also the Bank of Valletta Premier League top scorer with 24 goals to date. He is passing through an excellent period of form and certainly deserved the call up.
Also returning to the squad are Andre Schembri of Marsaxlokk and Etienne Barbara of Birkirkara. Both had been out of the squad for several months through injuries, but Fitzel said yesterday they are now both both fully recovered.
There is also a first ever call up into the squad for Msida St Joseph’s defender Josef Farrugia.
On the negative side is the fact that three players have been ruled out through injury. They are Terence Scerri, Steven Wellman and Ian Ciantar, while five others – captain Gilbert Agius, Justin Haber, Andrew Cohen, Kevin Sammut and Peter Pullicino are either slightly injured or sick. Fitzel said: “They are all receiving the necessary treatment and I hope to have them available for the team by next Saturday.”
Fitzel added that he considered these two matches to be extremely difficult. “Moldova have a new coach and he is expected to include some unknown players to us. They are also ranked better than us in the FIFA list despite the fact that we are above them on points in the Group. They will be strong due to the fact that not only will they be playing in front of their home crowd and on home soil in Chisinau, but they also have only nine players from their squad that play in the Moldova league. The others are spread around various European Leagues in the Ukraine, Russia, Denmark and Kazakhstan. It will definitely not be easy and we will have to forget the 2-1 triumph over Hungary and the 1-1 draw against Austria for the moment. Now it is time to keep our feet to the ground in the hope of being able to concentrate on this match in an effort to get a positive result,” he said.
Under 21 coach Mark Miller also spoke about the two friendlies in Chisinau and Malta between Friday and Tuesday.
His side will be playing away on Friday against Moldova and at home on Tuesday against Sweden.
Miller said these were two good tests for his youngsters in view of the new Under 21 competition which sees his side pitted against France, Bosnia, Wales and Romania.
MFA president Dr Joseph Mifsud said no agreement had been reached on the dates of this Under 21 group and UEFA therefore made the draw itself last Thursday.
Malta opens its commitments on 2 or 3 June away against Wales. On 5 or 6 June Malta faces Romania at home, on 8 or 9 September it will be away at Bosnia, on 11 or 12 September at home against France, on 16 or 17 October at home against Wales, on 17 or 18 November away against Romania, on 20 or 21 November at home against Bosnia. The final encounter is scheduled for 6 or 7 September 2008 away against France.
Three projects
Dr Mifsud spoke about three projects being undertaken by the MFA at present.
These were the 35 UEFA jubilee pitches to be installed in various places around the island and 10 of which are already in place.
The second is the transfer of the headquarters from Valletta to Qali which is expected to be completed by mid-May and inaugurated officially in June.
The other project is the change of the artificial turf at the Centenary Stadium at Ta’ Qali. He said the pitch which, he said, could still be used, has been offered to any of the MFA’s member clubs who are interested in having it installed for training purposes at their own premises. The new pitch will have a two star FIFA efficiency rating and the pitch will be surrounded by an irrigation system to clean it from the accumulating dust. This project is to start at the end of this season, that is, near the end of May.
Moldova-Malta live on Melita Cable
Dr Mifsud also revealed that the MFA, through the Malta Broadcasting Authority which is acting as a mediator, has held discussions with PBS, One TV and Net TV with a view to finding a solution to the current impasse on TV and radio broadcasts of local football on these three stations.
He added that he thinks there is a basis for an agreement to be reached, even before the end of this season.
Dr Mifsud also announced that next Saturday’s match in Moldova will probably be transmitted live on Melita Cable. “He said: “Negotiations are in an advanced stage for such a transmission. It involves the payment of thousands of Maltese liri, but Melita Cable are close to finalising the deal. We are all working towards giving the Maltese enthusiasts something they deserve,” he said.
Match against Greece
The MFA will be working hand in hand with General Soft Drinks Co Ltd to help motivate support for Wednesday’s clash against Greece at Ta’ Qali.
Mr Agius, on behalf of the company, said that they were honoured to have Powerade Malta and General Soft Drinks Co Ltd, taking an initiative which will see nursery children being taken to Ta’ Qali with their transport (from every locality) being free of charge.
He also said that Powerade will be donating a small gift to each child who will be present at the game and who would have taken part in the campaign.
He said such an initiative would help to create an awareness on the support needed by the national team in such matches.
The squads
A team
Goalkeepers: J. Haber, A. Hogg, A. Muscat
Defenders: I. Azzopardi, R. Briffa, L. Dimech, J. Mifsud, B. Said, K. Scicluna
Midfielders: G. Agius, R. Bajada, G. Mallia, J. Pace, P. Pullicino, K. Sammut, G. Sciberras
Strikers: E. Barbara, A. Cohen, M. Mifsud, A. Schembri, I. Woods, D. Bogdanovic
Under 21
Goalkeepers: H. Bonello, M. Falzon, M. Montfort.
Defenders: A. Agius, S. Bezzina, R. Camilleri, J. Caruana, T. Farrugia, R. Fenech, J. Grioli, J. Pearson
Midfielders: E. Agius, M. Bartolo, D. Falzon, P. Fenech, R. Fenech, J. Vella
Strikers: A. Buhagiar, E. Herrera, S. Meilak, A. Scerri, I. Zammit
