HENRY BRINCAT

National coach Dusan Fitzel, from the Czech Republic, has no injured players – barring any following last night’s Trophy final – and is planning to include 20 players in his squad for the trip to Norway and Bosnia later next week.

Malta will be playing two away matches in the space of a few days, meeting Norway first today week and then Bosnia on Wednesday of the following week.

Fitzel said yesterday the two matches will be very tough. “Against Norway we will be playing against a team in which 17 of their players have been playing in a new season for eight weeks. Bosnia have replaced their coach and have several new faces. They will certainly be eager to get a positive result.

“Taking a look at my team, we will have Luke Dimech and Roderick Briffa missing from the Norway match through suspension, but I hope to make use of them in Bosnia. Also, till yesterday, I had to prepare for these matches with 14 or 15 players, because of the six players from Hibernians and Sliema who were obviously training with their club squads. However, I have no injuries and I hope the situation will remain the same following last night’s match,” he said.

The Norway match will mark a milestone for captain Gilbert Agius. He will be seeking to make his 100th appearance, of course, if selected by Fitzel. Agius said: “It is a big achievement for me. But on such a day, it is not the honour which is important. First and foremost, we have to think of another good performance by the whole team,” he said.

Asked whether Malta will face some consequences against Norway through the absence of the suspended Luke Dimech in defence, Fitzel replied with confidence, saying: “Against Greece, Luke was not there. I was very pleased with how Brian Said and Kenneth Scicluna handled the situation. Moreover, now we have Stephen Wellman back in the squad,” he said.* * *

Provisional squads

National team

Goalkeepers: Justin Haber, Mario Muscat, Andrew Hogg

Defenders: Ian Azzopardi, Roderick Briffa, Luke Dimech, Josef Mifsud, Peter Pullicino, Brian Said, Kenneth Scicluna, Stephen Wellman.

Midfielders: Gilbert Agius, Roderick Bajada, Etienne Barbara, George Mallia, Jamie Pace, Kevin Sammut.

Strikers: Daniel Bogdanovic, Andrew Cohen, Michael Mifsud, Andre Schembri, Ivan Woods.

Under 21

Goalkeepers: Henry Bonello, Michael Falzon, Miguel Montfort.

Defenders: Andrei Agius, Steven Bezzina, Jonathan Caruana, Clayton Failla, Tyrone Farrugia, Roderick Fenech, Clifford Gatt Baldacchino, Justin Grioli, Edward Herrera.

Midfielders: Edmond Agius, Matthew Bartolo, Dyson Falzon, Paul Fenech, Ryan Fenech, Thomas Paris, Karl Pulo, Julian Vella.

Strikers: Angus Buhagiar, Stephen Meilak, Ian Zammit, Luke Woods