MFA president Dr Joe Mifsud yesterday confirmed the presence of UEFA President Michel Platini and FIFA president Josip Blatter for some activities coinciding with the centenary celebrations to mark the first football championship in Malta in 1909-10.
Platini will be here for the UEFA Congress being held in January and Blatter is being invited to attend a Gala dinner, for which the presidents of all the European Football Associations will be invited to attend. Representatives from all the local football community will also be invited.
Dr Mifsud said: “It will be a big occasion for Maltese football as we celebrate three anniversaries this season. It is true that the first championship was held with just a few matches but, since then, the game has developed so much that no comparison can be made. Even the venues have changed – from what one can describe as fields to sandy pitches and now to grass or fully approved artificial turf surfaces.”
He added that, it was a pity that this year has been marred by cases of corruption, not only in the Premier League. “There are other cases being investigated in the lower divisions. We are certainly not happy with the trouble which has erupted but we will always continue to do our best to have the game played as it should be – in the cleanest way possible. It would have been bad for all the football set-up had we ignored these cases as if nothing had happened. But we did not, and I feel that every case has to be given its due importance, even if the unexpected delays caused concern, especially among the clubs.”
Replying to questions from the press, Dr Mifsud reiterated that if a person forming part of a football club affiliated to the MFA is found guilty in any corruption case, he will drag the club with him in guilt. “Even if this person was acting on his own behalf without the knowledge of the other committee members,” he added.
Asked by this newspaper what would happen if Vittoriosa were to win their appeal and the Board of Appeals ordered the re-instatement of the team in the Premier League, Dr Mifsud said, “At present I am not in a position to say what will happen. I do not know and no one knows. What we know is that the appeal will not take very long to be decided as was the case with the investigation. We have to wait and see.”
Asked whether the second and third divisions could encounter the same fate as the Premier League and First Division because of the current pending cases, Dr Mifsud said the Board was still in the process of investigating. “I have not interfered with their work, except for the fact that I have asked them on more than one occasion not to delay the cases more than required. With regard to the Premier League and the First Division, the Board now knows that the Council has to decide on 17 September when Monday’s deferred meeting resumes. As to the second and third division, no one can say what will be decided upon yet. When the verdicts are issued we will take the action needed,” he said.
Dr Mifsud also referred to a competition for children – in the form of a quiz – and the Centennial Championship Anniversary Cup, as two other activities forming part of the celebrations. Draws for the Cup matches will soon be held.
National teams
The MFA president also spoke about the three national team matches – tomorrow’s Under- 21 qualifier against Belgium, tomorrow’s friendly against Cape Verde Islands, as well as Wednesday’s World Cup qualifier against Sweden. All the three matches are being played at Ta’ Qali.
Dr Mifsud revealed that several (around 800) Swedish fans were travelling to Malta to watch the match and these will be ‘housed’ at the West A stand in the Enclosure.
He appealed to the local fans to continue giving their full support to the national teams, considering the fact that these two matches are considered to be very difficult.
Louis Agius, on behalf of the South End Core, said the group will be at both matches. “We will be giving our support and hope to see more fans joining us, especially next Wednesday. There will be a pre-party at the University Campus following which there will be transport to the Stadium for the match which kicks off at 6.30pm,” he said.
Seminars
The MFA president said that another activity coinciding with the celebrations will be the organisation of an international seminar on marketing, to which all UEFA-affiliated countries will be invited to send representatives.
Dr Mifsud also revealed that two seminars for European referees will be held in Malta during this season.
The first one will involve new referees on the FIFA list, while the second will involve the top referees in Europe, that is, those who control Champions League, Europa League and international matches.
Women’s football
The MFA president went on to say that the national team will be taking part in the FIFA World Cup for women. “There are no longer the mini tournaments we had become accustomed to. The women’s competition is to be held on the same format as the men’s World Cup and our team has been drawn against tough opposition in the form of Spain, England, Austria and Turkey.
Answering questions from the floor, coach Pierre Brincat said they were aware of the difficult matches. He said: “It is true that progress has been achieved locally, but it will not be enough for our girls against such tough opponents as those drawn in our group. If one takes a look at the current European Championship matches on TV, one will be able to note the high standard of some of the girls in action. However, we hope to be well organised, especially in defence.
“The results obtained by Birkirkara in the women’s championship league confirmed the big gap that exists between certain top nations and smaller countries like ours. But I still remain in favour of participation, because that will enable our girls to gain more experience, which will certainly lead to further progress.”
New clinic
Dr Mifsud announced the opening of a new clinic at the Centenary Stadium for medical tests on players.
He said that each club, starting from the Premier League, is being given three days at its disposal to send its players for check-ups at just e6 per test. These sessions are being held between Mondays and Thursdays.
He criticised a Premier League club for failing to send even one of their players for these tests. Dr Mifsud added that a charge is now being issued against the club to explain their position and say why they refused sending players for such an important test.
Every club can send between 10 and 12 players for such medicals.
Provisional Malta national team squads
The following are the provisional Malta squads – Seniors and Under- 21 – for the forthcoming international matches.
The Under-21 team faces Belgium in a UEFA Under-21 Championship qualifier tomorrow, while the national seniors team plays a friendly against Cape Verde Islands tomorrow followed by a World Cup qualifier against Sweden on Wednesday.
Seniors squad
Goalkeepers: Justin Haber, Andrew Hogg, Mario Muscat
Defenders: Andrei Agius, Ian Azzopardi, Shaun Bajada, Jonathan Caruana, Alex Muscat, Emmanuel Muscat, Brian Said, Kenneth Scicluna
Midfielders: Gilbert Agius, Roderick Briffa, Clayton Failla, Ryan Fenech, George Mallia, Jamie Pace, Kevin Sammut
Strikers: Etienne Barbara, Andrew Cohen, Michael Mifsud, Jean Pierre Mifsud Triganza, Andre Schembri.
Under-21 squad
Goalkeepers: Henry Bonello, Nicky Vella
Defenders: Steve Bonnici, Adrian Borg, Steve Borg, Ryan Camilleri, Tyron Farrugia, Timi Fleri Soler, Clifford Gatt Baldacchino, George Gribbon, Duncan Pisani
Midfielders: Luke Agius, Dylon Grima, John Mintoff, Beppe Muscat, Karl Pulo, Mark Scerri, Joseph Zerafa
Strikers: Ben Camilleri, Miguel Ciantar, Julian Galea, Warren Chircop, Terence Vella.