National coach Pietro Ghedin was feeling very bad after the 4-1 defeat at the hands of a vastly superior Czech Republic side on Friday night at Ta’ Qali.
The Italian mentor described his side’s performance, especially that of the first half, as the worst since he came back in June of last year.
He said: “We cannot suffer goals as we did tonight and in recent matches. Such grave mistakes are letting us down because our stronger opponents always punish us. They show no mercy.”
“In the first half, there was no commitment from the team. The first goal should have been avoided. The second and third goals were even worse. How can we expect to improve if we continue making such grave mistakes,” he asked.
Ghedin added: “I am very disappointed and angry even if we made a somewhat good reaction after the interval. I am sure it was not a question of whether the players are well trained. On certain occasions, it is OK to lose, but certainly not by donating such gift goals. Several of my players – in that first half – were under par. The least I can say is that I am very disillusioned. Now we are all hoping for a better performance in Copenhagen on Tuesday.”
However, apart from the criticism for his side, Ghedin also drew some positives from this match.
He spoke about Mifsud’s 100-match landmark, saying: “I am happy for Michael. On ‘his’ day, he scored a goal and had a couple of other chances.”
And he added: “At least two other players, Andrew Cohen and Rowen Muscat, made me happy. Cohen was Andre Schembri’s substitute and he played the role almost to perfection even going close to scoring a goal. Muscat was my greatest surprise. He never stopped. I am also very happy for this lad who is improving fast.”
Pesice: Early goal paved way for confident performance
Czech Republic new coach Josef Pesice, making his debut as the national coach after the resignation of Michal Bilek last month, was very happy with the convincing win and good performance of his team on Friday night.
He said, however, that the early goal helped in no small measure to pave the way to the victory.
“The match proved to be easier than expected. I knew that Malta had been tough opponents for every other team, especially at home. But that goal gave my players the confidence they needed.
“Even when Malta scored that early second half goal, we were able to retaliate immediately and re-established our two-goal lead, adding another in the final stages,” he said.
Pesice is aware that the Czechs have just a remote chance of making it to the playoffs. After Bulgaria’s defeat by Armenia on Friday, the table shows Bulgaria having 13 points with Denmark, The Czech Republic and Armenia having 12. He said: “We are aware there is a remote chance. We will be tryingour best to make it to the playoffs. Everything now depends on the final matches on Tuesday.”
The team which finishes second behind Italy in the Group, stands a chance of making it into next month’s play-offs.
The squad for Denmark
National coach Pietro Ghedin has made only two changes to his 20-man squad for next Tuesday’s match against Denmark at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen – the last qualifier in this World Cup group.
Gareth Sciberras, who was in Friday’s squad for the match against the Czech Republic but remained on the bench, as well as the injured Jonathan Caruana, have been dropped.
Their places are being taken by Clifford Gatt Baldacchino and Andre Schembri, who is returning from suspension.
The squad is the following:
Goalkeepers: Justin Haber, Henry Bonello.
Defenders: Luke Dimech, Ryan Camilleri, Alex Muscat, Clifford Gatt Baldacchino, Justin Grioli, Andrei Agius.
Midfielders: Clayton Failla, Roderick Briffa, Andrew Cohen, John Mintoff, Rowen Muscat, Edward Herrera, Paul Fenech, Shawun Bajada.
Strikers: Andre Schembri, Terence Vella, Michael Mifsud.
The Maltese contingent will be leaving for Copenhagen today.