by Malta’s U17 Women’s National Team will kick off their commitments in the UEFA WU17 EURO Championship tomorrow, against their hosts Croatia. The Sporting Fan spoke with Malta’s coach Vince Galea on the preparation, selection and the ambition in the competition.
Targets For The Competition
This year will mark a return to the competition for Malta’s U-17 national team, who is under the helm of Vince Galea. The coach was probed on his perception of Malta’s realistic expectations from the matches, based on his experience with the team, including the training camps and friendlies that were scheduled to get the squad ready.
Vince Galea replied in an upbeat manner, “We had a positive two-week training camp in preparation for these qualifiers. Whilst we highly respect all our opponents, our aim and focus should be mainly on our team. This means focusing on the way we will approach each game and the experience our players will get during this week. We are aiming to be very competitive during these qualifiers and this means that we need to support our players to play with confidence and trust in our preparation.”
The competition is split into League A and League B, with those in League B vying for promotion to League A. Malta will play in League B, where promotion is earned by the six group winners, and the runners-up who have the best performance against the teams that won and those that finish third in the group.
Insight Into The Squad Selection
Asked about the selection and his expectations from each of the units, Galea said, “We have chosen a very experienced squad, with the majority of the players born in 2007, who are training and playing their first league games with senior teams.”
Probed about the footballing attributes of the players selected, Galea replied, “The team is generally composed of a combination of technical, flair and power which we coaches are aiming to maximize during this period. We believe that we are strong in each department and every player selected can contribute positively.”
Meanwhile, the team will be playing three matches in a span of seven days. Considering this, the coach was also asked about his thoughts on squad rotation and the importance of this to secure positive results. He weighed in, “Definitely, we need to approach the tournament one match at a time and assess the players’ condition after each match day. Having all players available, well rested and ready to play full or part of the match, will give us a competitive edge. We really trust in our selection.”
The Draw & Matches
Malta will be competing in Group B3, which will pit them against Croatia, Luxembourg and Azerbaijan. Croatia are hosting the matches in the group and are also the team that is drawn from pot 1, meaning that it is the team which was relegated from League A. In this regard, the Maltese contingent will arguably be facing the strongest side in their first match in the competition after a two-year break.
Considering this, the coach was asked whether this combination of factors means that his team will approach the match with a plan containment or if they will still be on the hunt for the points. Speaking about the adversary Galea said, “Without doubt, this will be the toughest challenge, especially also considering that its the first match and that Croatia are playing at home.”
On the other hand, focusing on the elements of his team Galea continued, “Our players are still in the development age and what we expect from the players is to play with confidence and tactical discipline out of possession. We will definitely try to take our chances to gain points. The ability to control emotions and be resilient will be crucial.”
Following the match against the hosts, the Maltese team will be competing against Luxembourg (Thursday 5th October at 15:30) and Azerbaijan (Sunday 8th October at 12:00).
Probed about the chances and expectations from these matches, the coach replied, “Both countries have been making positive strides in women’s football and we expect nothing other than two hard-fought matches. We will focus on these games one at a time.”
The team will play their first match against Croatia tomorrow, Monday 2nd October, at 12:00.
Lead Image: Christabelle Tonna
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[…] to embarking to Croatia, The Sporting Fan spoke with coach Vince Galea about having chosen an experienced selection for the age group, which he hoped would be able to rise to the challenge. Considering this, the […]