Malta Clinch Victory Over Estonia

Estonia welcomed Malta in a friendly match in which the visitors won 2-1. Haley Bugeja broke the deadlock mid-way through the second half. Estonia got the draw in the 88^th minute through Liisa Merisalu, but Maria Farrugia fired Malta back into the lead a minute later to seal the victory for the reds.

A Lethargic First Half

Malta faced injury woes early on after a collision in Estonia’s box led to Emma Lipman having to receive lengthy treatment. The team was down to ten for the majority of the first ten minutes and almost wrote its own downfall when a poor clearance let Estonia right into the box. Vlada Kubassova found the back of the net however, she was ruled offside. Following this, Stephania Farrugia was brought onto the pitch in replacement of captain Emma Lipman, with Charlene Zammit taking the armband.     

The visitors grew into the match but link-up play was not quite up to scratch to truly trouble the hosts. Haley Bugeja almost picked out Rachel Cuschieri in the box after a quarter of an hour of play, but the Estonian defence did just enough to take it away from the path of the midfielder. Maria Farrugia also had a couple of strikes from long-range, but they lacked the power to trouble the keeper.

Meanwhile, Estonia had some good spells of possession and hit the post in the 33^rd minute. The chance came from a free-kick which Malta’s goalkeeper Janice Xuereb managed to fingertip. The ball fell into the path of Kristina Bannikova who re-directed it with her body but was denied by the woodwork.

Thus although both sides had some chances to speak of, neither could capitalise on their spells of possession and went into the break level.

Malta Ramp Up the Intensity

Coach Manuela Tesse opted to bring on Raina Giusti at half-time in replacement of Kailey Willis. The change shifted Haley Bugeja to the central role up front, with Giusti and Maria Farrugia occupying the wings. The change brought more speed to the forward line which paid dividends throughout the half.

Estonia started the half on the front foot, but Malta soaked up the pressure and almost capitalised on a counter-attack in the 60^th minute. Brenda Borg cleared the lines from the corner and simultaneously unleashed Maria Farrugia who ran at the defence. Durham’s forward then released Rachel Cuschieri but her shot was deflected for a corner.

Veteran Dorianne Theuma was brought onto the pitch in replacement of Brenda Borg a few minutes later, which provided further license for Cuschieri to venture forward. In fact, the number 8 had another golden opportunity in the 70th minute, when Haley Bugeja picked out her run behind the defence. Cuschieri attempted to lob the keeper first time but Estonia’s goalkeeper Karina Kork stood tall and got a hand on it.

Following this, Estonia made four changes bringing on Emma Treiberg, Lisa Merisalu Getter Saar and Katriin Saulus, in replacement of Mari Liis Lillemae, Lisette Tammik, Vlada Kubassova and Kristina Bannikova.

Breakthrough Goal & Equaliser

Though Estonia freshened things up, it did little to stop Malta’s momentum who got the lead just a minute later. Dorianne Theuma passed the ball to Haley Bugeja who stood on the edge of the box. The Orlando Pride forward shifted it onto her left foot making enough space to drill the ball into the net, breaking the deadlock.  

Malta had a couple of chances to bury the match, but Estonia got the next goal. The hosts started drilling crosses into the box and Katriin Saulus almost got purchase but for a block by Stephania Farrugia. Emma Treiberg made several good runs but the quality of the ball denied her the opportunity to strike. Despite this Estonia kept plugging away and got their goal in the 88^th minute. Kelly Rosen curled a cross into an unmarked Liisa Merisalu who side-footed it first-time into the bottom left corner.  

Late Drama

Malta responded almost immediately as Rachel Cuschieri won the ball in midfield and rolled it into Maria Farrugia who shimmied her way past the defence and then played in Raina Giusti*. The forward found the back of the net but the goal was ruled out for offside.

However, the reds did not let this dampen their spirits. A minute later Maria Farrugia struck again and though her first attempt was blocked, she shifted the ball onto her left foot and curled one into the top corner to get Malta back into the lead.

Tesse gave Emma Xuereb and Haley Bugeja an early rest and looked to shore up the defence by bringing on Gabriella Zahra and Rebecca Bajada in injury time.  

Despite this, the hosts were almost in on goal in the 94^th minute but for an acrobatic clearance by Charlene Zammit, who then did well to win a free-kick on the second ball to relieve the pressure. Estonia had another chance at the dying embers of the match, but Emma Treiberg was off target with the strike.

Final Score: Estonia 1 – 2 Malta

Estonia’s veteran Signy Aarna was given a commemorative plaque for reaching 107 appearances at the beginning of the match. She was also given a guard of honour by her team when she was substituted off in the 36th minute as she the appearance marked the end of her national career.

Meanwhile, the win continues Malta’s unbeaten record under Manuela Tesse’s reign. Perhaps more importantly, the coach continues to test different players in various roles which will inform decisions in competitive matches as Malta seeks a rise in the rankings.

*Edit: Corrected as the player was initially incorrectly identified.