by Malta delivered another strong performance against Andorra, treating the home crowd to a 5-0 goal rush. Haley Bugeja scored a brace, while Stephania Farrugia, Maria Farrugia and Rachel Cuschieri completed the scoring.
Team News
Manuela Tesse made no changes to the starting eleven that triumphed over Moldova. Janice Xuereb started in goal for Malta. There were no changes from the back-four that started against Moldova, with Emma Xuereb and Ann-Marie Said flanking captain Emma Lipman and Stephania Farrugia. Nicole Sciberras protected the defence, with Rachel Cuschieri and Brenda Borg orchestrating further afield. There was also an unchanged front trio with Haley Bugeja and Alishia Sultana flanking Ylenia Carabott.
Meanwhile, Jose Antonio Martin made just one change from the side that met Latvia in the previous window. Luna Vazquez continued her stay in goal. She was protected by a back four, with Neus Rosas and Erica Goncalves in its centre, while Laia Sin and Paula Rosas provided the width. Captain Marina Muelas Fernandez partnered Maria Da Cruz in midfield, while Iria Dominguez and Sonia Del Barco provided the width. Paula Marquez supported Maria Ruzafa in attack.
Prior to the match, the Maltese contingent commemorated the twentieth anniversary from the composition of the first national team.
Two Headers Give Malta Comfortable Lead
The home side kicked off with a high defensive line that kept Andorra at bay for most of the half. On their part the visitors were happy to drop deep and maintain their shape, allowing the Maltese midfield trio to pick up the ball in the centre of the pitch and rotate to the wings, while keeping the box as crowded as possible.
Malta enjoyed the early share of possession, while Andorra attempted to get Maria Ruzafa on the run against the two centre-backs. The Andorrans managed to win a corner which forced a punch from Janice Xuereb. Haley Bugeja set Malta off on the counter but her pass out wide to Ylenia Carabott was thwarted.
Despite having plenty of possession, Malta did not truly manage to test Luna Vazquez in the first quarter of an hour. However, having grown in confidence, the home side found their opening goal seventeen minutes into the match as Ann-Marie Said picked out Haley Bugeja out at the far post with a cross. The forward rose high and directed into the far corner of the net to send her country into the lead.
The goal sparked more energy into the the match. Rachel Cuschieri teased a ball over the defence for Ylenia Carabott to head but it was just ahead of the forward. At the other end, Andorra earned a free-kick on the left wing. Captain Marina Fernandez Muelas delivered but got too much power into it, letting Malta off the hook.
On the other hand, Malta were not happy with just the one goal. Andorra managed to see out successive corners but it was one too many. The 23rd minute saw Stephania Farrugia head home the second, with club and national teammate Ann-Marie Said grabbing her second assist of the night.
Ylenia Carabott almost made it three two minutes later trying to head home from a Rachel Cuschieri delivery, but she was denied by the crossbar. In the meantime, Manuela Tesse started one of many swaps between Haley Bugeja and Alishia Sultana that continued throughout the half.
Having gone two behind Andorra kept their resolve, with Marina Fernandez Muelas picking out the run of Erica Goncalves at the edge of the box. The number thirteen struck hard and true but straight into the hands of Janice Xuereb.
The home side continued their positive approach to the match with numerous players getting involved. In one attack, Nicole Sciberras opened wide for Alishia Sultana, who involved Brenda Borg and Ann-Marie Said. The latter whipped a cross toward Ylenia Carabott, but her header was snuffed out by Luna Vazquez.
Laia Sin was shortly booked for a trailing elbow on Haley Bugeja, but the home side could not add to their tally. Rachel Cuschieri and Haley Bugeja continued their link-up but Bugeja saw her effort zoom past the wrong side of the post. Close to half-time Alishia Sultana forced as stop from Luna Vazquez, while Brenda Borg saw an effort sail above the crossbar from a tight angle.
Half-Time Score: Malta 2 – 0 Andorra
Malta Bright On The Restart
Both coaches opted for changes at the break. Emma Xuereb gave way to Jessica Dimech who slotted in the right-back role. Meanwhile, Andorra switched up their midfield and attack. Sonia Del Barco gave way Miriam Tizon Fernandez who slotted in midfield. Iria Dominguez was replaced by Gemma lluch Camin, with the latter taking the central striker role, while Maria Ruzafa shifted to the wing.
Malta killed off any motivation from the half-time talk as Rachel Cuschieri linked with Haley Bugeja once more for the third, a minute into the half. The striker cut inside and stuck a boot through it, which the goalkeeper got hands on but could not keep out.
Following the break the visitors switched into a higher-press, which led to some initial improvement. They attempted to trouble from a free-kick which was delivered deep into the box but there was not enough pressure on the ball to trouble Malta’s defence.
Both coaches mirrored each other with substitutions on the hour mark. Malta’s Ylenia Carabott and Alishia Sultana gave way to Kailey Willis and Maria Farrugia. The latter making her first appearance since the opening match against Latvia because of injury. Jose Antonio Martin introduced centre-back Laura Borja Martin instead of Maria Moles, with Neus Rosas shifting to the full-back role.
The substitutes got in on the action immediately. Kailey Willis knocked down a header for Bugeja who ran free toward goal, and opted for the shot instead of picking out Maria Farrugia’s run out on the far post. However, Bugeja’s close-range effort was expertly denied by Luna Vazquez.
At the other end, Andorra’s Marina Muelas attempted to release Maria Ruzafa but Jessica Dimech read the danger before sending her team off in the other direction. There was some relief for the Andorrans as Emma Lipman skied a rebound after Luna Vazquez made an initial stop to Rachel Cuschieri’s long range free-kick.
The two coaches continued their mirroring act, with Manuela Tesse bringing on Shona Zammit instead of Brenda Borg. Jose Antonio Martin made a double-switch, bringing on Noa Gallinat Civico and Teresa Armengol instead of Erica Goncalves and Laia Sin.
Maria Farrugia & Rachel Cuschieri Wrap Up The Win
Having seen an long-range effort skim the roof of the net, Maria Farrugia capped off her appearance with a goal in the 74th minute. Rachel Cuschieri displayed excellent vision and technique to find the forward’s run with curled ball. Farrugia still had plenty to do, but beat her marker and sat down the goalkeeper with one turn, before calmly placing into the gaping net for Malta’s fourth.
Andorra attempted to respond once more with a cross from the right wing toward Ruzafa at the far post. However, the striker was choked out of space to turn by Dimech.
The night continued to get worse for the Andorrans when Malta were awarded a penalty for a ball handling error. Rachel Cuschieri saw her initial strike saved by Luna Vazquez, but was calm with the rebound to wrap up the performance.
Malta’s Tesse made one final switch, bringing on Charlene Zammit in a straight swap with Emma Lipman, with the two also swapping the captain’s armband. The substitute almost added a sixth in the 84th minute, from a corner delivery from Ann-Marie Said. However, she saw her effort saved just on the line.
Andorra continued tweaking their system, while substitutes Noa Gallinat Civico and Teresa Armengol combined for the latter to strike from distance. However, Janice Xuereb was well positioned once more. Meanwhile, Malta kept up the attack but could not add to their tally.
Full-Time Score: Malta 5 – 0 Andorra
Post-Match Reactions
Andorra’s Jose Antonio Martin
Andorra’s Jose Antonio Martin heaped praise on Malta for their performance, “Malta did a great job. Physically we did not win the one-on-one battles which I think proved crucial today.” Probed further about what he thought gave Malta such a big advantage and his decision to change the press at half-time, he replied, “I think it was in the fine details, not only tactical but in small details. As regards the press, the match was lost at half-time so we wanted try different things to improve.”
Questioned about the changes required ahead of their next meeting with Malta, in front of a home crowd, Andorra’s coach replied, “We have to make changes because the result is difficult and we must improve.”
Malta’s Manuela Tesse
His opposing number, Manuela Tesse was understandably in an upbeat mood. Referring to the pre-match interview where she rejected any reliance on Haley Bugeja to get Malta’s goals and that she believed more would get on the scoresheet, the coach quipped “As you can see I am a fortune-teller.” However, speaking on the whole performance, the coach is still searching for improvement from her squad. “Yes, it is a good win, but we lost a lot of simple balls so I am still not very happy. There is still a lot to improve on because on another day we would be punished.”
Questioned about her decision to substitute many players, “I would like to do substitutions in every match but it is not always possible. Today, we were more in control so there was the possibility to put on a lot of players. I hope this will be the case in Andorra too.”
The coach did not only demand improvement from her squad, but also from Malta’s support. “The supporters were amazing today, but we want more. We must promote the game more.” The coach continued, “I told the players before the game, the supporters are here for you today and you must make them proud and they did their job.”
Malta’s Stephania Farrugia, Ann-Marie Said and Rachel Cuschieri
Defender Stephania Farrugia capped off her appearance with a goal, noting “It is always an honour to score for your country. The best thing is sharing these joyous moments with the team because we are getting these results by working together.”
Questioned about working with captain Emma Lipman to shut out Andorra, Farrugia replied, “We focused on staying as compact as possible. It was important for us to work together and communicate so that we deny them the opportunity to get close to goal and get into the match.”
Meanwhile, full-back Ann-Marie Said assisted the opening two goals, while also taking on defensive duties. Speaking about the performance she said, “We wanted to build on the initial performances in the competition and I think we improved in our chance creation and conversion rate. Defensively, a clean sheet is always a positive even though there were moments were perhaps we were a bit disjointed. We will work on this and hopefully improve in the next match.”
Rachel Cuschieri was also one of the brighter players on the night, chipping in with two assists and a goal. She said, “Of course I’m very proud of my team and the way we played. It’s always good to win games and of course score a lot of goals.”
Having been a protagonist in all previous encounters against Andorra, the midfielder was probed for thoughts on the growth of the team since then. Cuschieri replied, “I think we are growing after each game, especially after the game against Moldova. We did not play as best as we should have, but today we played with a lot of passion and in the end we got rewarded for our great performance.”
Malta will next travel to Andorra, where the two sides will meet at Andorra’s National Stadium on Tuesday 31st October at 19:00 CET. Malta still lead the group, closely trailed by Latvia who beat Moldova on the same day.
Images: Lara Schembri
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