by The Malta Football Association President, Bjorn Vassallo, together with senior national team coaches, Manuela Tesse and Emilio De Leo, spoke on the objectives for the national teams as they embark on competitive fixtures in the upcoming weeks, urging a strong backing for the teams. Youth cohorts, newly eligible senior national team players and the progress on facilities were also addressed.
Searching For Positive Results & A Push For Players To Play In The Best Leagues
The Malta Football Association President, Bjorn Vassallo, laid out the objectives given to the senior national teams in the upcoming competitive windows as the Malta Football Association embarks on its 125th anniversary.
The Women’s Senior team is tasked with a second promotion for an immediate return to League B in the upcoming UEFA Women’s Nations League. The team will embark on the first two matches, starting with an away match in Larnaca against Cyprus on Friday (18:00 CET) and then facing Andorra at home at the Centenary Stadium on Tuesday 25th at 19:30 CET. Both matches will be broadcast live on TVM Sports+. Tickets for the home match are also already available for purchase online.
The final team in the group that Malta will face will be Georgia, against whom the side will have a double-header in the window in April. Malta will travel to Georgia for a match on the 4th April, followed by a match in Malta on the 8th of April.
The Men’s National Team is expected to push for a points-finish marking an improved performance in the European Qualifiers for the FIFA Men’s World Cup, as well as an improvement in the FIFA World Ranking. The qualifications window begins in March with a home match against Finland (21st March, 20:45), before the side travels to Poland for a match on Monday 24th March (KO 20:45).
President Bjorn Vassallo underlined that the aim of the Association with regards to youth cohorts will continue to be to create a solid pathway to the senior national teams. He addressed also the work being done to attract players through school initiatives, among others.
However, Vassallo was clear that the Association’s aim is to push promising young players to play abroad. He said, “MFA is working toward this. In today’s competitive and global market, football players with talent need to strive to do better, to play in strong leagues and build themselves a career. We have a network of scouts working for us and if we deem them to be able to play in a better league than we have or in better conditions, we shall push for that.”
Malta’s selections from U15 category upwards (male and female) currently feature close to 60 players with a Maltese passport who play in foreign leagues.
Noting the positive mentality of the two national team coaches toward reaching positive results and improved FIFA rankings, President Bjorn Vassallo called on Maltese football players to adopt the same mindset. He extended the message to the local support to bring a positive and numerous presence in matches to rally behind both national teams as they embark on these competitive windows.
New Players & Improvement In Facilities
Both senior national teams are eligible to feature new names in selections.
Manuela Tesse picked all new names in her provisional selection for the first two matches of the UEFA Women’s Nations League. Fiona Buttigieg, who plays for Luton Town, and Oceane Grange, of French club RC Roubaix Wervicq Féminin, have recently become eligible to represent Malta in international football based on parent lineage and merit (marriage to Maltese national), respectively. Jana Barbara (FC Schalke 04) who has featured for Malta at youth level, is also another name eligible for selections having moved abroad at a young age.
James Carragher and Ilyas Chouaref, who play for Wigan Athletic FC (ENG) and FC Sion (SUI) respectively, have now become eligible to play for the Men’s Senior National Team through their lineage.
President Bjorn Vassallo underlined that the extensive work carried out at the Tony Bezzina Stadium last year, is backed by another resurfacing project that will be done at the Centenary Stadium between May and July. The Category 1 stadium being built at the National Football Centre is expected to be first used in September, with a target to open the Centre in the last quarter of this year.
Tesse Praises Domestic Improvement & Wider Squad Depth As Side Pushes For Second Promotion
Manuela Tesse will continue leading the women’s national team, after the Sardinian signed a four-year contract with the Malta Football Association. It will mark a continuation of the work she started in the past two years.
The Sardinian was clear that the target is for automatic promotion by gaining a first-place finish in the group. She acknowledged that Malta has some key players on the sidelines, which is a woe. However, she underlined that the improvements in the level of the domestic Assikura Women’s League, as well as the additions of the new players give Malta a strong foundation to do well in the competition and reach targets.
There are a few changes in the setup backing Manuela Tesse as the team heads into the competition. Assistant Coach, Dionne Tonna, will be departing and her place filled by newcomer Piero Panzanaro. Former Kit Manager, Brendan Tanti, will shift to the Team Manager duties instead of Amanda Farrugia. Joseph Micallef takes the vacant Kit Manager position.
Alessandro Ramella (Goalkeeper’s Coach), Karl Attard (Fitness Coach), Roderick Bajada (Match Analyst), John Zammit Montebello (Doctor), Adam Briffa (Physiotherapist), Celia Formosa (Masseur), and Mirana Agius Silvio (Media Officer) will continue holding their respective duties.
De Leo Monitoring Players & Pushing For A Hard-Working Side
Emilio De Leo will be going headfirst into competitive fixtures in March as listed above. With just over a month to prepare, the Italian is devoting most of his time and efforts in the early weeks of his tenure to assess the form and qualities of the players during domestic matches, while also holding one-to-one
meetings with most of the candidates for selection.
Speaking about the identity of the team he wishes to set up, “We must strive to be a modern team, we certainly can’t be passive. We need to be aggressive and try to impose our game. That doesn’t mean that we will be imprudent, without balance or a Plan B, especially during the course of a match. We have to be an enterprising team, a team determined to improve, grow and show our modern approach also at international level.”
De Leo is supported by three assistant coaches, in Pietro Matafora, Mirko Valdifiori and Ivan Woods. Mario Capece takes the role of Goalkeeper’s Coach, while the team boasts two fitness coaches in Luca Pagani and Angelo Petrelli. Alessandro Davite takes the Match Analyst duties. In the medical department, Daniel McKean takes the Doctor duties, while the team is supported by three Physiotherapists in Luke Busuttil Leaver, Julian Rizzo Naudi, along with Aaron Ancilleri as Masseur. Keith Fenech takes the role of Team Manager, supported by two Kit Managers in Frank Ciantar and Joseph Micallef. Pamela Schembri continues as Media Officer.
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