MALTESE HOPE TO MAINTAIN CREDITABLE RUN

Malta will again be in action when they face Croatia at Ta’ Qali National Stadium on Tuesday 13 October, a match which will draw the curtains down on the Group H schedule prior to the play-offs in November and ahead of the finals in France between 10 June and 10 July 2016.   The match will be played three days after Malta’s away clash against Norway, who, like Croatia, are still in contention for a berth in the finals.Malta will be hoping to conclude their Euro adventure on a creditable note especially after their very narrow 1-0 away defeat against Italy and their 2-2 draw at Ta’ Qali against Azerbaijan, a match which had our team being denied by a late goal in what would have been a much yearned for victory.Coach Pietro Ghedin knows full well that his players are nearly always up against much stronger opponents and although they suffered slim defeats against two of the strongest teams in Group H, Italy twice and Croatia, he maintains that Malta needs to break a psychological barrier and register victory.Croatia will be difficult opponents. They are currently third in the table, two points adrift of Norway, after having been docked a point by the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Board for their racist behaviour when they drew 1-1 with Italy at home last June. They have also been made to play their next two matches against Azerbajan and Norway behind closed doors. With this ban now served their home supporters will certainly spur the team on for possible qualification at least via the play-offs.It is a much more mundane scenario for Malta, with the team keen on erasing the 2-0 defeat in September 2014 against their Slav opponents and in the process increase their points’ tally.If our boys in red can summon the self-belief so evident in their matches against Italy and Azerbaijan early in September, our chances of closing this European chapter on a very satisfactory note will be realistic.As usual, backing from the Maltese public is of paramount importance.The match is scheduled for 20.45 hrs kick-off. Previous matches against Croatia:10.10.98       Malta 1 Croatia 4  EC21.08.99       Croatia 2 Malta 1 EC30.03.05       Croatia 2 Malta 0 WC07.09.05       Malta 1 Croatia 1 WC17.11.10       Croatia 3 Malta 0 EC02.09.11       Malta 1 Croatia 3 EC09.09.14       Croatia 2 Malta 0 EC     (EC)  -   European Championship Qualifier   -   (WC)  -   World Cup Qualification Match