The national team will be in action once again as Malta faces Lithuania at home on Saturday and then the Netherlands in Groningen on Tuesday. While the boys in red will be eyeing the first point and points in the clash with Lithuania, the game against the Netherlands is probably the most difficult game in the group.

Two games which arrive at the end of a long domestic season which featured a new league format with the introduction of the Final Four concept which determined the champion of the 360Sports Malta Premier, followed by the Meridianbet FA Trophy semi-finals and final.

Addressing the media in a question-and-answer session at the Malta FA Training Grounds, Malta coach Emilio De Leo said “I think that from the first day I arrived we have tried to train and build our own identity. Honestly we have not made a big difference in relation to the opponents we are going to face. We know well that the games certainly give us difficulties. We know well that there is a great desire to collect points in the two games. We certainly know that the trip to the Netherlands will be a difficult trip but I believe that for our level, for our value and for what we are trying to build, day after day …. all the games are difficult and demanding … therefore it will be up to us to come out of both games in a serious way with professionalism. We hope to definitely collect the first points of the season so we will do it with a lot of determination for sure.”

The national squad started to gather on May 19 with the players involved in the FA Trophy semi-finals and final joining a week later. Players based abroad joined the squad on Monday.

Referring to the domestic season finale, De Leo said “The competitive level certainly remains high until the end, the final outcome was always uncertain. It is a positive thing because I think that all the players are kept on edge, everyone thinks that they can get the most, maybe even from a difficult season … as it was the case for some teams in the first phase and then after maybe they managed to come out. From a point of view of physical condition but above all mental desire, it was a positive factor in the sense that everyone until the end thought that they could achieve the maximum result. One has to say that having a long break certainly does not help us much from the point of view of lack of official matches. However on the other hand, we started the first training session on May 19th so we finally managed to work with a group that then gradually grew as other players joined in. We can say that we are coming from a few weeks of preparation and therefore to a certain extent, this also helped us.”

Referring to the players’ condition, the Malta coach said “The condition is good. With regards to those who arrived at the end, in my opinion, beyond a physical tiredness, maybe they were a little more tired from a nervous and psychological point of view. Those who finished the season a little earlier such as the players who did not reach the finals were certainly fresher and more rested, but we had to start again gradually. Let’s say that we had different approaches depending on the groups that had finished the season before or after. However I have to say that we honestly don’t have any particular physical problems. Maybe there is some player who arrived on Monday that we have not had the chance to see him before. However I think that then this is a difficulty of all the teams that clearly start the international window this week, so this is inevitable. However, on our part, we have not had any particular problems.”

“As I always say the approach that must always be very careful to understand what the key is. There were some players who were perhaps a little more disappointed because they expected to get the victory, someone else was more excited because they won the title, maybe even unexpected, so it is also important to pay attention to the psychological aspect because very often that is what drives the condition, the legs and the performance on the pitch.”

Teddy Teuma fell out of favour with his coach at Stade de Reims and has not made a single league appearance since March 9 apart from an appearance in the Coupe de France semi-final appearance where he score the winning goal.

“We will meet him today. We were always in contact with him … our technical staff and also the medical staff always try to be updated. He has been training regularly despite the difficulties he had with the club. However he has always managed to keep himself in condition. From my experience, I can say that these players when they join the national team and you work with with seriousness and professionalism, they give you a boost, they apply themselves with dedication and in my opinion, also an incredible attachment to the shirt, so I am sure that it will also be the opportunity for the player to bring out everything that in nervous terms, he has probably accumulated. Then from a technical point of view, he doesn’t have much to prove.”

Jodi Jones also returned to the squad for the first time since November 2023.

“I have to say he also came here with a lot of humility … a lot of desire to get back into the game …. a lot of desire to help.”

“As they say until the competitive commitments begin and the coach does not have to make choices then the relationships are always easy to manage; when you start to take on responsibilities, then you always have to find the balance. But all I can say is that I have found a guy of great quality and with his technical skills he can certainly help us a lot. It is clear that everyone must enter into our mechanism. The mechanism is that this is a team in which everyone must do their part but as it was the case with all the boys who arrived here, such as Chouaref before, they know it well and are fine-tuning their technical qualities to serve us.”

When asked whether Jones could be Ilyas Chouaref’s replacement since the Swiss-based forward is ruled out through suspension, De Leo said “As in ability, technical qualities, one-on-one, acceleration and restarts, in my opinion, yes. However, there are some differences as, first of all, Ilyas is a right-footer so we tend to exploit him on the left while what Jones, in my opinion, expresses best, being a left-footer, when he plays on the right.”

Once again the squad features a number of young players with goalkeeper James Sissons once again part of the squad after a first national team call-up along with England-based forwards Joshua Pitts and Gunner Elliott, who play for Ipswich Town and Chesterfield respectively. De Leo praised these players and said that such players will continue having opportunities to grow within the national team. He also added that Valletta’s Keyon Ewurum also joined the squad for a number of training sessions.

Emilio De Leo added that the association will remain on the look out for players of Maltese descent who could play for the national team.

The Malta national teams head coach was also asked for his opinion with regards to the format of the 360Sports Malta Premier.

“I always arrive on tiptoe to try to understand the context. Personally, I definitely like the idea of ​​a championship, as we are all used to … a first round and a second round and the team placing first takes the title. However, I do not know well the difficulties of having a small number of teams in the league. There is a positive aspect of the playoffs, the Final Four is something keeps the attention alive … the possibility for everyone to win until the end but I also understand the fact that perhaps a team that in the first part of the season did well, maybe, then feels cheated,” concluded De Leo.