Maltafootball.com editor: It was difficult to imagine such a win

By Vera Martirosyan

It was difficult to imagine that Malta could win, says editor of Maltafootball.com website Antoine Busuttil.

In an interview with NEWS.am Sport , he told about his impressions about the World Cup qualifying match against Armenia which ended with Malta’s victory 1-0.

Please, tell about your impressions about the match.

As expected, Armenia went out on the attack but the Maltese were determined not to allow their opponents to open the score. The Maltese defenders - Camilleri, Caruana, Dimech and Muscat - played a great game while goalkeeper Justin Haber was instrumental with a string of fine saves. Armenia did create several goal scoring opportunities but the Maltese did a great job in keeping them at bay. Considering that most of our opponents are far stronger than us, even in this game, we have to defend and rely on fast breaks. That is what the team did in Yerevan. We defended well and took almost full advantage of the chances we created.

Could you imagine that you can win this match?

It was difficult to imagine such a win. The last away win for Malta was twenty years ago against Estonia and the last home win was against Hungary in 2006. When the draws for this group were held in July 2011, many felt that the home match against Armenia was the only real opportunity for Malta to win but Armenia won 1-0. The team had played well but still ended up losing the game. However apart from the heavy defeat to Bulgaria, performances in the other matches were quite encouraging and I felt that in one game or another we would still "steal" a point from one of the remaining games. Being realistic, thinking about winning away from home is difficult.

Malta has not won official matches since 2006. How did you (team, supporters) celebrate that victory?

The players could not contain their joy after such an unexpected result. Same thing for the few supporters who traveled with the team and even the journalists present as it is not easy to witness a Malta win in a competitive match, let alone an away win. A number of supporters came to the airport to greet the team.

What do you think is the reason of your victory?

The team has been working hard despite the fact that the results were usually negative. For the coach, it is even a more difficult job as he has to motivate the players to do well, no matter which opponent you are facing. Playing friendly matches against countries which are more or less on the same level as our teams turned out to be a good idea because victories in these games helped maintain the morale high. Tactically coach Pietro Ghedin is doing a good job as he continued to build on the positive of previous coaches.

What can you say about Armenia’s national team? Which are our weak sides?

Despite the defeat, Armenia still have top-level players who are doing well in other countries like Russia and Ukraine. In the EURO campaign, Armenia did an excellent job, just missing the runner-up spot. Considering that most of the players are still there, perhaps with stronger team-work, the team could achieve more.

In your opinion, which two squads will take 1-2 places in this group?

Italy will definitely make it as group winners while for the remaining places, it will be a battle between Bulgaria, Denmark and the Czech Republic although the home defeat to Denmark was a big blow for the Czech Republic. Apart from hosting Italy, Denmark have to play twice against Armenia and Malta and so seem to have easier games. On the other hand, Bulgaria still have to face Italy and the Czech Republic.

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