A soft penalty gave Slovenia a 1-0 win over Malta in their Group H World Cup qualifier.
Malta, ranked 177 by FIFA, under coach Devis Mangia, have grown in belief and stature and despite Slovenia’s much higher FIFA ranking,(66) they were not overrun by Slovenia. Something that was not missed by one English commentator who pointed out Malta looked comfortable against their more highly ranked opponents.
Next up is Russia on Tuesday. Another difficult game, the third in a week for Malta. Mangia said he will make more changes with fitness levels and fatigue likely to play a big part in his team selection.
Photos: Domenic Aquilina
