“We have to be patient to break Malta down” – Gordon Strachan
Scotland national coach Gordon Strachan said yesterday that his team has to be patient to break Malta down. Scotland will face Malta today at Hampden Park in a World Cup 2018 qualifier.
Scotland are still with a chance to obtain second place in the group and gain access to playoffs, and they have to start by obtaining the three points at stake against Malta.
When addressing the press yesterday Strachan said his side played exceptionally well against Lithuania on Friday to obtain a 30 away win that has kept the Scots in the hunt for a World Cup berth. Strachan said that he was pleased with the way they kept possession of the ball and the way they maintained their tempo and created several scoring chances apart from the goals scored.
He said that against Malta his side has to repeat the same performance and be patient to try to break Malta’s organised defensive set up. He said that his side has to keep possession of the ball and aggressive. He said that Scotland made great strides forward and he thinks that they are a far better team than the one faced at Ta’ Qali a year ago.
Ghedin stressed that his players need to be focussed again as Scotland is a very fast side and they will be going all out for the victory that keeps them in the running for the second place. and push forward and wait for the best opportunity to break the deadlock.
He said that Malta are a well organised side and mentioned that against England on Friday at Ta’ Qali, the Maltese only threw in the towel in the dying minutes of the game.
He stressed that his side has to keep a high tempo and move the ball quickly to open up the Maltese back line. He also recalled that Scotland were somewhat lucky to obtain a high margin victory over Malta at Ta’ Qali a year ago.
He said that all his players are fit but he had to evaluate on his best possible eleven, as these back to back matches have their toll on the players’ efficiency. He said that his side evolved during these matches of the qualifying group, and he believes that Scotland should have had more points at this stage of the competition.
Strachan concluded that he is not looking at other results of the group today, even though these
Asked by the Scottish media about the chances Scotland have of gaining second place, he said that Slovakia and Slovenia play a different style of football, but he thinks that Scotland and Slovakia have equal chances of making it to the playoffs.
On the probable formation to face Scotland this evening, Ghedin said that he will decide after the final might put back Scotland back in the running for Russia. He said that the important thing is to play well and give the home crowd a good performance and obtain the points at stake.
Also addressing the press conference was Scottish captain Scott Brown. Like his manager he stressed that they have to keep possession of the ball and be patient to break the Malta defence. Brown said the Scottish fans should give the players a helping hand by their support.
Brown said that they are surely favourites to grab the points at stake against Malta today, but he said that they are not underestimating the Malta side. He said that although they played a good game in Vilnius against Lithuania on Friday, they have to keep focussed on tonight’s opponents.
The Celtic midfielder said that the players still believe in the second place in the group, which he considers it to be a great achievement, as everyone considered England as the super favourites to win this group. training spins before the match. The only doubtful starter will be Valletta defender Joseph Zerafa who limped off in the final minutes of the game against England.
Joseph Zerafa took part in the training session held yesterday at Hampden Park under a heavy shower. Striker Alfred Effiong is now available after serving a onematch ban against England.