
Malta’s national football coach, Emilio De Leo, has announced a provisional 37-man squad for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup European qualifiers.
Malta will kick off their Group G campaign with a home match against Finland on Friday, 21st March 2025, at the Ta’ Qali National Stadium, starting at 20:45.
This fixture will mark De Leo’s first competitive match since his appointment as Head Coach in January. Three days later, Malta will travel to Warsaw for a challenging away game against Poland at the Stadion Narodowy on Monday, 24th March, also at 20:45.
The squad includes a mix of experienced players, promising youngsters, and newcomers.
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Among them, James Lee Carragher (Wigan Athletic) and Ilyas Chouaref (FC Sion), recently granted Maltese citizenship by descent, bring the number of foreign-based players to nine.
Returning from injury are Steve Borg and Luke Montebello (Ħamrun Spartans FC), while young talents such as Mattias Ellul, Sven Xerri, Juan Carlos Corbalan, Jake Grech, Bjorn Kristensen, Adam Magri Overend, and Brandon Diego Paiber have also been included.
Defender Zach Muscat, now playing in Turkey, is also named in the squad.
New faces include Andrew (Andy) Borg (Gżira United FC), Jake Azzopardi (Valletta FC), and Isaiah Chukunyere (Hibernians FC), alongside Mattia Veselji (Serbia) and Aleandro Garzia (Floriana FC).
Defender Gabriel Mentz is suspended, while Jurgen Degabriele, Kemar Reid, Jodie Jones, and Dylan Scicluna miss out due to injury.
Tickets are available online and at the stadium’s ticket booths on match day.
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