The national team is set to feature a number of fringe players as they wrap up their commitments in the September international window with a friendly against Israel at the National Stadium on Tuesday (kick-off: 9pm). Malta is coming into the match on the back of a disappointing 2-1 defeat against Estonia in Tallinn which saw them miss out on an historic promotion to Group C in the UEFA Nations League. Inevitably, that defeat has brought with it an air of disappointment in the Malta FA clan and Devis Mangia had made it clear in his after-match comments that he was keen to give more playing time to those players who have been on the fringes of his team. The build-up to the match was further hampered by the news on Tuesday morning that the Malta Football Association had decided to relieve Mangia of his duties for alleged breach in policies and the team would be led by assistant coach Davide Mazzotta. On Monday, the Italian spoke during the pre-match press-conference and had reiterated his plans to ring the changes to his team. Click here for full story
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