Battling Malta undone by second-half strike against Latvia

Malta’s Under-21 side fell to a narrow 1–0 defeat against Latvia on Tuesday evening, in a tightly contested qualifier at the Centenary Stadium. Despite a strong defensive performance and several promising moments in attack, a single second-half goal proved enough to give the visitors all three points.

The early stages saw both sides struggle to settle into their rhythm. Latvia enjoyed slightly more possession, pushing forward with intent, but the Maltese defence — marshalled by the excellent Karl Sargent in goal — held firm.

Sargent was called into action as early as the 24th minute, tipping away a driven effort from the edge of the box. Five minutes later, Shaisen Attard registered Malta’s first real chance, spinning quickly after receiving a pass from Sven Xerri but firing over.

Joshua Pitts followed up with another Maltese effort on the half-hour mark, cutting inside from the flank and forcing Latvian goalkeeper Nikita Parfjonovs into a routine save.

Latvia remained a constant threat, and Sargent delivered two more crucial stops before half-time — first denying Valerijs Lizunovs with a strong block, then reacting sharply to push away a close-range header from a set-piece. The sides remained locked at 0–0 at the interval.

Malta started the second half with more purpose, and in the 52nd minute, Jake Azzopardi tried his luck from the edge of the area, though his effort lacked power. Moments later, a fast counter-attack saw Pitts force Parfjonovs into a save, with the rebound falling to Attard, who fired over from a promising position.

Despite Malta’s growing momentum, it was Latvia who struck first. A poorly cleared corner in the 60th minute fell kindly to Kevins Cēsnieks, who drove the ball into the net to put the visitors ahead.

Malta pushed hard for an equaliser. Keyon Ewurum came close in the 67th minute after a fine run down the right, while in the 73rd minute Jake Vassallo saw his close-range effort deflect narrowly wide following a dangerous free-kick delivery.

The hosts’ hopes suffered a major blow in the 84th minute when Benjamin Hili was shown a straight red card for a dangerous challenge. Latvia nearly doubled their lead late on, striking the woodwork through Kristians Mezsargs.

Despite their efforts, Malta could not break down the Latvian defence, and the match ended in a slender defeat for Davide Mazzotta’s side.

UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualifier
18 November 2025 – Centenary Stadium, Ta’ Qali

Malta 0
Latvia 1
HT 0–0
60’ Kevins Cēsnieks (LVA)

Line-ups

Malta:
1 Karl Sargent (GK), 2 Sven Xerri, 5 Kean Scicluna (4 Jake Vassallo 46’), 7 Shaisen Attard (14 Keyon Ewurum 64’), 8 Lucas Caruana (21 Sean Gatt 82’), 9 Basil Tuma, 16 Jake Micallef (C), 17 Jake Azzopardi, 18 Daniel Letherby (10 Jake Grech 23’), 19 Benjamin Hili, 20 Joshua Pitts (22 Nicholas Agius 64’)
Coach: Davide Mazzotta

Latvia:
1 Nikita Parfjonovs (GK), 2 Maksims Semeško, 4 Kevins Cēsnieks (6 Ralfs Kragliks 70’), 7 Gļebs Žaleiko, 8 Danny Anisjko (21 Roberts Bočs 46’, 11 Emils Evelons 90+1’), 9 Valerijs Lizunovs (17 Kristians Mezsargs 70’), 10 Ivans Patrikejevs (C), 13 Glebs Mihalcovs, 14 Daniels Nosegbe-Suško, 20 Milāns Tihonovičs, 22 Markuss Strods
Coach: Jakub Dovalil

Referee: Mehmet Türkmen (TUR)

Malta will return to action in the next round of qualifiers, keen to build on the positives and sharpen their final-third efficiency.