The Malta Football Association announces the appointment of Tom Saintfiet as the new coach of the national team.

Saintfiet, from Belgium, takes over the reins of the national team with immediate effect. He succeeds Pietro Ghedin whose five-and-a-half-year tenure at the helm of the national team came to end after the Malta's final 2018 World Cup qualifier against Slovakia last Sunday.

Aged 44, Saintfiet is a UEFA Pro qualified coach with a wealth of experience in international football, having worked as national coach of several countries, mostly in Africa and Asia.

Saintfiet was awarded the job after emerging as the stand-out candidate in a thorough evaluation exercise carried out by the Malta FA Technical Centre over the past months. His credentials are also endorsed by the Belgian FA.

“Saintfiet’s footballing knowledge and qualifications allied with his vast experience in international football where he has coached several developing nations, made him the outstanding candidate for the post of Malta coach,” Norman Darmanin Demajo, the President of the Malta FA, said.

“We are pleased that Saintfiet has accepted our offer to become national coach and we are convinced that he will do an excellent job both for the national side and as a prominent member of our technical sector.”

Saintfiet, who took up coaching at the young age of 24 after his playing career was curtailed by injuries, expressed his satisfaction at his appointment as the new Malta coach.

“I’m honoured to be the new national coach of Malta,” Saintfiet, who is also the author of the book ‘Trainer Zonder Grenzen’ (Trainer Without Borders), said.

“My ambition is to help the Maltese national team move forward and also assist in the long-term development of Maltese football at all levels with the backing of all the stakeholders.”

Saintfiet’s first match in charge of Malta will be the friendly against Estonia, to be played on 12th November, 2017 at the National Stadium.

The Belgian will be presented to the media in the coming days.

