Malta’s World Cup 2022 qualification campaign has ended with a crushing 6-0 defeat away to Slovakia that saw two Maltese players sent off.

Still reeling from their 7-1 defeat to Croatia, Malta went to Ta’ Qali with the knowledge that they were still at least ahead of Cyprus on goal difference, giving them a real chance of avoiding rock bottom.

However, it soon turned sour as Slovakia scored three early goals, courtesy of Albert Rusnák, who scored twice, and Ondrey Duda.

Things went from bad to worse in the second half, with left-back Ryan Camenzuli and midfielder Teddy Teuma both getting sent off.

From there on out, it was all about damage limitation, but Slovakia had no intention of letting Malta off the hook.

Duda and Vernon De Marco scored in quick succession before Duda completed his hat-trick in the 80th minute to complete the rout.

While Cyprus lost 2-1 to Slovenia, Malta’s heavy defeat saw them finish bottom of the group on goal difference.

Cover Photo: Malta Football Association