The Malta women’s under-19 football team ended their UEFA WU19 European Championship campaign on a high with a narrow 1–0 victory over Kazakhstan women’s under-19 football team at the Centenary Stadium on Wednesday.

In a closely contested encounter, both sides created chances, but it was Malta who made the breakthrough in the second half to secure the win.

Malta started brightly and threatened early on, with Nyorah Celeste going close in the 10th minute, cutting in from the left before seeing her curling effort saved by Karolina Guk.

Kazakhstan responded soon after and nearly took the lead on 21 minutes when Yelizaveta Medvedeva’s powerful free-kick crashed against the crossbar.

The remainder of the first half was evenly balanced, with both teams struggling to create clear openings. Francesca Bartolo came close for Malta just before the break after a strong run through midfield, but her long-range effort drifted wide.

Kazakhstan had a golden chance to break the deadlock early in the second half when Ary Yermagambetova capitalised on a defensive lapse, but she failed to hit the target.

Malta made the decisive breakthrough on 61 minutes. Bartolo unleashed a powerful strike from distance that struck the woodwork, and Ema Micallef reacted quickest to slot home the rebound.

Kazakhstan pushed for an equaliser, but goalkeeper Erika Muscat produced an important save in the 73rd minute to deny a close-range effort.

Malta nearly doubled their lead late on, with Micallef firing narrowly wide and Lisa Calleja testing Guk with a strong shot, but the second goal never came.

The Maltese side managed the closing stages well to hold onto their advantage and secure a deserved victory, bringing their qualifying campaign to a positive conclusion.