Gibraltar's Men's National Team kicked off the September International Window in style last night, registering a 1–0 victory over Andorra in the first ever international fixture at the newly renovated Europa Point Stadium.
A debut first-half goal courtesy of dominant midfielder Dan Bent, sealed the victory for Gibraltar, who now go into Sunday’s UEFA Nations League, League D opener v Liechtenstein full of confidence.
The Europa Point Stadium crowd was electric as Liam Walker got proceedings underway, and they were treated to a dynamic start to the game which saw both nations go toe-to-toe as they battled for control of the midfield.
The central pairing of the returning Graeme Torrilla and debutant Bent soon gave Gibraltar a strong foothold from which to progress from, as the dominant midfielders got to work shielding their defence and kickstarting attacks.
The latter of the two would give Gibraltar the lead 18-minutes in, as he capped his first-ever Gibraltar appearance by opening the score. The big man in midfield connected with an Ethan Britto cross, wrong-footing the goalkeeper in the process, to send the ball bouncing into the bottom corner for 1-0.
Gibraltar would continue to grind out chances throughout the first half, with the attacking trident of Tjay De Barr, Ethan Britto and James Scanlon causing havoc at the back for Andorra.
De Barr in particular, who would strike the crossbar in the first 45, was proving to be a particular handful, with his mazy dribbling, physicality and movement proving tough to handle for the away side.
The second half proved to be a significantly scrappier affair as Andorra went in search of an equaliser, while the elements began to play their part at a breezy Europa Point Stadium.
For all their attacking endeavour in the first half, Gibraltar showed they were still solid as The Rock in defence, with the back four of Ethan Jolley, Bernardo Lopes, Louie Annesley and Jayce Olivero, ensuring that Bradley Banda remained relatively untested in goal.
With this being said, Gibraltar not content with a one-goal lead would continue to search for their second goal of the game, going closet through Walker, who almost curled the ball into the top corner direct from a corner.
Despite a goalless second half, there was a moment that got the home fans up and cheering after Julian Valarino made his long-awaited return to the pitch for Gibraltar, having served a long spell out with injury that kept him away from the National Team since March 2023.
Gibraltar’s attention now turns to Sunday and the UEFA Nations League, as they welcome Liechtenstein to the Europa Point Stadium in their League D campaign opener.
