AZKALS MAKE FOOTBALL HISTORY
The PHL Azkals make history after beating Tajikistan to clinch a spot to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup for the first time ever
The Philippines made history last Tuesday night after clinching a spot in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup for the first time in history, with a come-from-behind 2-1 win over Tajikistan at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
“The win! It was a perfect way to cap the qualifier round and lift the country to its highest achievement ever. I hope this win resonates across the football community and gives Pinoy football the big lift and support it needs,” said Cebu Football Association (CFA) vice president Rico Navarro of the Azkals’ historic win eight years after the “Miracle in Hanoi.”
Tajikistan, ranked just two spots below the Philippines at 124, took a 1-0 lead with a converted penalty kick by Ahktam Nazarov in the 64th minute after he was fouled by Kevin Ingreso inside the box.
Ingreso later made up for that mistake and headed in a goal in the 74th minute coming from a cross pass by Iain Ramsay.
The Philippines was awarded with a penalty kick in the waning moments of the match after a foul inside the box. Skipper Phil Younghusband converted it with a perfectly struck penalty kick to seal the Azkals’ win in the 90th minute. It was a milestone for Younghusband, one of longest tenured players in the team, who scored his 50th goal in 94 caps for the Philippines.
“I’m happy for the team with their success. Coach (Thomas) Dooley has made a good program for the national team. I’m proud for the Filipinos that we have reached the Asian Cup,” said Ol- iver Colina, head coach of one of the top clubs here in Cebu - Leylam FC.
The Philippines advances to the AFC Asian Cup next year in Abu Dhabi along with Yemen for Group F. The other nations that also qualified are India, Kyrgyz Republic, Lebanon, DPR Korea, Jordan, Vietnam, Palestine, Oman, Bahrain and Turkmenistan. The 12 countries join host UAE, Australia, China, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iran, Japan, Thailand, South Korea, Uzbekistan, Iraq and Syria.
Colina believes that Dooley is a good fit to the Azkals despite of all the criticisms against him.
“They are successful because Dooley is a disciplinarian coach. He wants everybody to follow the system. He is strict in terms of the attitude of his players,” he said.
Colina also said that the win had a lot of factors - a mix of different types of players from overseas and locals, the players’ commitment to play for the team and the huge crowd that packed the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
Though this is a huge step for a budding football country like the Philippines.
Navarro and Colina both believe that we still have a long way to go before we’ll be able to compete against the best Asian countries and earn a slot in the World Cup.
“We’re still far from Asia’s top teams. We need to level up the talent and skills of our elite players even more,” said Navarro.
“Maybe we should continue and earn more experience abroad. But for now it’s still really hard to beat them (Asia’s elite). Unless our football here improves and will be at par with other countries,” said Colina.
Though the Philippines is still far from being an elite football country even in the Asian ranks, it’s indeed moving in the right direction.
It was a perfect way to cap the qualifier round and lift the country to its highest achievement ever. I hope this will give Pinoy football the big lift and support it needs
RICO NAVARRO CFA
Coach (Thomas) Dooley has made a good program for the national team. I’m proud for the Filipinos. Football coach
OLIVER COLINA