AZKALS head coach Hans Michael Weiss hopes that the Philippines’s 4-0 triumph over Nepal in the Fifa-sanctioned friendly match on Tuesday night has quelled most of the doubts about the team’s capability.
With its world ranking slipping despite its growing popularity in the country, the national football team put up a performance worth remembering in front of nearly 3,000 fans who watched the game at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium.
“It was a fantastic performance. We had a meeting early and sat together and discussed that we end the year with a bang and clearly answered all the criticisms of this team,” said the German coach.
“But we need to play more tough games for us to be in a high level. But I’m happy with our performance and I think this was the result the people wanted to see from the team,” Weiss added.
Brothers Phil and James Younghusband led the Azkals assault, with the former delivering the first blow against the 135th-ranked Gorkhalis in the 17th minute with a roller off a Paul Mulders pass.
His elder brother James made it 2-0 with a fantastic finish just outside the penalty box 12 minutes after Phil’s goal to give the 166th-ranked Azkals a comfortable margin in the first half.
The 24-year-old Phil, who dedicated the performance to his mom Susan who passed away last month, scored his second goal in the 55th minute with a flip at the left-bottom corner on a feed by Dennis Cagara that Nepal goalkeeper Kiran Limbu failed to handle.
Phil was also involved in the final goal of the match as he set up substitute Matthew Hartman inside the penalty box for an angled shot that safely hit the net.
Nepal head coach Graham Roberts said he was “ashamed” of their performance but he cited the Philippines for a great performance despite the 31-spot discrepancy of the nations’ standings in the world ranking.
“We didn’t have the sharpness. We haven’t played for three months,” said Roberts. “That’s what will happen. A good international team will punish you when you commit such mistakes.”
Phil said the victory against Nepal was a good booster as the Azkals prepare for the Asian Football Confederation Challenge Cup next year.
“I think we have players now who can complement each other. Right now we have a team which can do very well,” said Phil.
Weiss said the team will take a brief break then most of the players will compete in the United Football League, which, according to the German tactician, will keep the Azkals in good shape when they resume practice in January next year.
“Myself and the coaching staff have to maintain the high level of training of the team and hopefully we can sustain that,” he said.
“We still need to jell with each other, know each other better because our problem is concentration when we face stronger teams,” Weiss added. “But I’m very proud of the progress of the team in the last one and a half years and I commend Dan Palami and the management for what they have done.”
Weiss now focuses on the preparations of the national under-23 squad for the Southeast Asian Games in Jakarta next month. The team will set up training camp in Japan at the end of the month.
