"Should the Philippines advance to the qualifying group phase, where they will slot into Group A alongside Myanmar, Palestine and Bangladesh, Weiss predicts that his side will be hitting top form as the seek just their second appearance at the AFC Challenge Cup finals. “If we go through we will fly to Myanmar directly for the opening qualifier. The play-off victory will provide a boost for our players so we will strive hard to get the results we deserve.”
fifa.com
Comment : Other reports are telling that group stage will be in Bangladesh.
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i thought bangladesh?
ReplyDeleteThat group is still manageable. Only Myanmar strikes me as the main opposition. But you can never tell, with individual skills, it can turn a game. Look what Chiefy did for the first goal.
ReplyDeleteWe can win against Mongolia decisively. I am more concerned about Palestinia because they have players with foregn extractions like the Azkals who are playing professional football in Europe and Chile. Bangladesh's ranking is not that far from us either, to think they've been inactive for almost a year they still managed to rank that high.
ReplyDeleteI guess it will be a quite tough tournament for the Azakls but first off all they have to overcome Mongolia. I agree I am also more concered about Palestine. I think they can be considered as favourites in the group (in case they come up with their best line up). Myanmar is always hard to play and we didn't manage to win the last matches against them (e.g. 0-0 last Suzuki cup). And don't forget Bangladesh's home advantage. So our Azkals can really show then if they have made one step forward already...but till then it will be a lot of hard work of course
ReplyDeleteour team should focus on every game cause the opponent on there group is tough!they should also do more training in finishing tactics!!!!
ReplyDeleteIm also confused about going to Myanmar because other media reports it will be in Bangladesh .
ReplyDeleteI stand corrected, after reading up, Palestine is certainly a serious contender in that group as they were ranked 115 at one point in time which is no mean feat. Thats higher than any of the three other teams in this group have ever reached. But recently they have not been as active and I cant even see them in the world rankings, unless I am mistaken. so definitely just to make it through this group will be very tough. However, I still like our chances and this will be our first test to show how far the Azkals have come. We really have to train hard and thats whats frustrating. Just for that 2nd game in Mongolia, we dont know if our first 11 ( Etheredige says he's out and so has Grier) will be available so you can see we wont be training as a team. Both Bangladesh and Myanmar have professional leagues in place and their players will have already trained together for months prior to this competition. Until we can have something in the Philippine comparable to that level, we will always be handicapped.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the venue of the actual group stage, there has been no official announcement from AFC where these will be held. Maybe Weiss has some inside information. Myanmar and Bangladesh have the infrastructure to host tournaments such as these. Both countries have stadiums that can seat at least 30,000. Certainly the Philippines has not been a point of discussion as a host.