MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) - Myanmar scored a late goal in stoppage time to deny the Philippine Azkals a victory and precious 3 points in their match on Monday.
James Younghusband's penalty in the 76th minute earlier seemed enough for the Azkals to stun the tournament hosts.
The Azkals' opponents were reduced to 10 men after a Myanmar player was sent off.
However, with clock winding down, the Myanmarese pulled off an escape.
Simon Greatwich committed a foul just outside the box and a free kick was given to Myanmar.
Khin Maung Lwin's free kick went around the wall set up by the Philippines and struck the bar before going in.
Etheridge's heroics
Before the Philippines scored its goal, Neil Etheridge was having a man-of-the-match performance as he led the Azkals in fending off Myanmar's attacks.
Etheridge was a commanding presence inside the box in the first period, snuffing out at least 7 goalscoring attempts by the Azkals' opponents.
The Philippines, however, had a penalty shout denied by the referee.
Myanmar dominated possession in the first half, with the Philippines pinned back on defense.
The hosts used their wingers, particularly Pai Soe, to create problems for the Azkals.
Philippines gaffer Hans Michael Weiss earlier said that the Azkals will use a defense-minded and counterattacking ploy because the match is being played on Myanmar’s home turf.
After missing the Mongolia match, Fulham's Etheridge was called up to the starting 11 to reinforce the back line.
Aldeguer debut
Filipino-Spanish striker Angel Guirado Aldeguer also made his debut in the team.
The others in Philippines' starting XI were Rob Gier, Anton Del Rosario, Roel Gener, Ray Jonsson, Simon Greatwich, Alexander Borromeo, James Younghusband, Chieffy Caligdong, and Ian Araneta.
Weiss pulled out Araneta at the start of the second half, replacing him with striker Yanti Barsales.
The Azkals missed the services of forward Phil Younghusband, who is nursing a pulled hamstring injury.
The draw was worth a point each for the 2 teams.
The match kicked off the Azkals' AFC Challenge Cup group stage campaign.
The Philippines last met Myanmar in the AFF Suzuki Cup. The match also ended in a draw.
The Azkals need to win their next 2 matches -- Palestine on Wednesday and Bangladesh on Friday -- to qualify for the tournament's last-8 stage next year.
Live broadcast issue
ABS-CBN and the Philippine Football Federation tried to get permission to broadcast live from Myanmar.
However, despite repeated requests, Myanmar Radio and Television (MRTV), the government station which will cover the event, did not get the permit from higher authorities to beam the matches live via satellite to the Philippines.
"Negotiations are now underway for the broadcast rights and tape copies of MRTV's coverage of the Azkals' matches in Yangon," ABS-CBN Sports said.
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"The Azkals need to win their next 2 matches -- Palestine on Wednesday and Bangladesh on Friday -- to qualify for the tournament's last-8 stage next year."
ReplyDeleteThat is not correct ! 5 points is possibly enough , even 4 points can qualify depending on results in other matches.
The Azkals just need not to lose on Wednesday vs Palestine to keep their hope of advancing into the final round alive. Palestine crushed Bangladesh 2-0, so they will try to win on Wed. as well to have their berth safe......hopefully our defense will be stronger then and not being confused that much. Mega thanx to Neil who secured with his saves the result especially in the first half.....
ReplyDeletePersonally...and to be optimistic...
ReplyDeleteThey lost because of a lucky free kick! If the Azkals can beat Vietnam 2-0, and survive Indonesia 0-1, we can beat Palestine and Bangladesh!
I've done a bit of research and as far as I can tell, if the Azkals stay at 100%, they should beat Bangladesh. And if they give it their all like they did in the Suzuki Cup, they should also beat Palestine.