Philippine Daily Inquirer
BACOLOD CITY—A dose of overconfidence
could spell disaster.
On the heels of two straight draws, the
Philippine Azkals are expected not to take any chances when they face
lower-ranked Guam today at Panaad Stadium here—the last of their three
international friendly matches this month.
The Azkals go into the 7 p.m. match
marking Independence Day as the overwhelming favorite because of their better
ranking spiked by their recent run of impressive results.
But Guam’s English coach Gary White is
unfazed by the Azkals’ credentials, saying they’re ready to go toe-to-toe with a
home side aching to finally win after back-to-back draws against Malaysia and
Indonesia.
“We know who their threats are and we’re
not afraid,” said White, an English coach who has had stints handling the
national teams of the US Virgin Islands and the Bahamas.
White, who only came aboard last February,
admitted that his squad, mostly made up of US Division 1 players, is much like
the Philippines “five years ago.”
Azkals coach Michael Weiss cautioned his
side against taking Guam lightly.
“We respect them (Guam) and we will treat
it like any match we have played,” said Weiss, who considers the match an
important component of their preparations for the Suzuki Cup.
Phil and James Younghusband are expected
to start against Guam, along with Neil Etheridge and Jerry Lucena as the Azkals
hope to flash a more fluid attack that had gone missing in the first half
against Indonesia.
The four came off the bench in the 2-2
draw against Indonesia where the Younghusband brothers scored a goal each to
salvage the tie.
Denis Wolf could pair up with Phil
Younghusband up front, while Paul Mulders remains hopeful to get the start after
he was substituted at halftime against Indonesia because of an injury.
Guam has a player familiar with the
Philippines’ side in Jonathan Romero, who plays club football for Kaya in the
United Football League. Romero plays with Azkals Jason Sabio and Lexton Moy at
Kaya.
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