AFTER the cancellation of their three friendly matches against Singapore last December, the Little Azkals, or the Philippine Under 14 national football team, will go up against the Chelsea FC U14 squad on Jan. 25 in Manila.
Little Azkals team manager Richard Montayre said Chelsea FC’s management wanted the match earlier but he had to move it due to the Sinulog festivities. They also needed time to get the permission of the boys’ respective schools as they want team members coming from Visayas and Mindanao to be there at least two days earlier for team bonding and practice.
They would not have needed to be in Manila early if the training camp scheduled last December had pushed through, Montayre said.
The training camp, which was scheduled from Dec. 26 to Jan. 6, was cancelled due to typhoon Quinta.
The Chelsea FC U14, who is now in the country, had come from Korea and will be leaving the country on Jan. 28.
Aside from the Little Azkals, the visiting team will also be seeing action against other junior teams in Manila.
Montayre said that they are still negotiating on the venue either at the Rizal Memorial Stadium or in Alabang.
He added that the Little Azkals lineup will most likely be the same as that in Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-14 Festival of Football (FOF) in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. /
CORRESPONDENT MARS G. ALISON , inquirer.net
Let's see if one of our own Little Azkals will be spotted by Chelsea scouts cause I'm hoping someone would follow Sandro Reyes in Europe this year.
ReplyDeleteI highly doubt that would happen, but it would be nice for Philippine football. Chelsea should beat the crap out of the Little Azkals 9 out of 10 times, but who knows, maybe they will put up a big fight and upset them. Anyway, its going to be a fun and good experience for the Little Azkals, even if they lose.
ReplyDeletevery true Anonymous12 January 2013 17:04
ReplyDeletealmost as good as philippines playing against hungary.. tsk tsk tsk
Don't count them out just yet as Chelsea is just a club and our Little Azkals fared well in Italy last year. They won all there games when they are playing with the same category and they only lost 3 times when facing against much older teams. Unless if its England's U14 best...
ReplyDeleteWell well, listen to yourself. Oh Chelsea is just a club and Little Azkals is a NT. Oh, well, i guess LA Galaxy is just a club and the azkals a NT, but who won? Oh, i guess Real Madrid is just a club and they wouldnt have crushed the azkals like little puppies, right?
DeleteLittle Azkals didnt play against the best teams in Italy, at the best, the teams in Italy they met are mediocre. Chelsea is in a different category, amongst the best in England, and some day, maybe a couple of those kids will make it big and play in the Premier League. Will that happen to the Little Azkals player? I doubt it, most of them wont even end up in the UFL in the future.
Dont forget that the acadamies in England usually recruit players from all over Great Britain when theyre young, and they even sign other european teensters. The players are surround by professional coaches, are the Little Azkals surrounded by the same? No, they have a coach and manager from Cebu, and thats all.
Having said that, its not impossible for the Little Azkals to show a good performance, but as someone pointed out, 9 out of 10, or even 10 out of 10 times, they will be beaten by a team like Chelsea. But you my friend, think to highly of our U14 team.
I do hope they do well though.
I've seen them play that's why I believe in them. If and when one little azkal is choosen to be in a Chelsea uniform someday you will eat your word.
DeleteDream on, our little Azkals are not even the best 98's in the Philippines, has anyone ever checked the. Credentials of the teams they faced against in Italy? They may have been mediocre teams, those were pre arranged games by the host, did you ever think they want the Azkals to lose? Common how can you even trust anything that Montayre handles? Did anyone ever check his credentials too, that alone would speak a million words. A few days ago, an article of the same writer came out, Dan Palami, the designated chairman of alll national teams, categorically announced that all national teams at this point in time have no managers, and they are still in the process of selecting and accepting people with very good credentials and integrity to handle the national teams. Why can't some people wait for that announcement? Are they that deaperate? Or they are too scared not to be chosen? That's why they keep on volunteering their name, too bad, hope he learns how to be ashamed. Task tak
ReplyDeleteThe Little Azkals need a new manager. A person who can prepare things in order for the players during trainings and out of the country games as well as provide funds for the team as parents are the ones whose shouldering the expenses everytime they train just like now.
ReplyDeleteTheir manager is worst. He can't provide allowances and fares to all members of the team. He kept telling the parents to provide every training camp.
DeleteI definetly will, and ill throw a party for you the next time im in the Philippines! But i still its a long shot though, and i highly doubt it will happen. I hope im wrong.
ReplyDeleteEuropean clubs are known to be more popular all around the world and they create fear in the minds of their opponents if we believe in what the media tells us but to me the ball is round as evidenced in the FIFA Club World Cup Championship Europe vs the World share the same achievement.
ReplyDelete