BY BONG PEDRALVEZ
IN contrast to the all-out attack against Sri Lanka, the Philippines will play a "smart, defense-oriented" counterattacking game in its second-round Asian World Cup qualifying clash against Kuwait, according to German coach Michael Weiss.
"We will go 4-5-1," said Weiss of the formation he intends to use when the Azkals play the Kuwaitis in the opening leg at the 22,000-capacity Mohammad Al Hamad Stadium on July 23 in Kuwait City.
This means Weiss intends to pack the midfield with five players to control the ball, leaving one striker up front.
With his new formation, Weiss said the Azkals "will aim for a scoreless draw. That’s what we are going for. And I would be more than happy if we get that."
The Filipino booters went 4-4-2 in the two-game series against the Sri Lankans and advanced to the next round with a 5-1 aggregate tally, highlighted by an emphatic 4-0 shutout of the Brave Reds last July 3 at the jammed Rizal Memorial Football Stadium.
Phil Younghusband was paired with Fil-Spanish forward Angel Guirado as the starting strikers in both matches, but Weiss intends to use Guirado in midfield against Kuwait "because he can work defensively for sure."
The one-game suspension of fleet-footed and heady Fil-German midfielder Stefan Schrock, who got booked two yellow cards against Sri Lanka, has forced Weiss to recall Fil-Danish Jason de Jong and tap Fil-German Patrick Hinrichsen to shore up the middle.
De Jong, who last saw action for the nationals during the Asian Challenge Cup qualifying match against Mongolia in Bacolod last Feb. 9, and Hinrichsen started practicing with the team last week.
The two will likely be aligned with Chieffy Caligdong, James Younghusband and Fil-Danish Jerry Lucena, who is also expected to be back in harness for the matches against Kuwait.
Weiss was more concerned with his backline which will miss skipper and solid defender Aly Borromeo, who was also slapped two yellow cards against the Red Devils.
Fil-Icelander Ray Jonsson will also be back for the Kuwait series, and will regain his spot at left back that was ably filled in by Fil-Dutch Paul Mulders who will be unavailable due to his club commitments.
Malaya
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Argh, Mulders also missing.....big set back again especially in this very important match. 3 important key players missing.....i don't think think we can compensate them.....we would have only a chance vs. Kuwait if we could field the best squad...and even then it would be quite hard......sorry fro being pessimistic but I guess we won't have a chance to get a draw in Kuwait....a defeat with a small marging (2-0) could be already been considered as big success.
ReplyDeleteSri Lankans aren't called Red Devils, they are Brave Reds. The Red Devils are the South Korean team.
ReplyDeleteSri Lanka aren't called the "Brave Reds" either. Nowhere in the internet or any other source, specifically Sri Lankan sources mention them as "Brave Reds" or any other nickname. It's only in Philippine media where they're so addicted in calling national teams by their nickname... like "Philippine azkals" or "azkals vs Sri Lanka", the hell is that?!?! Hindi nalang sabihin "the Philippines" or "the Philippines vs Sri Lanka". Ang baho na nga ng pangalan na "azkals" tapos cge lang ng gamit na parang ewan! It's become a farce! South Korea are also not the "Red Devils", that nickname belongs to Congo and Belgium.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, about the article, Weiss didn't use 4-4-2, ever since the the AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers, he changed the system to 4-2-3-1 and it's a good change!
Why not 5-5-0 formation?
ReplyDelete@Anonymous: Firstly, 4-2-3-1 is a natural progression from 4-4-2. Everybody still referred to it as 4-4-2, but it was in effect a 4-2-3-1.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, Almost all national teams have nicknames.. Les Bleus, Three Lions, Oranje.
4-2-3-1 isn't a "natural progression" from 4-4-2 but 4-5-1! We were playing with two deep, a little more defensive central midfielders. You wouldn't exactly have that in a 4-4-2!
ReplyDeleteYa no shit almost all national teams have nicknames! What's your point?!?!