MANILA, Philippines - In preparation for the squad’s title defense in the Philippine Peace Cup on September, the Azkals will face United Football League (UFL) champions Global FC in an exhibition match at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium on Wednesday, August 27.
The game, which will be free to the public to boost fan involvement with the national team, will also serve as a part of the team’s training camp leading to the upcoming Peace cup and the AFF Suzuki Cup.
Global FC, fresh from their UFL Football Alliance Charity Cup victory, is expected to give the Azkals a run for their money as they aim to simulate the high level of play that the team will encounter in their upcoming games.
Meanwhile, fans who will grace the event will be treated to a night of free entertainment and football action as bands Mayonnaise and Paraluman will kick off the event beginning at 7 pm which will also include a fan party and meet-and-greet opportunities with the players. The game starts at 8 pm.
Unfortunately, a slew of familiar names will not be present on the pitch for the friendly as crowd favorite and veteran winger Chieffy Caligdong, forward Javier Patiño and defender Jerry Lucena had to withdraw with injuries.
National team players who play for the Bacolod-based club Ceres FC arrived on Monday to join the training camp of the Azkals while foreign-based Azkals Rob Gier, Paul Mulders, Roland Muller and Martin Steuble are set to arrive later this week.
Also, Mike Ott, according to the official Twitter account of the team, told the management “he cannot join the Peace Cup, to focus on his chance to enter the first team at his club 1 FCN” in Germany.
The men’s national team is aiming to defend its title in the yearly international football meet that will be held from September 1 to 9 and will feature the top national teams of Chinese Taipei, Myanmar and Palestine. Peace Cup tickets will be priced from 60 to 533 pesos.
As of press time, the final of list of players that will be playing in the tournament has yet to be released. - Rappler.com
No comments:
Post a Comment