Road warriors: Philippine Azkals to spend Christmas away from home for AFF Cup match

 There’s no such thing as a holiday break for the men's national football team.

The Philippine Azkals began their 2022 AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup with a historic loss to Cambodia. It was a big disappointment to say the least as the Cambodians haven’t won against the Filipinos in the past two decades. To get their AFF campaign back on track, the Azkals needed a huge win against Brunei Darussalam.

Raul Maningat

At the Rizal Memorial Stadium, in front of the home crowd, the Philippine contingent came up clutch and turned over a convincing 5-1 win over Brunei. With the victory, Team Philippines earned three points to put themselves at 4th place in Group A. At the forefront of this terrific bounce back outing were Sebastian Rasmussen who scored twice and assisted on a Jhan-Jhan Meliza goal, Kenshiro Daniels and one of the team’s fastest rising stars Sandro Reyes who finished with one goal apiece.

So, what’s the reward for this redemption win? Well, for a national team in the middle of competing in a big international tournament, they’ve got no choice but to spend Christmas on the road. In an Instagram story of Philippine squad mainstay Stephan Schröck, it appears that the Azkals are flying today, December 24 for their next match against Thailand, which is taking place on December 26.

Taking on the defending AFF Cup champions, the Philippine team is in for a tough battle. The reigning kings of Southeast Asian football are clearly on a different level compared to Brunei Darussalam, and the Azkals know that. No wonder they’re ready to sacrifice family time during the holidays to prepare for the challenge ahead.

After the Group A match against Thailand, the Philippines will take on another strong team in the Indonesians, who finished second in the 2020 AFF Cup. That will take place on January 2, 2023.

The Filipino footballers are all but ready to miss another holiday as they gear up for this crucial encounter against Indonesia. The life of a national athlete — it’s not all glitz and glamour is it?

https://www.onesports.ph/more-sports/article/8584/road-warriors-philippine-azkals-to-spend-christmas-away-from-home-for-aff-cup-match?fbclid=IwAR3dXwUlu1njSkcPHvlb6CJ5Ul6HdRv2sorBscU_nPHtoIRIV1VmNVmGRTw