MANILA – Head Coach Michael Weiss is staying locked in.
The Philippine men’s national football team head tactician is looking forward to an exciting faceoff against Chinese Taipei and said that he expects the match to be tougher, during the pre-game online press conference with the Philippine Football Federation on Sunday.
“My expectation is that this would be an even tougher match than the first match because Chinese Taipei showcased in a very good manner in their recent game against Thailand. They already played Thailand last year in December in an unofficial friendly match in Thailand, I was there and I saw the match, and they could even beat Thailand on home soil,” said the returning coach.
Chinese Taipei previously battled with Thailand in a match that ended in a draw, while the Azkals won against Nepal in their own friendly match, 1-0.
“They held them to a 2-2 which is a very respectable result. Also, the way they played is as Taiwan usually is. They are very compact, they are good in transition, and they are physically strong. They are maybe not yet on the technical level that you expect but it’s about getting results. It’s about being compact, aggressive, and this is what they are. This is what they’ll show in Manila,” he added.
And even with their previous win, Weiss pleaded for patience and emphasized how his squad needs more time to come together ahead of the 2026 AFC Asian qualifiers in November.
“Please understand that I was just here for a very short while even if I know and met many familiar places, so it’s still too early to get into [specific tactics]. For me, this tournament is all about observation and seeing all the players, training with them, and seeing who can help us with the way how we want to play,” he said.
“Generally, we want to push a little bit more forward, we want to create more chances, and we want to be more on an attacking sprint, particularly on the artificial pitch in Rizal Memorial, that’s what it will be all about for tomorrow.”
Midfielder Kevin Ingreso in addition also echoed what his coach wants for the Azkals.
“It’s about getting to know each other in this particular camp. We’ve only been together for a week. Obviously, it’s not a long time, but I think it gives everyone a good impression of how everyone can play, and how the coach wants to work. It’s getting to know each other, we have to adapt to every character in the team. So I think it’s very exciting for what’s to come in the future,” said Ingreso.
Despite this, Weiss is confident that the team is on the right track.
“What I can promise is that we will have a good, confident, and joyous team which will try to get to the forefront and show something to the people. Even if things weren’t perfect in the last game, I think we can already see some glimpses of going forward and being more of an attacking team and trying to put opponents on the pressure.”
https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/06/18/23/weiss-expects-tough-matchup-against-chinese-taipei
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