Asian Cup campaign ends for PHL Azkals
By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter
THE Philippine men’s national football team saw its AFC Asian Cup 2019 bid come to an end on Wednesday night in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, after losing to Kyrgyz Republic, 3-1; their third straight defeat in the quadrennial continental football spectacle.
Needing to win over Kyrgyzstan in their Group C match to at least have a shot at moving into the next round of the tournament, the Philippine Azkals instead saw themselves at the raw end of the match, in the process kissing their knockout round hopes goodbye.
Vitalij Lux proved to be the biggest thorn for the Azkals as the forward scored a hat-trick that propelled Kyrgyzstan to the victory.
The German-based forward first connected in the 24th minute and followed up on it in the 51st minute.
Mr. Lux further buried the Philippines when he completed his hat trick in the 77th minute.
The Azkals got some consolation when captain Stephan Shrock scored for the Philippines in the 80th minute.
The goal was the first for the Azkals in the tournament in three matches, giving their first-ever Asian Cup campaign another silver lining as it ended.
Despite failing to go through, the Azkals were still grateful for the chance to test themselves and compete in a tournament like the Asian Cup while vowing to work harder and come back stronger.
“Our #AsianCup2019 campaign may have ended, but the dream will always be alive … We’ll be back stronger than ever to #DoTheImpossible,” the team wrote on its Twitter account.
“Thy will be done Lord. Thank you for the privilege of representing the Philippines in this Asian Cup. It’s our first but certainly not going to be our last. Salamat sa suporta mga kababayan!” Azkals team manager Dan Palami, for his part, wrote on his Twitter post following their defeat.
Coached by World Cup campaigner Sven-Goran Eriksson, the Azkals were hoping to make waves in its debut Asian Cup campaign despite being lumped in Group C, hailed as the Group of Death, along with Korea Republic and China People’s Republic, apart from Kyrgyzstan.
The Philippine team showed spirited effort against Korea, losing, 1-0, and challenged China before bowing down, 3-0.
With the loss to Kyrgyzstan, the Azkals finished last in their grouping with a 0-0-3 record and no points to show for.
In the Asian Cup, tournament format calls for the top two teams from each grouping after group play advancing to the next round, to be joined by the four best third-placed teams among the six groups.
