Fil-Iranian Misagh Bahadoran (left) tries to maneuver past Guam’s Ian Mariano in this pba-online.net file photo. The hero of the Philippine Azkals’ successive wins in the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers will visit Cebu this Sunday for the final matches of the 17th Aboitiz Football Cup at the Cebu City Sports Center along with Azkals head coach Thomas Dooley and team manager Dan Palami, bottom left and right, respectively.
Coach Dooley, Palami also here this Sunday
There’s a lot to look forward to this Sunday aside from topnotch football battles in the finale of the 17th Aboitiz Football Cup at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) football field.
The province’s premier football tournament will hold the anticipated title showdown between Men’s Open defending champion, ERCO Bro GAU formerly the University of Cebu (UC) ERCO BRO FC against fierce rival and last year’s runner-up Leylam FC.
However, expected to steal the limelight from the title match is the Philippine Azkals’ newest hero, Filipino-Iranian Misagh Bahadoran who scored crucial goals in the Azkals’ first two games in the ongoing FIFA World Cup Qualifiers.
Bahadoran will watch the title match along with Philippine Azkals head coach Thomas Dooley and team manager Dan Palami.
Bahadoran was a key factor in the country’s winning streak in the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers having scored a goal each against higher-ranked opponents Bahrain and Yemen in Group H of the qualifiers.
Bahadoran is a Global FC midfielder in the United Football League (UFL).
Aside from Bahadoran, Dooley and Palami, top officials from the organizing Aboitiz Equity Ventures headed by Augusto Carpio and Cebu Football Association (CFA) President Engr. Ricky Dakay will also grace the championship match.
Last year, Dooley was also in Cebu to watch the finals match between ERCO BRO GAU and Leylam FC at the Aboitiz Football Field in the North Reclamation Area (NRA) in Mandaue City. That visit was to promote the Azkals’ match against Malaysia at the CCSC.
Aside from the Men’s Open final at the CCSC, another championship duel will also take place at the Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) for the Men’s Inter BPO division between Accenture FC and Voice Qnnect as well as the battle for third between NCR and Timex FC.