The much-awaited showdown between the Philippine Azkals and Uzbekistan in Group H of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers will be held tonight at the 20,000-seater Philippine Sports Stadium in Bocaue, Bulacan.
The Azkals are currently ranked 129th in the world while their foes are world no. 71, which means Uzbekistan will be the highest ranked opponent of the Philippines so far.
The Azkals have prepared well for the match, winning, 2-0, over Maldives in a FIFA-sanctioned friendly match last week.
The Filipinos also won their first two qualifying matches in Group H earlier this year against Bahrain and Yemen. They are at second place in Group H with two wins while North Korea leads the pack with three wins after it defeated Bahrain last Saturday, 1-0.
Azkals coach Thomas Dooley is confident with his team, even if he knows they are the underdogs.
“We are the underdogs,” he said in the pre-match press conference yesterday. “There’s no question about it. Everything is in their (Uzbekistan) hands. They have to win against us.”
Uzbekistan is considered one of the best teams in Asia along with football powerhouses Iran, South Korea, Japan, Australia, United Arab Emirates and China. Still, Dooley believes the pressure is on their opponents.
“If you play against a team like Uzbekistan, which is 50 places ahead of us, we have nothing to lose. If we’re going to lose against Uzbekistan, it’s normal. If we win, it’s not a miracle, but it’s hard work from us and we deserve it,” he added in a report from inquirer.net.
Dooley believes that the players will pull through and stay with the team’s game plan.
“We just have to play a great game. We have to fight and play the way we want to play. Every team has weaknesses and they try to play through that.” /with a report from inquirer.net
After tonight’s game, the Azkals are set to face the powerhouse North Korea in Pyongyang and Bahrain in Riffa, Bahrain in October.
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