Azkals still SEA’s No. 1 despite Suzuki Cup defeat
Despite the Azkals’ failure to advance to the semis of the 2016 AFF Suzuki Cup, the Philippines still finished the year as the No. 1 team among Southeast Asians in the Fifa world rankings. File photo
MANILA, Philippines - Despite the Azkals’ failure to advance to the semis of the 2016 AFF Suzuki Cup, the Philippines still finished the year as the No. 1 team among Southeast Asians in the Fifa world rankings.
The country, which wound up with two draws and one loss in the group stage of the Suzuki Cup that it hosted, dropped three places to 120th in the Dec. 22 list but it was enough to maintain top position in the region.
Thailand, the back-to-back Suzuki Cup champions, moved up three spots to 126th but still settled for No. 2 behind the Pinoys, whom it actually toppled from the Asean tilt’s Last-4 with a 1-0 beating at the Philippine Sports Stadium last November.
Vietnam and Myanmar, the two losing semifinalists in the recent regional bootfest, tailed the Thais in the rankings. The Vietnamese plummeted five notches to 134th while the Burmese jumped seven positions to 159th.
Malaysia (161st), Singapore (165th) and Laos (167th) followed suit even as Indonesia, which heralded its return from Fifa suspension with a runner-up finish in the Suzuki Cup, had an eight-place jump to 171st.
Cambodia (173rd), Brunei Darussalam (190th) and Timor-Leste (191st) rounded out the Asean roster.
The Philippines started 2016 at No. 135 and even reached an all-time high of 115th in the rankings for the month of May. It slipped to the 130s again after months of inactivity in the summer and picked up once more after playing friendlies and competing in the Suzuki Cup in the last four months of the year.
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