Azkals seeded into main draw in 2012

MANILA, Philippines - Owing to their fairytale stint in last year’s tournament that made them a hot property among sports fans, the Philippine Azkals have been seeded into the main draw of the 2012 Asean Football Federation (AFF) Suzuki Cup.

PFF president Mariano “Nonong” Araneta told The STAR yesterday that the AFF placed the Phl Azkals as the No. 6 seed in Suzuki Cup hostilities next year in Thailand and Malaysia.

This means the Filipinos booters, previously among the region’s whipping boys in football but have since been on a resurgence, will no longer have to undergo the qualifying stages for the lower-ranked teams set in Myanmar, in order to play in the tournament proper.

The Philippines will join Southeast Asia’s top teams Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, defending champion Malaysia, and Singapore in 2012’s main competition .

“The AFF recognizes the capability of the Azkals and we’re happy that they seeded us for the first time in the Suzuki Cup. The efforts and hardwork of the team headed by Dan Palami are really paying off now,” Araneta said after the AFF Council meeting in Malaysia yesterday.

In 2010, the Azkals had to play against Laos, Timor Leste, and Cambodia in a round-robin qualifier, finishing runner-up to join winners Laos in the main draw against the seeded nations. The final tournament saw the Azkals’ rise to prominence, thanks to a 2-0 victory over Vietnam and draws with Singapore (1-1) and Myanmar (0-0) en route to a semifinal stint. The Pinoys eventually lost to Indonesia via 0-1 scores in the two-leg semis.

With Phl already in, Myanmar, Timor Leste, Laos and Cambodia are left to dispute the two remaining slots to next year’s tourney proper.

Meanwhile, Azkals Fil-Dutch mid-field Jason de Jong signed up with Sriwijaya FC in the Indonesian Super League but will remain committed to the Phl squad’s international campaigns like next month’s AFC Challenge Cup qualifying match with Mongolia.

Palami said this hookup with the Indon league will not stand the way of De Jong’s stint with the Azkals.

“Priority is still Azkals,” Palami said in a text message to The STAR yesterday. “(De Jong’s) Club contract also requires release of player when national team requires their services.”