Early wins boost Azkals confidence

MANILA, Philippines - Azkals skipper Phil Younghusband hopes the momentum and confidence the Pinoy booters gained from their 2-0 start in the Fifa World Cup qualifiers will serve them well as they face their toughest test yet against top-ranked Uzbekistan on Sept. 8 at the Philippine Sports Stadium.

The Azkals, implementing a new system and parading what was largely considered the “strongest” lineup to date, shocked Gulf power Bahrian, 2-1, at the PSS then nipped Yemen over in Doha, Qatar to vault into the Top 2 of tough Pool H behind North Korea.

“We are in a good position after the two wins, but more importantly, we have some confidence going forward,” said Younghusband, the country’s top scorer with 42 international goals.

But the 28-year-old stressed that work is far from done in the two-round, home-and-away qualifiers to both the Russia World Cup in 2018 and the AFC Asian Cup in 2019. 

“There are no easy games in this group. We know we would need to play better and work harder against Uzbekistan. In fact we have to play better, stronger than how we played the first two games,” he added.

Teams will play a total of eight games in each group with the group winner advancing into the third round of the WC qualifiers. The four best second-placers across the eight groups will also progress.

The Azkals achieved an all time high in the world rankings at 124th last month, a feat that could boost their confidence against the White Wolves, who stood at a high 75th.

Younghusband, a dreaded striker, is getting the hang of playing attacking midfielder under coach Thomas Dooley’s new formation, helping set up the goals in the upset against Bahrain.

“There are a few players that are not playing in their natural positions, but we got players who can adapt and I think that’s good for the team,” said Younghusband, who added he sees the team getting better as they play more matches with the new system.

 Tickets for the Azkals vs Uzbekistan game to be held at the Philippine Sports Stadium on Sept. 8 are now available at www.ticketworld.com. Tickets are at P531.80 for Price Zone 1, P331.14 for Price Zone 2 and P125.40 for Price Zone 3.