New faces soup up Azkals

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Azkals have assembled a new-look pool featuring 13 new faces ahead of the resumption of the FIFA World Cup and AFC Asian Cup Joint Qualifiers in China early next month.

Azkals coach Scott Cooper called up a 25-man group bannered by captain Stephan Schrock and vice captain Neil Etheridge for the team’s training camp in Doha, Qatar slated May 22-31, preparatory to the tourney that begins June 3 in Suzhou.

Schrock and Etheridge will join forces with regulars like Carlie de Murga, Martin Steuble, Iain Ramsay, Luke Woodland, Patrick Reichelt and Angel Guirado in building up for the Group A matches against Guam, China and Maldives.

Also coming over to the camp are Fil-foreign prospects and youth standouts seeking to get their first tap for the Philippine side.

Goalkeepers Bernd Schipmann and Kevin Ray Mendoza; defenders Jesper Nyholm, Jefferson Tabinas, Azkals Development Team’s Mar Diano, Nico de Vera, and Michael Kempter; midfielders Gerrit Holtmann, Raphael Obermair, Oliver Bias, Matthew Baldisimo, ADT’s Mark Winhoffer and Lloyd Fagerlie are set to link up with the old guns.