December 12 ------ THE PHILIPPINES begins its bid to rebuild its status as one of the top football teams in Southeast Asia when it faces Myanmar in the ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2024 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium. The Nationals will also be looking to catch the attention of casual Filipino sports fans in this tournament where the team formerly known as the Azkals pulled off an upset over Vietnam, 1-0, in the 2010 edition, sparking a renaissance of the sport.
Formerly known as the Tiger Cup and the Suzuki Cup, the Mitsubishi Electric Cup brings together 10 Southeast Asian countries in home-and-away matches with the Philippines in Group B along with Vietnam, Indonesia, Myanmar, and Laos. The top two teams in each of the two groups advance to the semifinals. Group A has reigning champion Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia, and Timor Leste. Starting with 2010 following the Azkals’ win over Vietnam dubbed as the ‘Miracle in Hanoi’, PMNT reached the semifinals over three of the next four editions.
The Philippines, however, has missed the Final Four over the last two tournaments including in 2022 when it only had one victory to show. Winning at home will be a significant step for the team that is essentially on a rebuild after the arrival of Albert Capellas as head coach last September. “I am really looking forward to feel the support of the fans, and especially the support of the players, giving their best, their 100 percent to play a fantastic game and try to win,” said Capellas, who will be coaching at home for the first time after being brought to the program due to his vast experience, most notably with FC Barcelona. “For us, of course, because we are in a developing process, and we are changing a lot of things, that will give us confidence in everything that we are working on,” Capellas added during Wednesday’s pre-match press conference. “This is the first game of the tournament, so it’s always important,” Philippines goalkeeper Patrick Deyto said. “We want to set the tone in a positive way. Like what coach said also, we haven't had home games recently, so it's a good opportunity for us to showcase how we have developed in the last few camps.”
Like in past editions, the Philippines is also facing problems with availability as some marquee players led by Gerrit Holtmann are not suiting up because the Mitsubishi Electric Cup is being staged in a non-FIFA window. Among the holdovers of PMNT for the Mitsubishi Electric Cup who played in the recent friendlies are defenders Amani Aguinaldo, Michael Kempter, Kiki Linares, Santi Rublico, and Paul Tabinas, midfielders Zico Bailey, Michael Baldisimo, Oskari Kekkonen, Sandro Reyes, and Scott Woods.
Source: spin.ph
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