Cambodia and Afghanistan loom as possible first-round opponents of the Philippines in the June qualifying games for the 2014 World Cup.
After advancing to the AFC Challenge Cup main tournament on 2012, the Azkals are shifting their focus to the World Cup qualifying, which the country is joining for the first time since the 2002 tournament in South Korea.
Although the Philippines’ next opponent would not be known until Wednesday, team manager Dan Palami said they have received inside information that the Azkals might be pitted against Cambodia or Afghanistan on June 29 and July 3.
Since they did not join the last two World Cup qualifying stage, the Azkals are ranked 15th in the bottom 16 teams that will be playing in the first round.
Afghanistan and Cambodia are ranked second and third among the 16 teams.
“It’s safe to say that we will be favored if we draw either of the two teams,” said Palami at the victory luncheon hosted by broadcasting giant ABS-CBN, which holds the rights to air Azkals’ matches.
“We will start planning after we know our first-round opponent,” said Palami. “The continuity of the plan will be dependent on which team we will face.”
The Azkals are enjoying a run of good results, starting with the AFF Suzuki Cup where they reached the semifinals for the first time last December.
Read more at Philippine Daily Inquirer
No comments:
Post a Comment