It is all systems go for the Philippine Azkals national football squad (FIFA rank # 156) as they play the first leg of their 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers tie with Sri Lanka (FIFA rank # 169) tonight in the latter’s home turf. Fresh from a two-week rigid training in Germany, coach Michael Weiss’ charges are slightly favored to whip the Sri Lankans, who reportedly trained for only two weeks according to their Korean coach Jang Jung. Since creating a stir in the AFF Suzuki Cup last year, the Azkals are 2-2-1 (win-draw-loss) in official matches played this year. They defeated Mongolia, 2-0 in the first leg of the AFC Challenge Cup last February before bowing to the Mongolians, 2-1 in the second leg last March. However, the Azkals won the tie on an aggregate score of 3-2. In late March, the Azkals participated in the AFC Challenge Cup group qualifying stage in Myanmar. The Nationals drew with the hosts (1-1) and Palestine (0-0) before blasting Bangladesh, 3-0, with Filipino-Spanish striker Angel Aldeguer Guirado accounting for two goals in the second half. From then on, the Azkals have a bumpy ride as they prepare for the Sri Lanka tier. Before leaving for Germany, the Azkals lost a 4-3 friendly game against the local UFL selection. In Germany, they won their first two tune-up games against youthful sides, Archen-Duren and SC Bonner (U19), both by identical scores of 4-1. However, they tasted stingy defeats in their last two matches versus German pro clubs FC Ingolstadt (Division II), 4-0 and SV Darmstadt98 (Division III), 5-0. Azkals team manager Dan Palami says he believe in the talent of the team and feels confident of beating the Sri Lankans, according to The Philippine Star.
“Everybody’s prepped up. We’re looking at the game with cautious optimism. We have the talent, the materials. It’s just a matter of putting everything together for the game. As long as we’re able to play the game we’re supposed to play, I don’t see any reason we won’t win.”
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