By Ivan Stewart Saldajeno | Philippine News Agency
The Philippine Men’s National Football Team guns for a golden opportunity to enter the finals of the ASEAN Championship Mitsubishi Electric Cup for the first time when it meets Thailand again in their two-leg semifinal duel at Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok on Monday night.
Match time is 9:00 p.m. (PH time).
The Philippines gained a historic head start in the semifinals by stunning Thailand, 2-1, in front of 7,116 fans at Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila on Friday night (Dec. 27).
It was the first time the Filipinos beat the Thais in an official match since 1972.
As action shifts to the Thai capital, the defending champion host will try to steal the series. It already beat the Philippines at home during the King’s Cup in October, 3-1.
After all the lessons already learned, coach Albert Capellas is confident the Philippines would hold its ground against Thailand.
“We have to perform good again tomorrow if we want to go to the final. We know that we can make it difficult for Thailand. We have watched the [previous] game, and we have made some adjustments to try to come here and make a good performance for our fans, our federation, and for our players, to show that we are making steps forward. We will try to reach the final for sure,” Capellas said.
The Philippines only needs at least a draw to secure an inaugural finals appearance, but Capellas, in an interview right after their Match 1 win, vowed no less than a victory.
Amani Aguinaldo, who served his one-match suspension on Friday night for accumulative yellow cards, is expected to be reactivated for the rematch.
It will give Kike Linares, the hero in the series opener with his stoppage-time header goal, needed help at the center-back position as the Philippines looks to contain Thailand’s counterattack prowess that saw them scoring a goal before halftime of the first leg.
On the other hand, Chalermsak Akkee vowed that Thailand would reduce the Philippines to tears of sorrow.
“I remember the match we lost. The Philippines was so happy that they cried and in this match, they will cry again because we will prevent them from reaching the finals,” Akkee said.
The winner of the Philippines-Thailand tie will advance to the finals on Jan. 2 and 5 against Vietnam, which won against Singapore at an aggregate 5-1 following two matches.