Cebuano Chad Gould gets another chance to be part of the Phl Azkals

CEBU, Philippines - Having made a promise to always make himself available for the Philippine Azkals, the senior men's national football team, Cebuano-British Chad Gould expressed his delight in being invited to the 34-man training pool as part of the preparations for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Challenge Cup.

“I was very happy to be selected for the training camp. I have worked so hard over the last 2 years for this and I am grateful to be given the opportunity,” the former Azkals said.

This is not the first time that the Cebuano-British booter got invited to be part of the national training pool after leaving the team in 2010.

During the summer of 2011, Gould also got a call to be part of the training pool in preparation for the 2014 World Cup qualifier but his chances were derailed by an infected mosquito bite on his left thigh. He had to cut short his training as advised by the doctor after undergoing a minor surgery to treat the infected mosquito bite.

Failing to be part of the national team again, Gould went back to England to continue with his stint as a member of the England national beach soccer team but in the summer of 2012, Gould was back in the Philippines by signing up for the Meralco Sparks FC in the United Football League (UFL). During his stint with the Sparks, he made 48 goals in 26 games.

“I had such a wonderful time with the club not just domestically but internationally too. Scoring in the Singapore Cup has to be one of the highlights. To end my time at Meralco lifting the clubs first vet trophy was stuff dreams are made of. Scoring in the final was the icing on the cake too.”

However, despite showcasing his skills in the UFL, Gould never got another call to join the national team, that is until now.

“I've always made myself available for the Azkals. Playing for the national team has been the pinnacle of my football career. In football though, sometimes the face doesn't fit. Unfortunately for me Coach Weiss (German Hans Michael Weiss) wanted to use other players which is fine. I know being a coach must be a tough job especially when it comes to breaking the hearts of players.”

Just this month, Weiss has been replaced by Thomas Dooley, the former skipper of the US national side, and Gould is excited to meet him.

“I have been told good things about him already from my fellow teammates. I'm excited to work and learn off him. I remember watching him in the FIFA '94 & '98 World Cups and it is a testament to how far Philippine football has come that we can have someone of his caliber at the helm of the team.”

It is no surprise that Gould got a call to join the training pool as he has scored six times in 13 matches for the country.

He first played for the country in the 2004 Tiger Cup wherein he scored the Philippine's lone goal against Malaysia.  (FREEMAN)