Full-bodied Azkals rarin’ to make AFC Asian Cup

MALE, Maldives – “Stoked” would be an understatement to describe the feeling of the Philippine Azkals as they embarked on their bid in the AFC Challenge Cup here and try to make the most out of the opportunity to gatecrash the prestigious AFC Asian Cup next year.

“I’m burning already,” Fil-German midfielder Stephan Schrock. “I was waiting for this for so long. And everybody has been working for this.”

The ongoing Challenge Cup stakes a ticket to the 2015 Asian Cup in Sydney, with the champion getting to play holders Japan, former champ Iraq and Gulf power Jordan in the group stages of the Continent’s biggest tournament.

This will be the last edition of the Challenge Cup as the AFC has re-structured its bootfests. So next time, instead of vying for an Asian Cup slot against fellow “emerging nations” in the second-tier Challenge Cup, the Azkals will have to slug it out with everyone in Asia in a virtual free-for-all.

“It’s our best chance (now) and I honestly believe we can win this tournament (Maldives Challenge Cup),” said veteran Rob Gier, who also helps the team in scouting. “The coaching staff and management have done everything and it’s down to us (players) to make things happen.”

The Azkals are fielding a full-bodied roster to Challenge Cup, with eight stalwarts from Europe in tow and former US skipper and World Cup campaigner Thomas Dooley tapped to take charge of this quest.

“This is a good chance for us to qualify and if everyone does their job and focuses on their game, then that’s what I’m asking for,” he said.

Dooley has made the Azkals a team that plays a simple-attractive-pressing and short-passing football. He wants to impart much more than the technical aspects.

“(It) doesn’t really matter who you play against. You have to have the mentality to win every game. No matter what. I want to perform, I want to do my job and I don’t want to make a mistake,” he said.

The team is in high spirits as it kicked off its campaign against South Asian kingpin Afghanistan last night at Hithadoo Stadium in Addu City. They will face Laos tomorrow night and Turkmenistan Saturday.

“We all need to believe that we can win this,” said Gier.

“Because there is going to be a point in this tournament whether it’s going to be in the first game or in the final where we will be down or up against it and you have to find it in you to believe that you can do it.”

Notes:  This isn’t the first tour-of-duty for the Azkals in this South Indian nation of 1,192 islands and 20 atolls, having been here in 2009 for the Challenge Cup group qualifiers and eventually not made it to the 2010 tourney proper.  That one was at the National Stadium in the Maldivian capital. For this campaign, however, the Azkals are set for matches at Hithadoo Stadium in Addu City, in the country’s southernmost atoll and a one-hour flight from the capital. They are billeted at the posh Herathera Island Resort and have to take a boat and ride a bus going to the stadium for both training and competition.

Side bar: 

MALE, Maldives – Investing in the future, Azkals coach Thomas Dooley has been giving young ones and new faces their day in the Phl XI’s programs.

For this Challenge Cup, Dooley has called up seven first-timers in the meet, defender Daisuke Sato and Kenshiro Daniels, Amani Aguinaldo, and Simone Rota, goalkeeper Patrick Deyto, midfielder Martin Steuble, and forward Balut Doctora.

He has tested them in the pre-tourney buildup and definitely gave a good account of themselves to win spots in the Final 23.

Fil-German Stephan Schrock, one of the Azkals’ key players, was clearly impressed with the newbies and feels that with them around, he and the other Europe-based Nationals who are most of the time committed to their respective clubs, can be confident that the team is in good hands.

“To be honest I was very surprised when I came in and saw the rookies like Kenny, Sato, Balut, Amani and Rota. The team was in very good shape without players from overseas so even when Im missed the squad can do well,” he said.

“Everybody is replaceable,” he added.