'Cuto' prays for miracle

MANILA, Philippines - Former Philippine national football team coach Juan (Cuto) Cutillas said if the Azkals advance to the third round of the World Cup Asia qualifiers by overtaking Kuwait at the Rizal Memorial Stadium tonight, it will be the biggest miracle in the history of the sport.

A 4-0 win over Kuwait will propel the Azkals into the next round outright but Cutillas said to be realistic, it’s almost a mission impossible. “Kuwait is up, 3-0, and I expect them to try to control the pace of the match,” he explained. “The pressure to score is on us, not Kuwait. They don’t even have to score. They’ll make long passes. They’ll kick the ball around. I think we’ll have our chances to score but we must convert. If we fight hard and play our guts out, the fans will be happy, no matter the outcome. With my long experience in football, I know how difficult it is to beat a physically stronger team like Kuwait.”

In the first match in Kuwait last Saturday, Cutillas said it was evident that the Azkals were up against a superior team.

“They play at a higher level than us and it shows in their FIFA ranking,” continued Cutillas. “We played defensively but even if we did, we had two or three good shots at the goal in the first half. That’s because they were concentrating on offense and it gave us openings on the other end. Unfortunately, we couldn’t convert. We could’ve played a more compact game. In the second half, they made adjustments in their strategy, creating 2-on-1 situations instead of relying too much on the passing game. Then, we collapsed physically. We started to kick the ball without purpose because we were tired.”

Cutillas said the Azkals could’ve substituted up to three players. “We ran out of legs in the last 20 to 25 minutes,” he went on. “I’m sure coach (Michael) Weiss thought about substituting but he probably didn’t want to risk changing his formation and causing a disruption. It was the coach’s call and we should respect it.”

Cutillas said if the Azkals lost 2-0, it would’ve been an acceptable result but 3-0 is very difficult to recover from. “In Kuwait, we used one striker up and one striker behind because we played defensively,” he said. “Even if we had scored in the first half, I don’t think it would’ve changed the complexion of the game because Kuwait would’ve just tried harder. In the rematch, I expect the Azkals to play aggressively since we need to score. Will we score? I hope so. We couldn’t capitalize on two or three chances in Kuwait but we can’t afford to miss in Manila. If we go on the attack, we should watch our back because for sure, Kuwait will get opportunities with our defense opening up. If we aren’t careful, we could be in big trouble because Kuwait is known to score away goals.”

Cutillas said while the Azkals have shown remarkable progress since late last year, their quality of play still falls short of Kuwait’s level. “I think we’ll have a stronger lineup for the rematch with Aly (Borromeo) and Stephan (Shrock) back,” he said. “In Kuwait, we could’ve played a stronger midfield with Shrock and (Jerry) Lucena who have the ability to change the pace of the game. We’ll be more competitive in Manila. I expect our team to play its game, tight, compact. We shouldn’t try to do more than we are capable of doing. Kuwait is a high-caliber team. With support from the crowd, the Azkals will be inspired and motivated. To win the series, we’ll need to score four. To tie, we need to score three. It’s a challenge. We’re playing at home and it will give us a big lift. But in all honesty, I think the series is already decided – unless a miracle happens.”