MANILA, Philippines -- The Phl Azkals will go to war in the coming AFF Suzuki Cup with the momentum of a 3-0 win over Cambodia.
The Azkals bounced back from a 0-3 shutout in Thailand with a big win at home Friday night at the historic Rizal Memorial Stadium. Phil Younghusband fittingly scored his 40th goal for the Azkals on the night they paid tribute to Chieffy Caligdong, who announced his retirement from international play earlier this week.
Younghusband's goal at the 90th minute mark put the wraps on the victory that still did not satisfy American coach Thomas Dooley, eight days ahead of the tournament.
"We played with confidence. Obviously, you're never happy when you have so many chances and you only have three goals," Dooely said after the match.
The Azkals though made up for it on defense as they foiled 11 attempts by a much-improved Cambodia side, which suffered 8-0 beating here last year.
Daisuke Sato opened the scoring for the Azkals with a 75-foot rocket 13 minutes into the Azkals' final friendly before the competitions. Manny Ott doubled their lead after sending back home Younghusband's miss at the 40th minute.
Cambodia tried to cut the lead but could not score past Azkals keeper Patrick Deyto, who did another solid job protecting the pitch.
The Azkals will start their AFF Suzuki Cup campaign against group qualifier Laos on Nov. 22 at Hanoi, Vietnam.