Azkals face tough North Koreans

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Azkals aim to make their rare trip to North Korea a stint to remember as they shoot for a good result against the rampaging Chollima today in the Fifa World Cup qualifiers at Kim Il-Sung Stadium in Pyongyang.

Possibly the first Pinoy squad to enter the reclusive socialist state, the Azkals look to overcome tall odds in the 4 p.m. (3:30 p.m. in Manila) duel with the unbeaten Chollima, who expect to draw extra energy from over 50,000 home supporters.

Phl XI needs to get at least a draw to boost their bid in the Group H action. The Filipinos, after victories over Bahrain and Yemen, suffered a 1-5 home defeat to top-ranked Uzbekistan to get stuck with six points (-1 goal difference), good for third behind the Chollima (nine points on three wins) and the Uzbeks (six points on 2-0-1, goal difference of +3).

“North Korea played twice in the World Cup and it’s a team that’s very, very difficult to play, especially at home. We play against absolutely the most dominant team in our group – they have nine points, haven’t lost a game, have 55,000 supporters and homefield advantage. So everything is actually against us,” said Thomas Dooley during yesterday’s pre-match presscon.

Dooley, however, expressed faith in his wards.

“In football, anything can happen. We’ll see how the (home) team is coming after us tomorrow and we’ll see how we’ll respond against them,” he said. “We have 23 good players, I believe in each one of them. I expect them to give 100 percent and play their best game and we’ll see how far we’ll go.”

Given the quality of the opposition and its homefield edge plus the short time of preparations, the Azkals should gun for a standoff, Philippine Football Federation technical director Aris Caslib said.

“The team must concentrate on at least achieving one point, that’s the most important thing right now. If we achieve that, it will push up again in a good standing in the World Cup qualifiers,” he said.

The Azkals are on the first phase of a grueling two-game away schedule. After North Korea, Phl XI will go to Bahrain to play the Bahrainis in a return match on Tuesday, seeking to duplicate its 2-1 victory in the opener of the WCQ over in Bocaue, Bulacan.

Notes: The Azkals expect five OFWs to cheer for them at the 50,000-seater Stadium named after North Korea’s late Supreme leader. Foreigners have to pay 50 Euros for a ticket, while locals are charged $10 to $50.