Fil-foreign aces to beef up Azkals

MANILA, Philippines — Dead-set to form a competitive side in both the Asean Football Federation Suzuki Cup and the Asian Cup, the Azkals have set their sights on a number of quality Fil-foreigners to beef up their roster and boost their campaign.

Among the prospects from Europe the Azkals are hoping to call up and field are Fil-German midfielders Gerrit Holtman of FSV Mainz 05, Raphael Obermair of SK Sturm Graz, and John Patrick Strauss of Erzegebirge Aue; Fil-Swedish defender Jesper Nyholm of AIK Footboll and Fil-Swedish mid Amin Nazari of IFK Mariehamn, and Fil-Swiss mid John Patrick Strauss of FC Zurich.

“We’re looking at getting Obermair, who used to be a standout with Bayern Munich Under-23 and he was even selected in the first team, and then you have Nyholm, he was part of the pool of players who could have been called up by Sweden for the World Cup but he got injured; he has expressed interest to play for the Philippines,” team manager Dan Palami said in the “12 Minutes” podcast of broadcaster Paolo del Rosario.

“Then you have Holtman who plays for FC Mainz in Bundesliga and then you have Kempter and then you have Strauss and then you have Nazari, the brother of Omid who has already gotten his passport. So I think these players will certainly augment, if not dramatically improve the quality of the Azkals come Suzuki Cup or Asian Cup,” he added.

The Pinoy booters, whose preparations will be handled by Scott Cooper following the withdrawal of former England captain Terry Butcher, are seeking to improve on their semifinal finishes in the Suzuki Cup in November and December. Then the following month, they want to show they belong to the big boys in the 2019 Asian Cup, where they’re pitted against Korea, China and Kyrgyzstan in group play.

“We would want to replicate or even better our feat in 2010, 2012 and 2014 when we reached the (Suzuki Cup) semifinal. We want to be in the finals and even become champions. I think based on the evaluation of our coaches, they’re saying there’s really a good chance of achieving that this year,” said Palami.

The Azkals brace for war in Group B with holder Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore and the winner of the qualifying playoffs between Timor Leste and Brunei on their path.

“It won’t be easy because most of the teams are quite prepared as well but they (coaches) have seen our players, they know what they can achieve so they’re quite optimistic as well. It will take a lot of preparation, a lot of hardwork to achieve what we want,” the Azkals boss said.

For the Continental showpiece, Phl XI will be up against the Koreans, a team that upset champion Germany in the Fifa World Cup, then the Chinese, who beat them 8-1 in a friendly, and the Kyrgyz booters, whom the Azkals have already beaten twice in earlier friendlies.

“Realisticially, I think with the players that are coming in for the Azkals we could actually pull off a lot of surprises in the Asian,” said Palami, whose team was among those recently bestowed the “History Maker” award by History Channel for its achievement.