Pinoy XI locks horns with Maldives

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines aims to take the first step on the road back to the Continent’s football showpiece with a victory against Maldives in tonight’s AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers opener in Capas, Tarlac.

The Filipinos, who missed out on the Asian Cup in 2023 after making their debut four years before, seek a winning start in Group A in their new home at the New Clark City Stadium.

Coach Albert Capellas’ charges hope to sustain the momentum from their big gains in the last Asean Championship-Mitsubishi Electric Cup, where they reached the semifinals and even beat Thailand for the first time in 52 years in the first leg of the Final Four, 2-1.

“The good performance in the Asean Cup gave us a lot of hope that we are closer to the level that we’re looking for,” said Capellas, who has assembled a fighting crew led by holdovers Manny Ott, Jesper Nyholm, Amani Aguinaldo, Jarvey Gayoso, Sandro Reyes, and Bjorn Kristenses and new faces Randy Schneider and Josef Baccay for the ACQ.

“And now we have a very important game against Maldives. We want to finish the group in first position, which means we have to win the first game and make Philippine supporters proud.”

Only one spot to the 2027 Asian Cup is at stake in the group with Tajikistan, quarterfinalist in the 2023 meet, looming as the Philippines’ biggest rival.

The Tajiks kick off their bid against Timor Leste over in Dushanbe also tonight.