I was supposed to be in Australia until Jan 12 but my work denied my vacation Was hoping to catch the matches there. Thanks but it looks like my cable provider doesn't have that station. I would try and find a stream but since these will be on early in the morning for me I think I will just sleep in
Philippines lost to Vietnam 2-4 in their final friendly(closed door) before the Asian Cup. I don't have high expectations for the Azkals in this tournament. I just hope they can be competitive. They are in a tough group but they still have a chance to qualify beyond the group stage if they can defeat their final opponent Kyrgyztan.
I think they can get second but they need to beat China and hope for a point with or a close loss to ROK.
I predict 3 or 4 points. Maybe enough for one of the 4 best 3rd place spots in the group stage. A close loss to South Korea, a draw/tie with China, and a win over Kyrgyz Republic might get them through to the knockout rounds.
The Philippines got dominated by China in their last friendly. Hopefully with better players available this time they can be more competitive.
Absolutely hilarious that people think the Philippines can overachieve in the group stage. A close loss to Korea? Realistically get a point against China? lol!! With the way things are going, they'd be lucky just to get a draw against Kyrgyzstan! They're on the up while the Philippines are in a bit of a slump combined with the fact that they lack defensive talent with tactics that are all over the place. They'd easily concede at least four against Korea. In fact it could even get really ugly. Against China, a loss with a few goals conceded and maybe consolation goal. India did manage to get a goalless draw against them in China back in October but that was just a friendly and India were lucky not to lose. China also has a bit of a point to prove. Kyrgyzstan beat Jordan and Palestine in friendlies in late December along with a narrow loss to Qatar. The Philippines beat them in two friendlies in 2016 but those were over two years ago and only friendlies. Overall, bare minimum should be damage control against Korea and China and try for a win against Kyrgyzstan but a point wouldn't be a bad result either. Anything more would be a big plus.
Schedule of Azkals games in Asian Cup in the Philippines and UAE. Telecast by Foxsports and ESPN5 is in the Philippines only. I looked up the schedule for Fox Soccer + in the US, and there doesn't seem to be coverage of the Asian Cup. Apparently in North America, the only outlet for Asian Cup TV coverage is through ONE World Sports which is a cable channel I don't have.
In today's Asian Cup schedule Jordan(which lost to Kyrgyztan, tied China and defeated India in their most recent friendlies) just defeated defending champion Australia in the Asian Cup and Thailand(which beat the Philippines in the Suzuki Cup a month ago) lost to India 1-4. The Philippines are going to have a hard time in the group stage just looking at those results. Hopefully the return of Strauss and Sato from their European clubs help solidify the Azkal's defence as that has proven to be their Achilles heel in recent games.
Possible cable providers in the US for ONE World Sports http://golivesportscast.com/sample-page/watch-one-world-sports/
The big mistake was dropping your goalkeeper who plays in EPL. And what did happen to Misagh Bahadoran or Omid Nazari? Misagh was a decent player and goal scorer for Azkals.
Cardiff City is fighting relegation in the English Premiership. So apparently after discussion with Cardiff City management, Neil Etheridge was prevailed upon to stay in England and not join the Azkals. The PFF tends to respect the player's wishes in this kind of career decisions. His place in the Azkal's roster was given to Kevin Mendoza Hansen instead who plays in the Danish Superliga and Michael Falkesgaard who also used to play in the Danish Superliga but now plays in Thailand. Coach Sven Eriksson did not call up Bahadoran(who has been inactive clubwise lately since May 2018) in the recent Suzuki Cup tournament as well as for the Asian Cup. He joined the training camp last December prior to the Suzuki Cup but ended up not making the team. I believe his inactivity cost him a chance to make the team especially with a new coach who has no experience with him making the personnel decisions. Omid Nazari played for Iran in a regional tournament in the Middle East a few years ago and has been unable to get clearance to play for the Philippines.
South Korea v Philippines: Eriksson understands Etheridge's Asian Cup snub Sven-Goran Eriksson has no issue with Neil Etheridge's decision to prioritise Cardiff City's bid for Premier League survival over an Asian Cup campaign with the Philippines. Etheridge has been a star performer for Cardiff this term and elected to stay with the Bluebirds this month rather than join up with his national team. That has left Eriksson, who took charge of the Philippines in October, without his first-choice goalkeeper, but the former England boss sympathises with Etheridge's dilemma. "Of course it's a pity, but I understand, he wants to concentrate totally on his job with Cardiff," he told BBC News ahead of Monday's Group C clash with tournament favourites South Korea. "Cardiff is not on safe ground, so it's very important that he plays well, otherwise he might lose his place in the team, so I understand him. "I think he will play for Philippines in the World Cup, hopefully, but in qualification for sure." Eriksson was out of football for over a year following a failed spell at Chinese side Shenzhen, but insisted that he had no desire to remain away from the game, and jumped at the chance to manage the Philippines at their first Asian Cup appearance. "I don't need to work if I don't want to do it, I need it for my head to work," the 70-year-old added. "I don't know what it is, but doing nothing which is nothing to do with football, I don't like that kind of life. "I grow nervous, restless, I don't know what to do, and that's bad. One day it will finish, but I will hate that day. Football has become a huge drug, it's addictive." South Korea, currently ranked 53rd in the FIFA rankings, are heavy favourites to win Group C, which also includes China and Kyrgyzstan, but coach Paulo Bento has warned against complacency, adding that his side must take heed from Australia's 1-0 defeat to Jordan on Sunday. "We are ready to play against the Philippines," Bento told a news conference. "You always need to respect your opponents. "We can take a good lesson from [Australia's] result. I'm sure our players will stay focused." PLAYERS TO WATCH South Korea – Ki Sung-yueng South Korea will be without star man Son Heung-min for their opening two Group C fixtures, as the Tottenham forward is remaining with his club until after their clash with Manchester United on January 13. That means Newcastle United's Ki Sung-yueng must step up and take the initiative from deep, providing the ammunition for South Korea's forward line. Philippines – Phil Younghusband Philippines are not blessed with the talent that South Korea possess, but in Phil Younghusband, have a potent goalscoring threat. Having come through the ranks at Chelsea, the 31-year-old has become the Philippines' record goalscorer with a tally of 52, and is sure to be the focal point of their attacks. KEY OPTA FACTS - This will be the first encounter at the Asian Cup between South Korea and the Philippines. - This is South Korea's 14th Asian Cup appearance, the joint-most alongside Iran. - South Korea won the first two Asian Cup tournaments (1956, 1960). Since then, they have reached the final four times but have always been defeated, including the last tournament in 2015 (1-2 v Australia, after extra-time). - Philippines are one of three teams to make their Asian Cup debut this year, along with Kyrgyzstan and Yemen. Australia were the last team to reach the knockout stages of the competition on their first appearance (2007). uk.sports.yahoo.com/news/south-korea-v-philippines-eriksson-164630528.html
www.the-afc.com/asiancup/news/preview-group-c-korea-republic-v-philippines#nolink Preview - Group C: Korea Republic v Philippines “Of course we don’t have the easiest of opponents in this tournament, we’re meeting one of the favourites to win the Asian Cup but there are always, now and then, surprises in football,” expressed Eriksson. “So why not even tomorrow?” Speaking at the pre-match press conference in Dubai, Eriksson wasn’t shy to show his excitement in leading the Azkals to their opening match of the Continental showpiece, declaring: “We are, of course, excited as most teams are because you’re about to play the first game in such a big tournament. “We have a team that has never been on this stage before, so that is very good for the whole country, the squad and everybody.” Although the Philippines face the daunting task of playing Korea Republic, who will be making their 14th appearance, Eriksson isn’t entirely concerned about his opponents. “When you meet such a good team, of course you’d have to look at how are they playing, what they are good at, what do you think they will do against us,” he said. “I think we have studied them enough, we think we know what they will be trying to do tomorrow but at the same time if you concentrate everything on how Korea Republic play, we will lose our identity. It is very important that we try to play our way as well. “Korea Republic is a big team, yes that’s for sure, but the Philippines is a big team as well from a big country. You will see tomorrow, that we have a lot of good football players. I’m sure that they are going out tomorrow, the starting-11, they are coming out to give Korea Republic a fight. “On paper, they are the strongest team in our group and one of the strongest in the tournament, we know that, but that’s on paper, we will see how that is in reality.” Group C includes a Marcello Lippi-led China PR and Kyrgyz Republic, who will also be making their debut in the Continental showpiece. While many have picked Korea Republic as the tournament favourites, head coach Paulo Bento has his feet planted firmly on the ground, emphasising his respect for teams competing in the UAE 2019 and acknowledging that it would be to their detriment to underestimate their opponents. “We are going to respect all the teams that we are going to play, and tomorrow we will have this behaviour since the beginning of the game, and we had this behaviour since the beginning of our preparations, which is the most important,” said Bento, who replaced Shin Tae-yong at the helm last August. “A big mistake would be that if we think the game is going to be easy. That is the worst mistake we can make. I believe we are not going to make that (mistake). I believe in my players in the way that they are going to play. “Our focus in this moment, is the game that we are going to play tomorrow. After that, we will think about the second, and after that, the third.” The 49-year-old Portuguese also revealed his knowledge on the Philippines. “We can conclude that Philippines is a team that uses two tactical systems. We will try to prepare our team for both situations, but at the same time, they are a team that uses counter-attacks in a good way with fast players. “It will be a difficult game, but we will try to dominate the game from the beginning, and I think we have a good chance to win the game, although there will be lots of difficulties.”
We all know this team are huge underdogs and only have little to no chance to make it far in the tournament. That the same things that was said to Iceland back in the 2016 European Cup and look what happened. They even got a draw against Argentina in the World Cup last year. If there are some upsets and surprises in the futbol world then I believe the Azkals can do what Iceland did a few years ago. The Philippines need this type of belief and inspiration. Nothing is impossible.
I don’t live in California but expect some viewing watch parties at Asian bars/restaurants in Los Angeles and San Francisco for the Filipinos’ first 2 games against the Koreans and the Chinese.
9:30 PM(Manila Time) which means to me 7:30 AM(CST). Anyways while we are waiting for the Azkal's first match in a couple of hours, you can watch Manny Pacquaio's Showtime ALL Access first episode of Pacquaio vs Broner If he KO's Broner, I think he can take on not just Mayweather but the other favorites in the welterweight division despite despite being 40y/o.
That's not the point. Some of you guys are overrating their chances when there is barely anything to go by that would suggest they could achieve what you're hoping they could do. You might as well come out and say that this Philippine team is on par with everyone else in the group and an upset is very realistic or something else along those lines. The Philippines aren't Iceland! Not even close! The latter qualified for the World Cup and they did it convincingly! Very good on both ends, defensively and offensively. You can't say the same about the Philippines. They could barely get out of their own half in the friendly against Oman in October! Despite reaching the semis in the Suzuki Cup, their performances throughout was very lackluster. Then the icing on the cake is that 4-2 hammering in their only pre-Asian Cup friendly, albeit a 3 x 30 training match but still, conceding four is very poor. Again, squad wise, there's a lack of defensive talent which only fuels the argument that this team will concede, and they'll concede a few at least! Sure, there are upsets in football but looking at the Philippines' situation, there's barely anything to suggest that an upset is on the cards. Anything more than being "competitive" would be a bonus. If they can limit Korea's and China's goals to three, that would be a job well done. Had the Philippines had a much more convincing lead up to the Asian Cup, maybe I'd be on board about a potential upset. Maybe not against Korea but perhaps against China. But that obviously wasn't the case. But if you really insist that an upset is realistic, that's perfectly fine as you're obviously free to believe what you want.
Not sure if this will work but possible livestream for the Asian Cup games http://www.sportcategory.com/c-1.html
Korea Repubic 1- 0 Philippines Korea Republic quickly seized control of the Group C tie but found the Philippines difficult to break down in the opening minutes. Sven-Goran Eriksson’s side, who started without the Younghusband brothers, defended resolutely and played mostly on the counter-attack with Patrick Reichelt and Javier Patino leading their attacks. After numerous failed attempts trying to cut into the Filipino defence from the left flank, Korea Republic were given a superb opportunity to break the deadlock when they were awarded a free-kick after Luke Woodland’s foul on Koo Ja-cheol outside the box but Jung Woo-young’s strike missed the top left corner of the net by inches. Five minutes from the break, Lee Yong’s pass into the penalty box found Hwang Ui-jo, who then turned quickly to unleash a shot but Philippines goalkeeper Michael Falkesgaard made a brilliant save. Moments later, Korea Republic goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu was forced to parry Patino’s volley, that began from a counter-attack after Daisuke Sato intercepted a pass and released a perfect cross to the forward. The Southeast Asians gave Korea Republic a scare 10 minutes into the second half, when a lapse in concentration in the Korean defence allowed Patino to shoot but custodian Kim was in fine form. Korea Republic sent on Hwang In-beom and Lee Chung-yong and less than three minutes later, Lee had an effect on the team when his pass found Hwang Hee-chan, whose back pass set Ui-jo nicely to open the scoring from close range in the 67th minute. The 1956 and 1960 AFC Asian Cup winners used that momentum to their advantage with Ui-jo and In-beom taking turns challenging Falkesgaard but the ‘keeper held firm. Phil Younghusband replaced John Patrick Strauss in the final minute of the game, but it was too little too late as Korea Republic held on to claim the win. Philippines will play China PR next on Friday in Abu Dhabi, while Korea Republic face Kyrgyz Republic in Al Ain in the day’s later match. http://www.the-afc.com/asiancup/news/group-c-korea-republic-1-0-philippines Good game for the Philippines against the much higher ranked South Korea. Hopefully they can get a result in the next game against China.
I was reading the posts from the Korean forum and they were impressed by how many times our lone forward Patino was able to shred the Korean defence by himself making their defence look bad while playing a lower ranked side. They initially were predicting scores of 4-0 and 6-0 so they were surprised we conceded only one goal. The Philippines employed the correct scheme against a much higher ranked team, basically parking the bus and employing a counterattacking system which nearly got them a point. The 0-1 result is respectable and should give the Philippines confidence moving forward. It is definitely better than Thailand's 1-4 result against lower ranked(compared to S Korea) India which resulted in Coach Rajevac getting fired after just one game.
Korean defenese line is prone to error. That is not new to me. Koreans traditionally are dangerous on flanks because of their speed and good attacking midfielders. It was a good performance by Azkals anyway, if you had your #1 GK you could draw with S.Korea.