SHORT on fitness, pace and personnel, the Philippine Azkals dropped a close 2-3 decision to Chinese-Taipe in a highly-entertaining international friendly that went down the wire at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium on a rainy Monday night.
In front of close to 4,000 enthusiastic hometown fans who braved the downpour, the Filipino booters surged to a 2-1 halftime lead but just could not hang on against the faster and fitter Taiwanese visitors.
Going from goat to great in a 10-minute span, midfielder Mike Ott scored the equalizer on a penalty kick in the 12th minute after deflecting Wu Yen-shu’s free kick that resulted in a freak opening goal in the second minute.
Veteran striker Patrick Reichelt, who showed up with a bandaged forehead that was injured in the squad’s 1-0 win over Nepal last week, struck from the left flank to give the lead back to the hosts at the break.
While Fil-British goalkeeper and captain Neil Etheridge was stellar at the net in his comeback game, their rivals banked on their better physical conditioning and the Azkals’ defensive breakdowns that paved the way for their come-from-behind win.
The tenacious Taiwanese finally scored the equalizer 12 minutes into the second half, with Yu Yao-hsing slipping past defender Carli de Murga on the left wing to roll in a 10-yarder.
The charges of British coach Gary White delivered the coup de grace when another defensive lapsed allowed Lin Ming Wei to drive in the winning marker in the 90th minute on a follow-up during a goalmouth scramble.
Much to the delight of the hometown gallery, the never-say-die Azkals continued to look for the tying marker in injury time, which Fil-Spanish defender Kike Linares nearly did with a last-gasp strike in the 93rd minute that was saved by the Taiwanese goalkeeper.
Despite the loss, local fans gave the Nationals a standing ovation in providing them with a showcase of creative and offense-oriented football that was a hallmark of the Azkals in the first stint of German coach Michael Weiss.
Weiss acknowledged the shortcomings of the team, including the lack of fitness of some of the players, while seeing silver linings in his first two matches with the squad.
“We were a bit lucky that we could have a 2-1 lead with morale and spirit, but in the second half even these could not help us, meaning that if you go into the camp without being fit you cannot cover up anymore,” the German tactician stressed. “Some of our players were not in really good shape. But I really have to say that it was a well-deserved win for Chinese-Taipei.”
“We tried to pull a rabbit out of the hat in the second half but we failed to do so,” rued national team manage Dan Palami as the Azkals prepare for the Asian Cup and World Cup qualifiers in November.
He singled out Fil-Spanish defender Linares “who was the discovery of the match. We really found a good, young defender who can really help us as we move forward.”
“The potential (of the team) is there. If this group is fit, there will be more positives in the next September and October windows,” Weiss said.
