THE Philippine Football Federation has lined up a slew of international competitions for the national men’s squad in its bid to make the Pinoy side a force to reckon with anew in the Mitsubishi Electric Cup, the AFF Men’s Football Championship, kicking off in November.
The charges of Belgian tactician Tom Sainfiet are lined up for the prestigious Merdeka Cup from Sept. 2 to 10 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, according to national team manager and PFF national teams director Freddy Gonzalez.
They will take on the hosts, Lebanon and Tajikistan, which are ranked higher in the FIFA world ratings at Nos. 135, 117 and 102, respectively, than the Philippines (No. 146) in the four-nation tournament.
The Pinoy footballers will also action in the much tougher Kings Cup in Bangkok, Thailand from Oct. 7 to 15 featuring the eight-time AFF men’s champions Thais, Tajikistan and Syria.
After these competitions, Gonzalez said the squad will have two more friendly matches from Nov. 11 to 19, one most likely to be played at home, that will serve as their final tune-up before plunging into Group A action in the Mitsubishi Electric Cup against Myanmar on Nov. 27 at the Philippine Sports Stadium in Bocaue, Bulacan.
After their breakthrough semifinals in the competition in 2010, the Nationals, known then as the Azkals, also gained the semis two more times in 2012 and 2014 but missed the semis bus when the country hosted the group stage in 2016.