Football
Azkals bounce back vs Qatar club team
The Philippine national men’s football team showed much improvement in defeating Qatar club Al Ahli, 3-1, Monday in a tuneup match at the Al Ahli Sports Club Stadium in Doha.
It was the Azkals’ second match in their 10-day Middle East trip. The Philippine side succumbed to the Uzbekistan Under-23 national team, 3-0, last Saturday.
Buoyed by a strong overseas Filipino convenient cheering at the stadium, star striker Phil Younghusband scored a brace that sandwiched a goal by from Filipino-German Denis Wolf. Marwin Angeles, a member of the Under-23 squad that competed in the Southeast Asian Games, also impressed with his playmaking in the midfield.
But the real story was the Azkals’ much-improved defense, help in no small measure by the arrival of veteran international campaigner Ray Jonsson, who took over the left back position. That allowed Carli de Murga to move to the right back spot, which was occupied by James Younghusband against the Uzbeks. A natural midfielder, the elder Younghusband struggled in the role.
Ali Solaiman Abshiri scored the Qatari’s lone goal at the 57th minute when the Azkals already had a 3-nil lead.
