Football
Azkals coach ‘not too disappointed’ in draw, but worried about Phil’s health
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – In his heart, Philippine national men’s football coach Hans Michael Weiss knew he had a superior team. But while the Azkals’ 1-1 result Wednesday against unheralded Sri Lanka was less than ideal, the German coach says that he’d take the draw and look forward to the second leg of the match in Manila.
“I’m not the happiest man in the world, but I’m not too disappointed,” said Weiss. “We take the result as it is and prepare for the match on Sunday.”
Weiss remained confident about the ability of his team despite the result. “I think we were superior and if we score first or second goal the game would have been over,” he said.
Weiss’ counterpart on the Sri Lanka sideline, Korean coach Jang Jung, could not hide his disappointment after the match. The Brave Reds took an early lead on a goal by midfielder Chathura Gunarathna off a free kick at the 43rd minute, and the team looked poised for an upset heading into the locker room at half-time.
But the Azkals came up with the tying goal on a follow-up header by Nate Burkey off James Younghusband’s own missed header, a play facilitated by a curling free kick by Chieffy Caligdong.
“Of course we are not happy with the draw as the home team,” said Jang. “With a little more composure, and being a little more alert, we could have won.”
For the Sri Lankan coach, the match in Colombo might have been the best opportunity for a victory over the Azkals for his team. He realizes that they face tall odds in Manila. “Our team is a young squad, and going to the Philippines is a big advantage,” he said. “But we will try our best.”
Still, Jang commended the play of his boys, a ragtag bunch of veteran campaigners and youthful footballers who have only been training together for a short period of time. “I’m quite happy with the boys’ team display,” he said. “We need a longer period training together, so we hope to improve in the next two to three years.”
Weiss, meanwhile, isn’t looking too far ahead. For now, one of his biggest concerns is the injury status of Phil Younghusband, who left the pitch with what looked to be a hamstring injury at the 20th minute.
Younghusband, who also missed the 2011 AFC Challenge Cup qualifier last March due to a pulled hamstring, broke away for three shots at the goal in the first half against Sri Lanka, but failed to score.
“I don’t know how serious it is yet,” said Weiss on Younghusband’s injury. “It is a big setback to change our striker. Hopefully, he can play on Sunday.”
Despite scoring the lone goal for the Philippines, Younghusband’s replacement Burkey didn’t have his coach’s full confidence just yet.
“Burkey wasn’t quite at the level I expected him to be, so I had to take him out in the second half,” said Weiss, who sent in veteran striker Ian Araneta in Burkey’s place late in the match.
Weiss admitted that there was some complacency among the Azkals against Sri Lanka, something that he hopes that the evening’s result would erase.
“The game isn’t played on Facebook or Twitter or TV… it’s played on the pitch,” he said. “At this level you should never estimate an opponent and that was a big mistake.”
