It was an Overwhelming Game!
It feels like we already won the world cup. This was indeed the most hyped and important game the Philippine Azkals have played. We won versus Vietnam, Bahrain, DPR Korea and even tied with Azerbaijan, but this is the most overwhelming game the Philippine Azkals have played. It was my first time to see players played with full heart. The players played aggressively striving to win the ball back.
Philippines actually just need a win or a draw to advance to the Asian Cup, but things got a little bit shaky when Tajikistan got the first goal of the game at the 64th minute via penalty. It was indeed a penalty, but for us : it's a penalty of agony. It was difficult to accept that goal knowing for a fact that we controlled the game and Tajikistan only rely on their counter attacks. But we need to accept it and moved on.
Photcredit : neil38etheridge's Twitter account
But the environment was different
The crowd is still cheering the Philippine team despite the goal deficit. The Philippine Azkals players seem to be worried about the game but the atmosphere pushed them to be back at shape. A series of quality defense happened until we got the header of Kevin Ingreso on the 74th minute and tied at 1-1. I literally jumped from my seat seeing that goal. It was an amazing header perfectly placed at the upper left corner. The Tajikistan goal keeper couldn't do more about it as it was definitely out of his reach.
Things go on as Tajikistan were eager enough to score a goal for them go get a ticket for the Asian Cup but Philippines was more hungrier than them. They play with extreme pressure just to get the ball back and quickly gained possession. The chemistry of the players passes seemed to workout smooth. Their confidence indeed was boosted not only for the goal but for the chants and cheers of the Filipinos shouting throughout the game. It was my first time to see Filipino fans cheering that can be clearly heard in Philippine television (LIGA SD on Skycable).
Who can dare to believe we're cheering that much when in fact where a Basketball Crazy nation?
Screenshot courtesy of flashcore.com
That means were on top of the Standings
A direct bid to AFC Asian Cup 2019 in United Arab Emirates. This is the first time to see Philippines qualify for Asian Cup, a first step for a bid towards World Cup. I know for a fact we are far behind that stint but it's definitely a good thing to see us qualifying for the Asian Cup. I'm excited as to what this achievement brings to Philippine Football and it made me more passionate loving Football.
Bdw, I'm still rooting for Argentina and Spain this World Cup 2018 in Russia. I believe in Argentina's Messi and Spain's team plays :)
A Proud Moment
It may not be a big achievement to other countries but for us, it's like winning a World Cup lol. Thank you for reading our proud achievement. :)
Photocredit : The Azkals