Fil-German to boost Azkals AFC Challenge bid

MANILA, Philippines - A veteran player from Germany, Denis Santos Wolf, will reinforce the Philippine Azkals in their coming international sorties, particularly the AFC Challenge Cup in Nepal in March.

The 29-year-old Wolf, a striker/attacking midfielder for Regionalliga Nord club FC Magdeburg, arrived in Manila this week to join the Azkals’ practices as the team began its preparations for the March 8-19 Challenge Cup.

“I don’t know the whole team (yet) but a lot of good characters in them. Looking forward (to playing with the Azkals),” Wolf was quoted in an ABS-CBN report.

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Stallion Makes Strong First Division Debut

by Joel Amos Alejandro on January 16, 2012 soccercentral.ph

The scorching Stallions Gilligan's FC burned down the Philippine Navy Redjuice FC squad by six goals under the blazing sun last January 15 at the University of Makati Football Field.

The Iloilo-based squad started their season strong as they denied any goal opportunities for the Navymen. Joo Young Lee was the man of the match and his worth as a finisher for accomplishing a hattrick during the 33rd, 50th, and 75th minutes.

Three bookings were made against Navy. Yellow cards were given to Peter John Fadrigalan and Jimmy Dizon during the 8th and 22nd minute mark respectively. The big red card was handed out to Gerald Orcullo during the 40th minute.

Nine minutes after kick-off, Byeong Jun Yoon converted his attempt giving them an early lead. They did not let up the attack leading Joo Young Lee to his first goal by the 33rd minute mark. At the 40th minute, Navy made a critical error as they were left with 10 men on the field while being behind by two goals. Orcullo was flashed with the big red card by the officials.

The first half was a disaster for the Navy as they conceded 12 fouls and only 2 attempts on target despite a higher possession rate of 60%. The Stallion, on the other hand, had seven chances and converted early two goals.

The second half was a storm of attempts and chances for the Stallion as their passes remained fluid from the defenders. Their offense bloomed due to high passing accuracy shown even during long lobs from the midfield to the attack zone. On the other hand, Navy was not able to demonstrate much offense during the second half recording no shot attempts. Possession rate was inverted during this half with Navy accumulating only about 40% of the time.
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Azkals’ coach to focus on local talents

GERMAN ‘Azkals’ head coach Hans Michael Weiss will focus on the full development of pure-blooded Filipino football players in years to come to strengthen the national team’s familiarity in every overseas tournament they play in.

Weiss told the Manila Times in an interview over the weekend that it takes a difficult time to assemble a mixture of Filipino-foreign and local players to compete in any tournament because most players will not be released by their club teams.

“Right now, familiarity is what we need in the team,” said Weiss, who is preparing the Philippine ‘Azkals’ to the Asian Football Confederation Challenge Cup on March 9 to 13 in Nepal where the country is bracketed with North Korea, Tajikistan and India.”

“Fil-foreign players will play for five times a year then leave. Nothing will happen after that,” said Weiss. “That’s why I’m going to focus on the local side this year maybe after the Challenge Cup because the players are available every time you need them.”

He said in other countries mostly in Southeast Asia, Asia and European all national teams have their own players who are exclusive only for the national team that they develop throughout the years.

“I’m going to continue evaluating the team because the management is also evaluating my performance based on the results of the competitions we played in,” said Weiss. “I’m hoping my players will play together for a long period of time.”

Weiss said there are many potential football talents in the province

and the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) could look into it by means of its grassroots programs to put them in a national training pool together.

“We need to focus on the young local talents,” said Weiss, who remains optimistic though of the chances of the Filipinos in the coming Challenge Cup. “I’m always confident about my players. We’ll do our best there.”

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Barotac Nuevo - A slice of football heaven

By BOB GUERRERO

MANILA, Philippines — It is the day after Christmas, and like the Three Kings, Ebong Joson, a.k.a. the Blue Haired Fanatic, and I are on a pilgrimage. We find ourselves in Barotac Nuevo, Iloilo province, to soak in the atmosphere of the Philippines’ number one football town.

Barotac Nuevo has produced national team footballers for generations as university football programs regularly recruit thoroughbred players from the small town. Her sons populate the rosters of top club teams. Almost all the notable homegrown Pinoys on the Azkals learned their football growing up there. In a basketball-mad nation, Barotac Nuevo has always been an oasis of the Beautiful Game.

Azkal Ian Araneta planned a youth tournament here in his hometown months ago. He invited superfan Ebong to watch. Ebong invited me. In seconds, I decided to go. In minutes, I had booked my flights online.
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UST edges FEU in men's football

The University of Sto. Tomas relied on its defense to shut down Far Eastern University for a 1 - 0 win in its opening match in the UAAP Season 74 football tournament on Saturday at the Ateneo de Manila field.

UST Coach Marjo Allado credited the team’s defense for the victory, noting that UST had trouble with FEU in the first half due to the Tamarraw booters' aggressiveness on the offensive end.

“Marami talaga silang attempts noong first half. Sila yung nag-dictate ng pace kasi nangangapa pa kami. Wala pang match fitness yung mga players namin since hindi kami masyadong nakalaro during the pre-season,” he explained.

Allado added that despite adding new players, FEU remains a dangerous team that focuses on attacks which is why he instructed his players to focus on stopping their offensive players.

The UST coach said the team got its wind back in the second half, and turned the pressure on FEU that allowed Golden Booter ace striker Christian de Juan to score the team’s lone goal at the 43rd minute mark.

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Azkals battle Korean team in Kia Rio Cup

abs-cbnNEWS.com
MANILA, Philippines -- Just a few weeks after their historic match against CF Internacional de Madrid, the Philippine Azkals take on another foreign football squad in an effort to help the victims of Tropical Storm Sendong.

This time, the Philippine Azkals will face South Korean team Icheon Citizen FC in a friendly match on January 21 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.

"We were very moved by what happened to the Philippines recently, with the tragic floods," Icheon Citizen FC head coach Hyun-Chang Lee said in a statement.

"Even though we are coming from far away and intend to try our best to win, this is a friendly match for a good cause," he added.

Sendong lashed Southern Philippines last December, leaving over 1,000 people dead and thousands more homeless. Last January 7, the Azkals played CF Internacional de Madrid in a charity game, with the proceeds going to victims of Sendong.

Lee said that the Koreans also intend to show their sympathy for the Filipinos with this friendly match.
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Rampaging Fullback: Joshua Beloya will be a star, and other things we learned

Ryan Fenix, special to InterAKTV
Two-time defending champion Philippine Air Force’s title defense started off on the wrong foot, with Eric Dagroh’s early goal in the 4th minute of play enough to see title rivals Kaya emerge victorious in the opening day match of the new UFL season.

Here are five things we learned from the game.
1. Joshua Beloya will be the next Philippine football star

Stung by that painful capitulation at the hands of the Loyola Meralco Sparks in the semifinals of the last UFL Cup, Kaya added more weapons to their lineup in the offseason, signing Alu Kigbu and Under-23 national standout Joshua Beloya. And it was Beloya who shone brightest for Kaya when he came on, beguiling defenders and showcasing his talent in front of the local football fans.

Displaying a superb first touch and great vision, Beloya continually threatened the Air Force goal, and it was only the timely intervention of goalie Tats Mercado that prevented the youthful striker from opening his account in the league.

In 45 minutes of a substitute appearance, Beloya lived up to the hype surrounding his signing for Kaya. Have we seen a potential strike partner or perhaps a successor for Phil Younghusband? Given more time to mature, we may perhaps be witnessing the next star of Philippine football develop before our very eyes.
2. Anton del Rosario and Jason Sabio are bedrocks of the Kaya defense

Air Force’s attack was, for the most part, toothless in this game, and big credit has to be given to the two centerbacks, Anton del Rosario and Jason Sabio, our men of the match for this game.

The maiden game of the 2012 season saw a marked improvement in the performance from the defender from Alabama, as he thwarted Air Force’s attack time and time again. Much-maligned in the past for his erratic defending, Sabio has risen to the challenge and shown the kind of performance in defense that will surely win over his critics.

In the absence due to injury of captain Aly Borromeo, Anton del Rosario has taken over the captain’s armband and has stepped up to lead Kaya on the field as well. Deployed Saturday as a centerback, he may not have been as influential in directing play as he would have been if he was playing in his customary right back position. However, he was instrumental in warding off the threat of Air Force strikers Yanti Barsales and Ian Araneta, en route to a masterful performance in central defense.

With Borromeo out until April, this solid showing by Sabio and del Rosario will also serve as a welcome boost for coach Hans Michael Weiss and the Azkals in their quest for glory in the AFC Challenge Cup to be held in March this year.
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UFL DIVISION 1: Stallion sinks Navy for lead

MANILA, Philippines — Proving its promotion to the first division was no fluke, Stallion Gilligans overwhelmed Navy Red Juice, 6-0, Sunday night to move on top of the United Football League on goal difference at the UMak field.

Korean striker Lee Joo-young produced a hat-trick as Stallion tore the Navy defense to shreds with slick passing and quick combination plays.

The convincing win pushed Stallion to the No. 1 spot, ahead of opening-day winners Kaya and Loyola Meralco, which held off Green Archers United, 3-2, Saturday night at the Rizal Memorial Stadium. Kaya nipped defending champion Air Force Phoenix, 1-0.

“We played a very good Navy team and it was closer than the scoreline indicated,” said Stallion manager Ernie Nierras. “We moved the ball well when they were pressing.”

Newcomer Park Bo-bae, who played for Busan in the K-League, also scored in his debut for Stallion with a left-footed effort in the 77th minute.

Yoon Byeong-jun and Jimmy Vergara also got on the scoresheet for Stallion, a squad is made up of Ilonggos and Korean students at the Central Philippine University in Iloilo.

Navy went down to 10 men in the 40th minute as Gerald Orcullo was sent off for a dangerous challenge on Yoon.

Lee put the outcome beyond doubt with a close-range strike five minutes into the second half.
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