Back on home ground, the Philippines seeks its first win in the 2022 AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup on Friday night against Brunei Darussalam at Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila.
The RMS has witnessed some of the Azkals’ finest moments in recent memory and they hope to reprise that with a stellar performance as they hope to keep their semifinal hopes alive in the competition.
Kickoff is at 6 p.m. with the home side looking to get their campaign back on track after dropping a 2-3 result to the Cambodians last Monday night.
The Azkals have no choice but to grab maximum points as a draw or defeat will dim their hopes of coming out as one of the top two teams in Group A that also includes last year’s finalists Thailand and Indonesia.
Brunei lost to Thailand in their opening match, 0-6, in Kuala Lumpur.
Against the Philippines, though, the team actually has a winning record, posting five victories and four defeats with their previous match in the qualifying round of the competition ending in a 1-1 draw, 14 years ago.
Brunei stunned the Philippines, 1-0, in the inaugural staging of the tournament in 1996. That remains Brunei’s only win to date in the competition.
The Azkals conceded two early goals against Cambodia, before Kenshiro Daniels grabbed a brace to level the match early in the second half.
But another defensive mixup allowed Cambodia to regain the advantage that the hosts preserved with some solid defending near the end.
Opting for a squad made up of players who don’t have plenty of international experience, and a few veterans, including Stephan Schrock, Spanish coach Josep Ferre hopes playing in front of the home crowd can turn things around for the Azkals.