The Philippine men’s national football team (PMNFT) ended its year on a high note after securing its first clean sheet in the 2027 AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers with a 2-0 victory over Maldives at the National Football Stadium in Male on Tuesday.
First half goals from Jefferson Tabinas and Sandro Reyes sealed all three points for the Philippines, keeping the squad tied with Tajikistan at 13 points heading into the decisive Group A finale in March 2026.
Tabinas opened the scoring in the 24th minute, heading in his third goal of the tournament off another well-worked corner kick from the left. The center back now has five international goals to his name.
PMNFT fead coach Carles Cuadrat praised the execution, saying: “It’s good that we score in the set pieces… the set piece that we scored in the corner, it was something that we worked on during the training camp.”
Just before halftime, Reyes doubled the lead with his fifth international goal, pouncing on a pass from Jarvey Gayoso and cutting Samooh Ali with a skillful finish.
The Philippines nearly added a third goal after second half attempts from Gayoso, Dylan DeMuynck, Bjorn Kristensen, and Sebastian Rasmussen, but could not convert.
Cuadrat acknowledged the strong performance but expressed a desire for greater ruthlessness
Referring to the goal difference between fellow frontrunner Tajikistan, Cuadrat said: “We need three goals, but we couldn’t make that… we deserve to score minimum one, two, three goals more. We did the job to get a more comfortable victory, but we have to understand that football is like this sometimes, and it was a short result for us.”
Philippine Football Federation (PFF) President John Anthony Gutierrez celebrated the win and commended the team’s resilience throughout the campaign.
“This result is a reflection of the hard work that the players, the coaches, and the staff have put in throughout the year. We can see the progression. We know what this team is capable of, and tonight they showed it,” he said.
Gutierrez also reassured Filipino football fans of the Federation’s support as the team enters its most crucial match yet: “We understand how big the game in Tajikistan will be, and the PFF is fully behind the team. Our preparations continue, and we want the players to feel that the entire country is with them. We believe they have what it takes to finish the job.”
Despite Maldives having a couple of second opportunities, particularly a unmarked attack by Naiz Hassan that was botched by goalkeeper Kevin Ray Mendoza in the 50th minute and a narrow miss by Ali Fasir in the 85th minute, the Filipinos controlled the match from kickoff.
Cuadrat credited the mentality and preparation: “We have explained to them that we have to start the game with the right intensity, the right focus… from the first minute, they showed that they wanted to go for the game, and I really saw that the work paid off.”
With the win, the Philippines sets up a must-win away clash against Tajikistan on March 31, 2026, to secure qualification.
Cuadrat was clear about what lies ahead: “It’s a clear message—we need to win in Tajikistan.”
Gutierrez added a final reminder of the bigger picture.
“We are building something long-term for Philippine football. Regardless of the pressure, we are staying the course. While the goal is to qualify for the Asian Cup, the overarching mission is to establish national teams that can consistently compete at the highest level in Asia,” Gutierrez concluded.
