PH men’s football team stuns Indonesia to end long Mitsubishi Cup semis drought

MANILA, Philippines – Miracles may have been elusive in Manila against Vietnam, but the Filipinos made sure of history in Surakarta. 

The Philippine men’s national football team survived a heated affair against Indonesia, 1-0, to punch a semifinal ticket in the ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup for the first time in six years at the Manahan Stadium in Surakarta, Indonesia, on Saturday, December 21. 

Bjorn Kristensen nailed the decisive goal off a penalty kick in the 63rd minute after Indonesia’s Yrick Gallantes committed a handball, allowing the Filipino to score his second goal of the tournament and, most importantly, snag the country the last semis slot in Group B. 

The last time the Filipinos entered the tournament’s semifinals was in 2018, when it was still known as the Suzuki Cup, with the Philippine team carrying the Azkals moniker. At the time, the team was still being coached by Sven-Göran Eriksson. 

It was the Philippines’ first win against Indonesia in over 10 years, with the last one being a 4-0 drubbing in the 2014 ASEAN Championship. 

“I got no words. I’m just so happy to be part of this team… We’ve come from so much difficulties from the past and now to make history again [reaching] the semifinals — it means so much to me, to the team, to the fans back home,” said Philippines’ team captain Amani Aguinaldo, who also delivered crucial headers late to cut off Indonesia’s penetrations. 

“I know we’ve been struggling a lot in the past few years but I’m just very grateful for the people who never stopped supporting us. The boys deserved it. Everybody worked so hard. Hopefully, we keep our momentum and go as far as we could,” he added. 

The Indonesians played undermanned for most of the game as captain Muhammad Ferarri was thrown out due to a red card in the 42nd minute. 

The Philippines also endured the exit of a key player as goalkeeper Patrick Deyto got tackled from behind by Indonesia’s Rayhan Hannan in the ninth minute, resulting in an injury that rendered him in crutches after the game. 

Quincy Kaamerad then stepped up to carry the goalie duties for the rest of the match, tallying five saves to blank the hosts in front of their raucous crowd. 

Kaamerad capped off his astounding showing with a last-minute save of Ronaldo Joybera’s attempt before the final whistle. 

With the win, the Filipinos will be facing Group A’s top seed Thailand, in a two-legged, home-and-away semifinals, which will start on December 27 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium. 

The Philippines finished the group stage with 6 points, built on one win and three draws, to upset the Indonesians, who held Group B’s second seed for most of the group stage. 

Coinciding with the Philippines’ victory, Vietnam delivered a 5-0 beatdown of Myanmar, enabling the Filipinos to steal the second spot. – Rappler.com