Team Profile: Philippines

Team Profile: Philippines

Philippines

JERSEY

SQUAD

The Azkals will use 4-5-1 formation as their standard, although they can use two strikers up front when necessary. They are a physical team and have enough players to challenge their opponents on that front. However the team lacks creativity, not to mention that Stephan Schrock is still a question mark as to whether he will be able to play in Bangkok. But with their recent squad, Philippines should be able to surprise the tournament.

POSITION	JERSEY NO.	NAME	AGE
GK	32	Ref Cuaresma	30
GK	47	Rolland Muller	24
GK	88	Eduard Sacapano	32
DF	27	Ray Antoni Johnson	33
DF	2	Robert Gier	31
DF	5	Juan Luis Guirado	33
DF	8	Dennis Cagara	27
DF	14	Carlie de Murga	23
DF	3	Jason Sabio	26
DF	28	Jeffrey Cristaens	21
MF	7	James Younghusband	26
MF	19	Jerry Lucena	32
MF	22	Paul Mulders	31
MF	13	Emelio Caligdong	30
MF	34	Demetrius Omphroy	23
MF	21	Jason de Jong	22
MF	12	Angel Guirado	27
MF	29	Patrick Reichelt	24
MF	24	Marwin Angeles	21
FW	20	Dennis Wolf	29
FW	10	Phillip Younghusband	25
FW	18	Cristoper Greatwich	29
COACH		Michael Weiß	47

KEY PLAYERS

Jeffrey Christiaens	Emelio "Cheffy" Caligdong	Phil Younghusband
One of the Philippines' best prospects. The half-Belgian can play both midfield and defender roles. Previously used to play in the left flank as Emelio "Cheffy" Caligdong's stand-in, Christiaens has now earned a regular position in the defensive line.	Besides his regular position as left-flank drifter, Cheffy is also known as an influential figure on the team, able to get his team-mates to work together. He made his debut at the 2004 AFF Suzuki Cup, scoring two late goals against Timor Leste to give Philippines their first-ever win in the tournament. A legend in the making.	The most popular player from Philippines, not only because of his posh figure, but also his presence in the team's front line. A former Chelsea academy player, Phil is the Azkals goal-getter and often score in big games such as when they beat Vietnam two years ago. His six goals during the AFC Challenge Cup earlier this year earned him golden shoe award as well as fourth place for Philippines.

COACH

Hans Michael Weiss

Hans Michael Weiss, a German coach with a football director diploma in his pocket. With that background, Weiss probably is the right man to coach the developing Philippines. His tactical wisdom is yet unproven because most of his focus has been on integrating abroad-based players with his local players. He's a good communicator, represented in his decision to select one player each from these groups to serve as co-captains.

PAST AFF CUP RESULTS

Year	Group Rank	Tournament Rank
1996	5	Group Stage
1998	5	Group Stage
2000	5	Group Stage
2002	4	Group Stage
2004	5	Group Stage
2007	5	Group Stage
2008	N/A	Did Not Qualify
2010	2	Semi-Final

LAST TEN MATCHES

Date	Venue	Match	Event	Score
15/11/2012	Cebu	vs Singapore	Friendly	W 1-0
16/10/2012	Kuwait City	vs Kuwait	Friendly	L 1-2
12/10/2012	Manama	vs Bahrain	Friendly	D 0-0
29/09/2012	Manila	vs Taipei	Friendly	W 3-1
27/09/2012	Manila	vs Macau	Friendly	W 5-0
25/09/2012	Manila	vs Guam	Friendly	W 1-0
07/09/2012	Singapore	vs Singapore	Friendly	W 2-0
12/06/2012	Bacolod	vs Guam	Friendly	W 3-0
05/06/2012	Manila	vs Indonesia	Friendly	D 2-2
01/06/2012	Kuala Lumpur	vs Malaysia	Friendly	D 0-0